Strawberry Panna Cotta

This elegant strawberry panna cotta is surprisingly easy to make. In fact, it has just 5 ingredients and takes 10 minutes to prepare. Hence, it's a perfect make-ahead dessert for entertaining guests.

Table of Content

• Why make this Panna Cotta
• Ingredients and substitutes
• Strawberry panna cotta
• Tips for success
• More panna cotta recipes
• Frequently Asked Questions
• You may also like
• Printable Recipe
• Join the conversation

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The two Italian desserts that are perfect to entertain are a panna cotta and Tiramisu. Am I wrong? Both can be made ahead and both are elegant as they are delicious. And, the best part is, they are both so easy to make.

We are a huge dessert-loving family. So, making dessert at home is very common. And yet, you must see the big smile in the house when we have panna cotta in the fridge. It doesn't matter what flavor. However, the most popular ones with my kids are vanilla, strawberry, blueberry, and mango. I recently made this as a strawberry panna cotta tart and it was a huge hit with friends

Why make this Panna Cotta

• As I said, it takes only 10 minutes to make this dessert and it needs only 5 ingredients.
• Most of the ingredients in this recipe are simple pantry staples or easy to find. In fact, I bet all of these are probably already in your kitchen.
• And, there are two components to this dessert.
  • The cream mixture – A basic panna cotta is made with cream, milk, gelatin, and sugar.
  • The fruit variation – Today, we add the strawberry puree to give this a strawberry flavor.
• The process is also fairly simple:
  • Pulse the fruit - 2 mins
  • Cook the panna cotta mixture - 5 mins
  • Combine the above two - 2 mins
  • Pour into cups - 2 mins
  • Chill - 4 hours or overnight
  • Garnish - 2 mins

Ingredients and substitutes

• Whipping Cream - I have used 38% fat content for my whipping cream. You want to use a minimum of 32% if not more. Since low-fat creams will set into a very soft Panna Cotta.
• Whole milk - You also need to use whole milk, not low-fat. And yet, you can substitute with almond milk if you prefer.
• Sugar - It is best to use castor or fine-grain white sugar. You want the sugar to dissolve easily without affecting the color of the mixture.
• Gelatin - It's best to use unflavored gelatin so that the strawberry flavor shines beautifully.
• Strawberries - I have used fresh strawberries because they are in season. And yet, you can also use frozen strawberries for the puree. Just pulse and sieve them just the same way.

Strawberry panna cotta

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Strawberry puree

• Pulse the strawberries in a food processor or blender until smooth. Pass through a fine mesh or sieve to remove seeds. Use the amount requested in this recipe.
  Pro tip - Use one cup for the panna cotta mixture and save the rest for the topping.

Prepare panna cotta

• In a bowl, add the milk and sprinkle gelatin over the cold milk. Stir and set aside for 3 to 5 minutes.
  Pro tip - if you let the gelatin bloom/soak it will dissolve easily with a smoother consistency rather than grainy
• In a heavy-bottom saucepan, heat the cream and sugar until sugar dissolves and cream comes to an almost boil.
• Add the vanilla extract and the soaked gelatin milk. Continue to cook until the gelatin is all dissolved and the mixture is well heated thru.

• Take the mixture off the heat and add the strawberry puree. Sieve the mixture thru a mesh.
  Pro tip - straining will remove any undissolved gelatin or remaining strawberry seeds.
• Let cool for five minutes. Then, gently pour the mixture into the cooled/partially frozen tart shell.
  Pro tip - I prefer to pour over the back of a spoon for a gentle pour. That way you won't get any crumbs from the tart into the panna cotta mixture.
• Sieve the mixture through a mesh to get any undissolved gelatin or remaining strawberry seeds.
• Gently pour the mixture into individual serving glasses. Let chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.

Top with jello & garnish

• Divide the remaining strawberry puree between the chilled individual panna cotta. Garnish with fresh strawberries
• Enjoy

Tips for success

• Serving - Panna Cotta is best served cold. So, you must chill the tart for a minimum of 3 to 4 hours for the gelatin to set. After that, you can keep it at room temperature for an hour or so depending on the weather. Gelatin will start to soften at warm, room temperature. Hence, it's best to bring the tart out close to serving time.
• Re-heating - The cream mixture must be poured into the individual cups while it is still in liquid form. If you wait too long, the gelatin will start to set in the saucepan. If that happens gently reheat the mixture until it's warm and liquidy again.
• Eggless panna cotta - Yes, you can if you use agar-agar instead of gelatin. Agar-agar is a vegetarian substitute made from seaweed and is more potent than gelatin. You will need 2 teaspoon agar flakes for every cup of liquid so in this cake 3 teaspoon of agar flakes can be used. Also, unlike gelatin, agar must be boiled until thickened. So add it to the cream and milk mixture and bring to a boil over medium-low heat until thickened (about 5 minutes).

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Printable Recipe