A wobbly vanilla cream infused with Christmas spices, an orange syrup and gingerbread cubes toasted in butter for crunch.
Panna cotta is Italian for "cooked cream": sweetened cream, barely set, that wobbles under the spoon. Infused with vanilla, orange and gingerbread spices, it becomes a light Christmas dessert made the day before in ten minutes.
The secret is not to over-set it: just enough gelatin to hold in the glass, not enough to turn rubbery. And to let the spices infuse off the heat, rather than boiling the cream.
Good to know · Gelatin is animal-derived (usually pork or beef): as written, this recipe is neither vegetarian nor halal. For those tables, make the agar-agar version.
Drop the gelatin sheets one at a time into a large bowl of very cold water, so they don't stick together. Let them soften for 10 minutes.
Split the vanilla pod and scrape out the seeds with the tip of a knife. In the saucepan, put the cream, milk, sugar, vanilla seeds and pod, spices and orange zest. Heat over medium heat until it just starts to simmer, without boiling. Turn off the heat, cover and leave to infuse for 15 minutes.
Strain the cream through the fine sieve into the jug, pressing the pod. It should be hot but not boiling (around 60 °C / 140 °F): warm it for a minute if it has cooled too much. Squeeze the gelatin sheets in your hands and add them, stirring until completely melted.
Let the cream cool for 10 minutes, stirring now and then so the spices and vanilla stay suspended. Pour it into the glasses, cover with cling film and chill for at least 4 hours. It's set when it wobbles as one piece when you tilt the glass.
In a small saucepan, bring the orange juice and sugar to the boil, then reduce over medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes, until it coats the spoon and has reduced by half. Let it cool: it thickens further as it cools.
Just before serving, cut the gingerbread into 1 cm cubes. Melt the butter in the frying pan over medium heat and toast the cubes for 3 to 4 minutes, turning often, until crisp at the edges. Let them cool for 2 minutes on a plate.
Spoon some orange syrup over each well-chilled panna cotta and scatter the gingerbread cubes at the last minute, so they stay crunchy.
Check off every step to celebrate.
The panna cottas keep for 3 days in the fridge, covered with cling film: make them the day before, or even two days ahead. The orange syrup keeps for 1 week in the fridge in a jar. Make the crunch at the last minute; toasted ahead, the cubes keep a few hours in a closed box. They don't freeze.
The gelatin went into cream that was too cold (it didn't melt) or boiling (it lost its strength), or there weren't enough sheets. Check the weight too: sheets are usually 2 g, but some brands are 1.7 g.
Yes, with agar-agar: 2 g for this amount. Unlike gelatin, it must boil for 1 minute to work, and the cream sets faster and a little firmer.
1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 pinch of ginger, 1 pinch of nutmeg, 1 clove and 1 star anise in the infusion (removed when straining).
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