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Iher book of English puddings, &c the delightful head for jellies, blancmanges and flamers, Mary Norwalk notes that the art of condensing began in the Middle Ages. Fruit pectin has long been used as a way of preserving and thickening, but it was the practice of extracting collagen from fish or meat bones in the 1300s that allowed new ways to leaven jellies – first savory, then sweet – in (privileged) kitchens. Then, in the 16th century, a needle made from dried sturgeon swim bladders made its way from Russia to England via Dutch traders. Used primarily to calcify beer, the glass provided another means of solidification until the process was revolutionized again in the early 1700s with the invention of the pressure cooker. Denis Papin’s Digesteras it was called, it meant that bones could be boiled down efficiently, paving the way for powders, capsules, blocks and, eventually, sheets and gridded sheets of gelatin that opened up a whole world of wobbly puddings.
In his Gran Dizionario Della Gastronomia Del Piemonte, Sandro Doglio refers to the story that a Hungarian woman introduced panna cotta to Piedmont in the early 19th century; Anna del Conte, meanwhile, suggests it has been served there for centuries. Either way, it’s a lovely pudding; gentle and slightly funny. I think Panna-leggermente-riscaldata (slightly warmed cream) or panna-leggermente-impostata (gently fixed cream) are more accurately described than panna cotta (cooked cream), but somehow I don’t think either of my suggestions will catch on.
How many sheets of gelatin though? It depends on how you like your set and how long you leave it in the fridge. Based on half a liter of cream and 2 g of dried leaves: if you want the consistency of a car tire, use five leaves (which, by the way, is the amount that my package of Italian gelatin offers for 500 ml). If you want a firm consistency with a wobbly wobble when poked, use four sheets. For a softer set that a spoon will sink into, take my friend Gaia’s advice and use three. And if you want a risky set, meaning you’re worried it won’t work and when it does, it sinks a bit, but it’s also tender and for me the most enjoyable to eat (it’s a very personal thing), use two sheets and half.
After recently leaving the freezer door open due to overcrowding, I made a commitment to eat everything in our (not very large) freezer over the next few weeks. This includes a bag of frozen mixed berries, which, like peas, are a food that both freezes well and provides convenient, no-fuss indulgence. Mixed berries are also the perfect partner for panna cotta, both for their tart sharpness and their colour: a defiant pudding lipstick.
Panna cotta with (frozen) fruit compote
preparation 15 min
cook 10 min
Kit 2 hours +
Serves 4-6
500ml single cream
1 vanilla pod
50d powdered sugarplus 1 equal tablespoon for the compote
2½ sheets of gelatin
200g frozen fruit
Put the cream in a pan. Split open the vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds with the blade of a knife, then put the pod, seeds and icing sugar into the saucepan and bring to a slow simmer. Once warm, remove the pod.
During this time, soak the gelatin in a little cold water until it softens. Drain the excess water, add the leaves to the pan, take off the heat, immediately add the gelatine leaves and stir until dissolved.
Divide the mixture between four to six ramekins or small cups (or metal ramekins or darioles if you want to turn the whipped creams later), leave to cool, then refrigerate to set – two hours seems optimal to me, but they can stay there much longer.
While it sets, warm the fruit with a tablespoon of powdered sugar until the sugar dissolves. Remove half the fruit, pass it through a sieve, then return the puree to the pan with the remaining fruit.
To serve, invert the panna cotta onto plates (in this case dip the bases in boiling water first to loosen them) and serve with fruit poured over the top; alternatively, spoon a layer of fruit directly onto the custards in their ramekins/cups for a two-toned, slightly warmed, softly set pudding.
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