Panna cotta is always a winner at the table and it is super simple to make in advance.
Ingredients: Feeds 4 people
Panna cotta:
200g whole milk
200g double cream
4g gelatine leaves - 2 big leaves of gelatine - Golden
60g caster sugar
1tsp vanilla paste or essence
basil for garnish
Compote:
3 sticks of rhubarb
1 punnet of raspberries
zest and juice of 1 lemon
20g caster sugar - Add more if you have a sweet tooth. I like mine sour.
Tiny pinch of salt
Bit of shortbread to garnish but not essential
Start off by blooming your gelatine leaves in very cold water until it goes soft and wobbly.
Meanwhile heat up your milk, cream, sugar and vanilla in a saucepan on a medium to high heat until it comes to a simmer then take off the heat.
Before you add gelatine to the mix you need to strain off all the water. Give it an extra squeeze over the sink just to get as much water out as possible.
(If this is your first time using leaf gelatine it will look like a soggy wet mess. This is a good thing, give it a strain and just go ahead and add it to the hot mixture.)
Once it has come to a simmer take off the heat and add your strained gelatine.
Give it all a stir for 2 seconds just to make sure the gelatine is fully incorporated through the whole mix.
Pour the mixture into a serving dish or individual panna cotta moulds and leave in the fridge to set. Approximately 3 hours or overnight is best.
While the Panna cotta is setting in the fridge you can make the compote to go with it.
Trim any leaf off your rhubarb and give it a good rinse under a cold tap.
Cut the rhubarb into rough bite sized pieces and place in a saucepan along with the rest of the compote ingredients.
Bring the ingredients to a gentile simmer over a medium to low heat with the lid on and cook until all is tender. This takes about 8 to 15 minutes depending on your hob.
Once tender take off the heat and cool down in the fridge.
To serve place the compote on top of the wobbly panna cotta along with some fresh basil and some shortbread.
Bon Appetit!