Make Ahead
Luxurious Panna Cotta
Popular on Food52
5 Reviews
JennyInKS
March 9, 2011
(I tested/reviewed this for the Your Best Pudding contest...it was a winner in my book!)
In a word, this was wonderful! This recipe produced a panna cotta that was dense and creamy, with only a slight hint of a tang from the greek yogurt and buttermilk. What I had expected, at first, upon reading the recipe was that it was going to be much more tart due to the amount of greek yogurt required. The addition of the creme fraiche mellowed this out nicely. Due to time constrants, and a lack of local resource for vanilla bean paste, I improvised by scraping one and a half vanilla beans, and adding a splash of vanilla. The taste was much more intense than using pure vanilla extract alone, and, I think, was a reasonable substitute. All in all, this recipe was easy to follow, and very nearly fool-proof. Best of all, however, it resulted in one of the best panna cottas I can remember! The only suggestions I have is that the first step listed - softening the gelatin - be inserted between steps 2 and 3. For those of us easily distracted (by the dog, the phone, etc) by the time I needed to use it, it had solidified into a solid mass of an unusable rubber-like substance. Also, I left my panna cotta in the strainer about 20 minutes before spooning it into my ramekins. This resulted in a couple of spoonfuls of liquid. I will definitely be making this again...
In a word, this was wonderful! This recipe produced a panna cotta that was dense and creamy, with only a slight hint of a tang from the greek yogurt and buttermilk. What I had expected, at first, upon reading the recipe was that it was going to be much more tart due to the amount of greek yogurt required. The addition of the creme fraiche mellowed this out nicely. Due to time constrants, and a lack of local resource for vanilla bean paste, I improvised by scraping one and a half vanilla beans, and adding a splash of vanilla. The taste was much more intense than using pure vanilla extract alone, and, I think, was a reasonable substitute. All in all, this recipe was easy to follow, and very nearly fool-proof. Best of all, however, it resulted in one of the best panna cottas I can remember! The only suggestions I have is that the first step listed - softening the gelatin - be inserted between steps 2 and 3. For those of us easily distracted (by the dog, the phone, etc) by the time I needed to use it, it had solidified into a solid mass of an unusable rubber-like substance. Also, I left my panna cotta in the strainer about 20 minutes before spooning it into my ramekins. This resulted in a couple of spoonfuls of liquid. I will definitely be making this again...
Tarah T.
April 14, 2022
If I don’t happen to have the Greek yogurt, can I just substitute sour cream..?
susaneas
April 14, 2022
subbing sour cream for non-fat greek yogurt (or I might use low fat or whole milk greek yogurt now...) would obviously make it much richer -- the creme fraiche and yogurt balance each other, and going all cream-based might tip the scales too far to richness, at least in my book. But what's the worst that could happen - I'd make small(er) portions and give it a try!
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