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It seems like a pudding but it isn’t.
We can have it with fruit, or serve it with different sauces which range from the classic caramel or chocolate, to vanilla or coffee.
The classic panna cotta is one of the best-known and loved desserts around, and it is perfect for an end of lunch sweet, a tasty snack or after dinner treat.
Today we are going to give you some handy hints and tips for preparing it and, naturally, some delicious variations on the recipe for coffee panna cotta.
Tricks for making panna cotta
Fresh products, a little resting time in the fridge and a tasty sauce to accompany it are just some of the ingredients which can make the perfect panna cotta.
Let’s take a closer look.
Fresh Cream
In order to prepare the best version of this fresh dessert, the main ingredient must be fresh cream: heat it, without bringing to the boil, on a low gas.
Then gradually add the flavors you have chosen to use.
Gelatine
This is the ingredient that gives the dessert its gelatinous quality as it cools.
It comes in the form of semi-rigid leaves, and you need to soften these leaves in cold water and wring them out very well before adding them to the cream.
Furthermore, the gelatine must be in correct proportion to the quantity of liquid.
If you add too little, you could end up with a shaky result.
On the other hand if you add too much, you run the risk of having a very solid dessert with a rubbery texture.
The correct quantity is about 0.28 oz for every 16.91 fl oz of cream.
Resting time
Once you have completed the preparation, the mixture must be divided into the appropriate molds which will then be covered and left to rest in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
Obviously, it is also possible to prepare the panna cotta the day before, turning it out onto a plate and adding the sauce just before serving.
The accompanying sauce
After preparing the panna cotta, you can enrich it with a sauce, choosing the flavor that you love best: the classic caramel, for example, or a chocolate sauce or a fruits of the forest coulis, without, of course, forgetting the coffee version.
There’s a sauce to suit everyone’s taste.
The recipe for coffee panna cotta
After having seen the tricks for the preparation, let’s now take a look together at some variations which stand out for their delicious hints of coffee.
Coffee Panna cotta
In this case, the coffee is used, not as a sauce to accompany the dessert, but as an ingredient included directly in the panna cotta to flavor it.
The recipe requires decoration using pieces of dark chocolate
Ingredients for 6 molds:
● 4.4 fl oz of Filicori Zecchini Espresso
● 16.91 fl oz of fresh cream
● 2.82 oz of sugar
● 1 vanilla pod
● 0.28 oz of gelatine
Method
1. Firstly, pour some cold water into a bowl and immerse the gelatine leaves in it.
Prepare the coffee with the mocha and pour it into a saucepan with the sugar. Add the cream and mix well.
Use a knife to open the vanilla pod and scrape out the contents to add to the cream.
Heat everything over a low heat without bringing to the boil.
Then, switch off and add the gelatine leaves (having squeezed out the excess liquid) and stir delicately until you get a dense mixture.
2. Divide the mixture equally between the molds, cover with clear plastic wrap and leave to solidify in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
Just before serving, turn out the panna cotta onto a small plate and decorate with small pieces of dark chocolate.
Chocolate panna cotta with coffee sauce
In this recipe, the sweetness of the chocolate contrasts well with the strong flavor of the coffee sauce.
Ingredients for 6 people
For the panna cotta:
● 16.91 fl oz of fresh cream
● 0.28 oz of gelatine
● 3.53 oz of sugar
Filicori Zecchini dark chocolate
For the coffee sauce:
● 5.07 fl oz of Filicori Zecchini Coffee
● 2 spoonfuls of sugar
● 1.76 oz of Filicori Zecchini dark chocolate
Method
1. First of all, put the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water.
Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie, remove from the heat and put to one side.
In a small saucepan pour the the fresh cream and sugar, stir and heat without bringing to the boil.
Then, remove from the heat and add the melted chocolate, stirring delicately with a whisk.
Wring out the gelatine leaves, add them to the mixture and stir.
Pour the panna cotta into the appropriate molds and leave them to cool to room temperature.
Keep in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.
2. Just before serving, prepare the sauce: make the coffee using the mocha, add sugar and leave to one side. Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie and pour in the sweetened coffee. Stir and cook for a few minutes over a low heat, just enough to reduce it a little. Remove the panna cotta from the fridge, turn it out onto a plate and pour the warm coffee sauce over it. Serve immediately
Coffee Panna cotta without gelatine
In order to make the coffee panna cotta recipe without gelatine, it is possible to substitute this ingredient with egg whites and choose to cook your sweet using the Bain-Marie method in the oven.
Ingredients for 6 people
● 10.14 fl oz of fresh cream
● 3 shots of Filicori Zecchini espresso
● 4.06 fl oz of full-fat milk
● 2 egg whites
● 2.47 oz of sugar
● powdered cinnamon for decoration
Method
1. Prepare the coffee using the mocha, pour it into a bowl and add the sugar.
Pour the milk and cream into a small saucepan, add the coffee and heat without bringing to the boil.
Remove from the heat and add the egg whites, mixing with the whisk.
Pour the mixture into oven-proof molds.
Then, take a baking tin, and arrange the molds in the bottom and fill the base of the baking tray with water until it reaches just over half the height of the molds.
2. Preheat the oven to 320°F and cook for 40 minutes, or until a light skin has formed on the surface of each one.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool, first to room temperature, then place in the fridge for at least an hour. Serve directly in the molds, decorating with the powdered cinnamon
What do you think of these recipes?
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