I have been wanting to try making panna cotta for a while now but the time never seemed right. Throughout the winter I kept thinking that a panna cotta would be really nice with a jellied fruit topping and so I held off until the summer. The first of the local strawberries burst onto the scene last weekend at the farmers market and the time had finally come to make some panna cotta topped with a freshly made strawberry jelly!
A panna cotta is an Italian dessert made by simmering cream, milk and sugar and then mixing in some gelatin and letting it set. Over the last while I have been bookmarking a lot of panna cotta recipes and most of them call for a lot of heavy cream but I came across a few yogurt based panna cottas where a lot of the cream is replaced with yogurt making it just a little bit healthier. Luckily a brand of 0% fat Greek yogurt has recently started showing up in grocery stores here in Toronto and I used that. Since I was going to have a strawberry jelly topping, I decided to keep the flavouring of the panna cotta itself to a simple vanilla flavour using the seeds of a vanilla bean.
Panna cotta could not be easier to make as it really is as simple as simmering followed by mixing in some gelatin and letting it set. After the panna cotta has set in the fridge, feel free to eat it as is or topped with your favourite topping. I topped mine with the cooled strawberry jelly and put it back into the fridge to let that set as well. I have to say that the hardest part was waiting for most of the day for everything to properly set as I was itching to try it!
The yogurt panna cotta turned out amazingly well! It was so nice and thick and creamy and good! The freshly made strawberry jelly added a fantastically vibrant burst of colour and flavour that finished this treat off perfectly. The fact that this dessert is chilled makes it absolutely divine on hot summer days!
Yogurt Panna Cotta
Vanilla yogurt panna cotta.
ingredients
- 1 envelope unflavoured gelatin (2 1/4 teaspoons)
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 vanilla bean (split and seeds scraped)
- 1 (16 ounce) container Greek yogurt
directions
- Sprinkle the gelatin into the water in a bowl and let sit until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Bring the cream, sugar and vanilla seeds to a simmer in a small sauce pan until the sugar has dissolved.
- Remove from heat and mix in the gelatin.
- Whisk the yogurt in a bowl until smooth.
- Whisk the cream into the yogurt.
- Pour the mixture into 6 1/2 cup ramekins (or the equivalent) and chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
Strawberry Jelly
Strawberry jelly with fresh strawberry puree.
ingredients
- 1/2 envelope unflavored gelatin
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 cup strawberry puree
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/4 cup sugar
directions
- Sprinkle the gelatin into the water in a bowl and let sit until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Simmer the strawberry puree, lemon juice and sugar until the sugar is dissolved.
- Mix the gelatin into the strawberry mixture.
- Remove from heat, let cool, pour it into what you want and chill in the fridge until set.
Jane says
June 2, 2010 at 1:29 amAnother reason to go out and buy more Greek yogurt (not that I need a reason)!
NWmom says
June 2, 2010 at 1:32 amEvery time I think you are going to run out of ideas, there you go again with a stunning recipe. Wow.
Julie says
June 2, 2010 at 2:23 amPanna Cotta seemed so scary until I read this. I can't wait to try it!
http://www.recipefordelicious.blogspot.com/
Diana Evans says
June 2, 2010 at 2:35 amoh wow Kevin!!! I will be there in half an hour!!! lol
Monica Adriana says
June 2, 2010 at 3:09 amthat was extremely so good and beautifully pictured!
Adventures in Domestic Cooking says
June 2, 2010 at 3:15 amMay I have one??=)
Esi says
June 2, 2010 at 3:32 amThis is a gorgeous dessert. I have yet to try my hand at making panna cotta.
the southern hostess says
June 2, 2010 at 4:03 amAbsolutely beautiful and delicious I'm sure.
Jess@Sugar High says
June 2, 2010 at 4:26 amWow!
You're pictures are gorgeous! They look absolutely devine! 🙂
Memória says
June 2, 2010 at 5:23 amWow! What a gorgeous, gorgeous photo!!
jose manuel says
June 2, 2010 at 6:05 amDeliciosa la receta. Un saludo
Genny G. says
June 2, 2010 at 6:30 amdifferent quantity , but similar recipe now from me:D…. in italy say that the world is small: D
Paula says
June 2, 2010 at 7:12 amI absolutely love all your recipes 🙂
Rosa's Yummy Yums says
June 2, 2010 at 7:56 amBeautiful panna cotta! A wonderful version…
Cheers,
Rosa
♥peachkins♥ says
June 2, 2010 at 9:40 amI love yogurt,I absolutely adore your panna cotta!
The Peach Kitchen
blowing peachkisses
peach and things
Joanne says
June 2, 2010 at 10:15 amI love that you used greek yogurt in the panna cotta! Now can I pretend it's healthy? And eat it for breakfast?
dinnersanddreams says
June 2, 2010 at 10:19 amDelicious-looking panna cotta. I like it in the tall glasses.
Jenn Sutherland says
June 2, 2010 at 12:46 pmWow, Kevin! This looks amazing – I've been bookmarking panna cotta recipes too, and feared all the cream – I'm definitely going to have to give this one a try. And the pictures are amazing!
Maria says
June 2, 2010 at 1:15 pmI love strawberry season! They are suc a beautiful little fruit and make for such amazing desserts. These panna cotta's sound divine. I am very much a lover of creamy panna cotta and the Greek yogurt is a lovely addition.
Kait says
June 2, 2010 at 1:31 pmIt looks delicious and the photography is great!
Wesley's Girl says
June 2, 2010 at 2:11 pmI love making your recipes because you do all the research and experimenting and then we just follow what you discovered! The food is always amazing!
bellini valli says
June 2, 2010 at 2:30 pmI have been waiting for the right moment to make panna cotta, just like you Kevin. I think it is time!
