Panna Cotta is my families favourite dessert. I made it a couple of years ago for christmas dinner and since then, all my family wants for dessert is Panna Cotta. I don´t even get a chance to try out something new, whenever there is a special occasion that calls for a good dessert, it´s Panna Cotta. I shouldn´t be complaining though, this recipe is to die for. And compared to a lot of the other fancy desserts, it´s not even that complicated. All you need is some cream, vanilla beans and sugar, and you´re good to go!

You need:

500 g cream

1 vanilla bean

50 g sugar

3 sheets of gelatin

First, you have to cut the vanilla bean and take out the core. Then, 400 g cream, sugar and the vanilla bean plus its core are heated in a pot. Once it´s hot, turn down the heat and let the cream cook for about 10 minutes. In the meantime, put the sheets of gelatin in cold water, they need about 10 minutes to become soft.

When the cream is done, remove the pot from the heat and dissolve each sheet of gelatin slowly in the warm cream. Now we waitt. The cream needs to cool down until it can be put in the fridge and then we´ll wait some more. The cream needs about 30 minutes in the fridge until it starts to become stiff. After that time, whip the rest of the cream that is still left over (100 g) and mix it with the rest of the vanillacream. Now, fill 4 little cups with the cream and let cool in the fridge for about 4 hours, until the Panna Cotta is stiff.

See, easy right?

Now about the plums…

I first tried plums in red wine a couple of years ago and since then I am hooked. I just love them and you can combine them to pretty much everything that tastes like vanilla…mousse, rice pudding…you name it. If you are making the recipe for children, just substitute the wine with orange juice or grape juice, it should taste similar.

You need:

500 g plums

50 g sugar

4 spoons of red wine

1 cinnamon stick

Wash the plums, cut them in half and take out the pit. Put all of the ingredients in a pot and heat them until they are cooking. Then, turn down the heat and let cook for about 3 to 5 minutes. And voilà…now you have a perfect sauce for your already perfect Panna Cotta.

It´s really easy to make this recipe but unfortunately it is not one you can make spontaneously because you are craving it right now. Because it needs time to cool, it needs some planning and preparation. But it´s totally worth it and can turn any day into the best one. And I guarantee you, your guests will love it and will think of you as the best cook ever. Trust me!

Once the Panna Cotta has cooled down enough, it´s time to turn it out. I mean you can definately eat it out of the cup in front of the TV, but sometimes it´s just time to be classy. It´s easier to get the Panna Cotta out of the cup if you put in in a bowl of hot water. Because of the heat, the gelatin will dissolve and the whole thing becomes liquid again so don´t put it in hot water for too long. Then you can just turn it out onto a plate, decorate it with plums and enjoy (yes, also in front of the TV while watching your favourite show if you want).