Vanilla panna cotta with blueberry coulis, a fancy sounding delicious dessert that’s super easy to make. See below for step by step recipe.
You know what? I always thought panna cotta was this incredibly difficult thing to make. I even thought it would be something like doing the inverted dog position and staying there for 5 mins without moving. Yeah, yoga taught me how tough it is to stay in one position doing nothing.
And blueberry coulis. I couldn’t even pronounce that 2 years back. Thanks to Masterchef Australia and watching 8-year olds whip up perfect berry coulis, I finally got around to making it myself.
Vanilla panna cotta is a perfect dessert for entertaining for many reasons:
– it’s easy. Like really really easy to put together
– it needs to set in the refrigerator which means you can make it well in advance
– few people would dislike it. I mean, it’s milk and cream and sugar.
– you can set it in individual portions and serve it as is which is not only pretty but also means you don’t have to share dessert. That’s my idea of perfect situation. Not sharing dessert
– this is an eggless dessert!
– did I mention it’s easy?
You may also want to check out this no-bake mango cheesecake recipe, eggless Oreo cheesecake recipe, Kerala tender coconut pudding, and my 3-ingredient mango ice-cream recipe!
- 1 cup of cream (any kind that you can pour should do)
- 1 cup of milk (full fat works best)
- ⅓ cup of sugar, heaped
- 1 vanilla bean pod (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
- 1 tsp of gelatine (or 2 tsp / 5gm agar agar or china grass)
- 2 tbsp of boiling water
- Pour the cream and milk into a pan
- Scrape the caviar (seeds) out of the vanilla pod and add to the cream mixture
- Bring this mixture to a boil and add the sugar
- Mix well and simmer until the sugar dissolves.
- Remove from heat, strain, and set side.
- Bring 2 tbsp water to a boil (I did this in the microwave) and add the gelatine or agar agar to it. 6. Stir until combined with no traces. China grass will take longer to dissolve so heat the water again if you need to
- Add the gelatine mixture to the strained cream mixture and mix well.
- Pour this mixture into moulds or small cups
- Let it cool completely and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight
- You can serve the panna cotta in the small cups as is or un mould before serving
- cup of blueberries
- tsp of sugar
- A few drops of lemon juice
- Blend the blueberries and extract as much juice as possible.
- Pass the blueberry puree through a sieve and discard the pieces of skin and tiny seeds.
- Add the sugar and lemon juice to this and mix well
- Microwave for 1 minute on high heat or simmer on the stove top for 2-3 mins)
- Chill and pour over the panna cotta before serving
Instructions for Step by Step Vanilla Panna Cotta Recipe
1. Pour the cream and milk into a pan.
2. Scrape the seeds out of the vanilla pod and add to the above cream mixture. You can throw in the pod too, we’ll remove it later.
3. Bring this mixture to a boil and add the sugar.
4. Mix well and simmer until the sugar dissolves. Remove from fire, strain, and set side.
5. Bring 2 tbsp water to a boil (I did this in the microwave) and add the gelatine or agar agar to it. Stir until combined with no traces.
6. Add the gelatine mixture to the strained cream mixture and mix well.
7. Pour this mixture into moulds, small cups, ramekins, a pudding dish, anything that takes your fancy. I used silicone cupcake moulds. Lightly oil (with any neutral oil) whatever mould you use, otherwise it will be tough to unmould later (if you plan to serve it that way).
8. Let it cool completely and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.
Now to prepare the blueberry coulis, here are the step by step instructions:
1. Blend the blueberries and extract as much juice as possible. If using frozen blueberries and you don’t have time to thaw it out, just rinse in tap water a couple times and use as normal.
2. Pass the blueberry puree through a sieve and discard the pieces of skin and tiny seeds. You should get smooth, thick blueberry juice when done.
3. Add the sugar to this and mix well…
… followed by the lemon juice.
Now technically, you’re supposed to simmer this mixture for 2-3 mins but I just gave it a whirl in the microwave for a minute on high heat. Stir again to combine, cool, and refrigerate. You can make this immediately after the panna cotta and let them both sit together in the refrigerator. You know, get to know each other before they get served together I guess.
We’re done! Once the panna cotta has set, unmould by inserting a knife along the edges, placing a plate over the mould, and gently overturning it. I’d recommend not going through the hassle and just serving it in the dishes that you set them in. Either way, vanilla panna cotta looks and tastes delicious!
Notes
– You can make the coulis with pretty much any berries you can lay your hands on. Or you can also skip it and serve the panna cotta with warmed chocolate sauce.