Avanika [YumsiliciousBakes] says
June 2, 2010 at 3:30 pmLooks stunning!!
Happy Cook says
June 2, 2010 at 3:36 pmI love pannacotta, it is one of my favourite dessert and this one i am sure gonna try it, especially as it is strawberry season here and also lighter as you have mentioned.
Julia says
June 2, 2010 at 4:15 pmAmazing pictures!!!! And a great recipe too, I can't wait to try it!
vanillasugar says
June 2, 2010 at 5:04 pmvery nice kevin. so pretty.
Ana Powell says
June 2, 2010 at 6:57 pmAwesome and so delicious.
Great post and photos, well done ♥
OSa says
June 2, 2010 at 7:19 pmA great site, great recipes, great photos. I'll be a frequent visitor. Greetings from Poland!
Katie@Cozydelicious says
June 2, 2010 at 7:43 pmThese look beautiful! Panna Cotta is one of thos things that seems to linger in my 'recipes to try' list. I need to just make it! Your beautiful photo is very inspiring.
songo industries says
June 2, 2010 at 8:06 pmdid the panna cotta taste tart at all because of the yogurt?
Kevin says
June 2, 2010 at 10:00 pmsongo industries: Excellent point! Plain yogurt is definitely on the tart side, especially compared to heavy cream. The 1/3 cup of sugar got it as sweet as I wanted it but you may want to taste test it as you are adding the sugar to get it to the level of sweetness that you desire.
Anonymous says
June 3, 2010 at 3:10 amYum! I never thought of trying to make panna cotta a tad bit healthier/more summery by substituting yogurt! And the jelly idea is definitely worth trying. Thanks for the recipe!
Jan says
June 3, 2010 at 5:09 amFantastic! They look lovely.
kathryn durst says
June 3, 2010 at 3:47 pmyou are my hero, seriously. looks amazing.
Soma says
June 3, 2010 at 4:07 pmThese look absolutely delightful!
saveur says
June 3, 2010 at 6:09 pmThose are really pretty photos, Kevin! I have yet to make panna cota myself but this looks delicious.
Pat says
June 3, 2010 at 7:55 pmI think I might make this soon! I just made a Panna Cotta recipe that called for 1 pint of heavy cream, and while it does taste good, it's just too rich for me.I had to take breaks when I was eating it, because it was just too rich/heavy haha.And I do love the slightly sour taste that usually comes with yogurt.
I found your website on TasteSpotting, by the way.:)
screwdestiny says
June 4, 2010 at 7:34 amFirst of all, those pictures are amazing. Totally have me drooling. And then I actually looked at the recipe. And it sounds fantastic! I will so have to try this sometime this summer.
Anything but Work says
June 5, 2010 at 4:47 amThanks for sharing a lower fat version of this delicious dessert! A must try!
Anonymous says
June 5, 2010 at 5:53 amThese are beautiful!
Ginger says
June 6, 2010 at 6:39 pmI just tried this recipe out for a tea party and it was fabulous!
I couldn't find any Greek yogurt at the store so I substituted Balkan and it was fine.
So delicious! My guests were very impressed and it was so refreshing and light. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Dina says
June 7, 2010 at 12:57 amlovely presentation!
Pam says
June 7, 2010 at 2:19 amI've never made panna cotta but I love it. Yours looks dreamy!
Jen @ My Kitchen Addiction says
June 8, 2010 at 9:54 pmStunning! I love yogurt, so I'm sure I'd love this panna cotta. The strawberry jelly on top is absolutely beautiful!
foodhoe says
June 30, 2010 at 3:53 pmI enjoyed a buttermilk panna cotta last week so much that I was looking for a recipe. I like the idea of using yogurt, your recipe sounds delicious and is so dang gorgeous!
Nicole says
June 30, 2010 at 4:01 pmSo beautiful, Kevin! Love the flecks of vanilla bean seeds that show up in the photos!
chris says
June 30, 2010 at 5:31 pmAnother bit of deliciousness that screams summer! love the presentation. Beautiful!
Cortne says
July 1, 2010 at 12:45 amI recently made a panna cotta using 2% milk, but greek yogurt sounds like a much better substitute. Great recipe. Thanks for sharing.
http:/pickyeatersbeware.blogspot.com
Jen A. says
July 2, 2010 at 2:11 amGreat recipe!
I tried your recipe out today. I used vanilla greek yogurt. Worked great! I think it'd be possible to omit some (or all) of the sugar that way. Wish I would have thought about that beforehand! 😉
I made the jelly with cherries instead of strawberries. Perfect! And I'll have a schmear or two left over to use on my bagel thins for breakfast.
Thanks!
Kelly @ The Startup Wife says
September 26, 2010 at 4:56 amThanks for the recipe! Made this just now for my husband's birthday tomorrow, and I can't wait to see how it comes out! Instead of the jelly, I macerated some strawberries in balsamic vinegar and a dash of sugar. Can't wait to see how it comes out!
Tamanna says
October 22, 2010 at 1:34 amwow! i was looking for a healthy panna cotta and found yours. i live in Toronto too, and could you please msg me about where you found the 0% yogurt? great recipe and presentation!
oak dining room tables says
December 16, 2010 at 5:32 amThis really looks delicious. I want to try this one. And it is so pretty!
D~ says
July 3, 2011 at 4:48 pmI made this in the we hours of the night when I couldn't sleep and woke to the MOST beautiful and delicious breakfast EVER!
Kenneth Oh says
February 10, 2012 at 12:58 amstrawberries look so gorgeous.
i'm think your dessert is very simple and perfect.