Cheese and pesto panna cotta recipe
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Total: 15 min Diners: 4
Panna cotta is one of those desserts that, at least in Spain, when you see it on a restaurant menu always catches your eye. A cream flan without eggs that should be silky and trembling. Its preparation is relatively simple and the important thing is just to get a good cream and an adequate proportion of gelatin in the recipe. Not too much so that it doesn’t get hard and not too little so that it sets.
It is not, clearly, a typical recipe from here but in Spain we have adopted it from Italy as it is a humble yet delicious dessert. Panna cotta, very typical of the Italian Piedmont, is usually a dessert made with cream, sugar and gelatin. To make us understand, it is a kind of flan much more milky and with a very creamy texture. Literally panna cotta means “cooked cream”, since originally it had no gelatin and egg was used to curdle it by bringing it closer and away from the heat.
In this case, we have rolled up our sleeves and our panna cotta is salty of manchego cheese, pesto and tomato will become the ideal starter this holiday season. Easy to make, perfect to leave prepared in advance and really surprising.
We use for it a tomato jam in the base, on top the cream mixture and to finish a little traditional pesto or we could also add, in season, a little black truffle to make it shine even more as they do in restaurants like La Tasquita de Enfrente, where they have created almost a pilgrimage to try this dessert halfway between sweet and savory.
The good thing about recipes like this is that they can be made according to the craving that each one has: with red fruits, vanilla, matcha tea or, to surprise this Christmas, nougat. As in so many other recipes that admit a multitude of ingredients, the only limit to the preparation is the imagination. Oh, and they can be frozen! In this case, the tomato jam can be homemade or purchased, just like the basil and pine nut pesto. Easier, impossible.
How to make salted cheese panna cotta
. Step 7
Ingredients
. Whipping cream, 400 ml Manchego cheese without rind, 150 g Salt and black pepper, to taste Neutral gelatine leaves, 2 pcs Tomato jam, 4 tablespoons Pesto, 4 teaspoons
Step 1
The first thing we will do is infuse the cream with the cheese, so that it acquires all the flavor of the cheese. I recommend using a cured manchego cheese to give more character to the preparation. Heat the cream with the cheese in a saucepan and, when it starts to boil, turn off the heat and cover with plastic wrap. Let stand for 30 minutes.
Step 2
Soak the gelatine sheets in very cold water, or by adding an ice cube, for 10 minutes.
Step 3
Mash the whole mixture of cream and cheese, add salt and black pepper and, if there are any lumps, strain.
Step 4
Reheat the preparation over low heat and, when it comes to the boil, drain the gelatine very well and add it. Mix well so that the gelatin melts completely.
Step 5
Fill the cups or flan dishes with a base of tomato jam and cover with the manchego cheese panna cotta mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours.
Step 6
At serving time I recommend giving it a light heat in the microwave, 10 seconds, to temper it. Finish on top with the teaspoon of pesto.
Tips and suggestions
Recommend to the diners to take from the bottom to the top to mix all the ingredients of the recipe. It is a fantastic combination that will remind us slightly to the caprese salad but in another version; perfect to leave made in advance in addition.