– You can layer the panna cotta and coulis before setting. I really wish I’d done that actually. Layer the bottom of a shot glass with the blueberry coulis, pour some panna cotta mixture on top, layer again with the coulis, etc. That would be super pretty!
– The amount of sugar mentioned makes a mildly sweet panna cotta so add more if you want it sweeter.
For vanilla panna cotta recipe in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, French, Italian, Spanish, etc please use the Google translate button in the sidebar.
Arthi says
April 3, 2018 at 9:33 amI’ve tried pannacotta a few times but invariably after putting in the fridge it separates in layers plus does not set. Any help?
nags says
May 2, 2018 at 10:43 amit’s possible you need to add a bit more gelatin. try it next time!
Priya says
February 18, 2016 at 9:14 pmUr pannacotta looked so tempting that I had to try it after getting my lil girl to sleep.. It came out super delicious n the whole family loved it! All thanx to u. Any substitute for blueberry which we can get in Kerala? I used chocolate sauce now.
nags says
February 19, 2016 at 2:07 pmHey Priya, that’s so sweet of you to say. If you get strawberries, that’s nice too but my favourite is mango coulis. You can just blend mangoes and add the rest of the ingredients in the coulis before pouring over pannacotta
Priya says
February 20, 2016 at 1:31 amThank u for ur reply.. Sure dessert next time I get mangoes. Great blog! Keep up the good work.
Smita says
August 22, 2012 at 5:31 pmbeautiful!!!! very tempting…
Priya says
August 3, 2012 at 10:54 amHi, i made the panna cotta yesterday..but it did not set so well? not sure what went wrong ..i used 1tsp gelatin and cream with 25% fat..anyway taste wise it was okay and i had it with salted caramel syrup..thanks.
cheers
Priya
Anu Nandu says
July 20, 2012 at 12:24 amOh…why do I feel so close to you…dear pannacotta?
thejoyofcaking says
July 15, 2012 at 1:37 pmI made panna cotta a couple years ago and like you, I thought it was going to be this time-consuming, difficult to make dessert. Little did I know! The blueberry coulis looks a perfect topping.
Richa Priyanka says
July 15, 2012 at 11:12 amNags, can you suggest some variations to both- the blueberry coulis and the vanilla flavor of the panna cotta?
yarn_lady says
July 15, 2012 at 6:11 amAbsolutely delighted I found this on your site!!! Gonna make this now to serve for dinner:) Thanks a ton Nags!
yarn_lady says
July 15, 2012 at 6:10 amAbsolutely delighted with this Nags!!!! i had bought some blueberries and was wondering what to make with them and this is just perfect! I visit other food blogs but come back here coz you spell everything so nicely and I love the chatter! Going to get off the comp now and make this now so I can serve for dinner:)
mjskit says
July 14, 2012 at 6:32 amWhat a fantastic panna cotta recipe! I love the panna cotta but the blueberry coulis is awesome! I'm pinning this one!
Amruta says
July 13, 2012 at 9:16 pmWhat kind of plate is that, on which you have served the dessert? I loved that!
Amruta says
July 13, 2012 at 9:14 pmWhat kind of plate is that, on which you have served the dessert? I loved that!
Javelin Warrior says
July 13, 2012 at 4:54 amI love panna cotta and this looks fantastic! I'm featuring this post in Food Fetish Friday (with a link-back and attribution). I hope you have no objections and it's always a pleasure following you…
Nagalakshmi V says
July 13, 2012 at 5:45 amOf course! Thanks for featuring my recipe again 🙂
Uma says
July 11, 2012 at 7:52 pmI always thought Panna Cotta is a difficult dessert.. you have explained it so well.. love the way you take us through the whole process.
jeyashrisuresh says
July 11, 2012 at 12:52 pmBeautiful clicks and easy recipe too
Priya R says
July 10, 2012 at 11:43 pmHi Nags,
i tried two of your recipes and have tagged you to them, hoping your fine with that… keep cooking 🙂
http://littlemustard.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/biscuit-brownies.html
http://littlemustard.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/banana-date-cake-little-mustard-last.html
Jill says
December 24, 2015 at 5:03 pmCan you please tell me the measurements if its for 12-14 people, for the vanilla panna cotta. Kindly reply. Thanks
nags says
December 24, 2015 at 5:05 pmHello Jill, as I have mentioned in the recipe, this amount will serve about 3 people. So if you quadruple the ingredients (make it times 4), it should be enough. If you want to be on the safe side, multiply quantity of ingredients by 5.
Jill says
December 25, 2015 at 2:11 pmThank you very much for the reply. That will help me. Merry Christmas 😊
chennaispice says
July 10, 2012 at 1:38 pmVery simple and elegant!
Sangeetha Nambi says
July 10, 2012 at 11:31 amLovely Panna cotta with beautiful clicks….. Thanks for sharing Nags…
http://recipe-excavator.blogspot.com
Veena Theagarajan says
July 10, 2012 at 4:26 amvery nice and lovely pictures
Great-secret-of-life.blogspot.com
Divya Kudua says
July 10, 2012 at 3:58 amOh Panna cotta,one of my favorite desserts!I've been planning to make this for long too,just the thought that this 'could not' work was pulling me back.Now that you've said it is easy a couple of times in the post,I really think I should give it a try!
Amina Khaleel says
July 10, 2012 at 1:10 amwow… panna cotta looks creamy and delicious… amazing..
Deeba PAB says
July 10, 2012 at 12:50 amJust gorgeous! Love the way you wrote the post Nags … reminded me of Ree! Love it!! Panna Cotta is one of my favourite desserts, simple and stunning!
Goddess says
July 9, 2012 at 9:30 pmThe photographs are awesome Nags.
Goddess says
July 9, 2012 at 9:28 pmI love the photographs Nags.
Priya says
July 9, 2012 at 7:39 pmSuper tempting dessert,looks absolutely divine and inviting..
Black Swan says
July 9, 2012 at 7:21 pmWHAT is that beautiful serving dish you've used in the photo?
Lavanya says
July 9, 2012 at 5:52 pmDo I love the panna cotta or the stoneware…. ooh! tough choice. Could you tell me where you bought the stoneware?
Lavanya says
July 9, 2012 at 5:50 pmDo I like the panna cotta or the stoneware that its served on… ooh! touch choice. Could you tell me where you bought the stoneware plate?
Spandana says
July 9, 2012 at 3:48 pmThis looks so very good, love the flavors. Such beautiful pictures.
Nisha says
July 9, 2012 at 2:48 pm"get to know each other", LOL =)
loving it. looks fantastic and perfect for parties. but i cringe at the thought of using gelatin/agar agar. haven't tried my hands on them as yet. gelatin for sure i can't use since it's made of animal bones… but may be i can become friends with agar agar like i became with yeast.
APARNARAJESHKUMAR says
July 9, 2012 at 2:33 pmloved it
runnergirlinthekitchen.blogspot.com says
July 9, 2012 at 10:56 amFeel like taking a bite right away!! Master Chef Australia is largely responsible for my weight gain and this preparation by you is something I cannot resist .. have to make it soon 🙂
chinmayie @ love food eat says
July 9, 2012 at 10:54 amBeautiful photos and I am sure it tastes as good as it looks 🙂
Meeta K. Wolff says
July 9, 2012 at 10:45 amI absolutely adore panna cotta – in all variations. Love your flavor pairings here!
FigsandOlives says
July 9, 2012 at 10:18 ampicture perfect, i have already tied your banana cake and my husband gave it a 5*… totally new to blogging and you are an interesting personality that I follow. great work and keep it coming. Priya
Anjali says
July 9, 2012 at 9:38 amHe he~~ Nags you are so funny, yeah it sounds like vanilla panna cotta and the blueberry coulis all set up in the the chill air of the fridge for matrimonial harmony! Looks delicious.
Joyful says
July 9, 2012 at 9:25 amWow, that looks so good. Your tutorial is wonderful too.
Sharmilee! :) says
July 9, 2012 at 8:40 amLooks delicious…love that blueberry sauce combo!
Tina says
July 9, 2012 at 8:23 amBookmarking this…So creamy and easy one….Lovely clicks too..
Anonymous says
July 9, 2012 at 8:16 amcan i use vanila essence ? if so when to add it? thanks
Nagalakshmi V says
July 9, 2012 at 10:31 amyes of course. just add it at the time i've mentioned you should add the vanilla pod.
Vishakha says
July 9, 2012 at 7:45 amThat's one of my favorite desserts! I just love love pana cotta. Now this has really inspired me to try it at home! The last picture is too inviting!:)
Arch says
July 9, 2012 at 7:40 amMasterchef Australia has been major inspiration, esp the Junior masterchef, they were super ! This looks so good Nags, been planning to make it, but always worried about working with gelatin
punchmaye layoso says
July 9, 2012 at 7:17 ami love these recipes….