I’ve recently become obsessed with all things panna cotta and am determined to perfect the art of its creamy gelatin goodness. Panna cotta has long been one of my favorite dessert items at restaurants because it isn’t super duper heavy and usually comes with a good amount of fruit in tow, which always appeals to me. Usually the beloved panna cotta is made using a mold and is popped out onto your plate once it fully sets.
I unfortunately don’t own any of these molds and certainly don’t have any kitchen storage space left to justify buying some, so when I found a recipe for a panna cotta tart (aka panna cotta surrounded by a flaky crust), I was sold.
This week, my Mom gave me only a 24 hour warning that she wanted to host a dinner party at my place and would I please make the dessert? I knew that meant that I would somehow have to manage to whip up something delicious in the short span of time that I had between getting home from work and hastily cleaning my apartment. Challenge accepted. Thankfully my boyfriend came home a little early to lend a hand in the cleaning duties because there was no way I could have gotten everything ready in a few hours. In the end everything somehow came together with a bit of luck and a lot of running around the kitchen like a chicken with my head cut off. Mom brought over a huge homemade lasagna and we gorged ourselves until there was just enough room for a slice of this tart.
If you’re going to be attempting this recipe, I recommend giving the tart at least 2-3 hours to set in the fridge. I cheated and shoved it in the freezer so that it could be ready in an hour and a half, which luckily worked out well for me. If fast and frantic cooking is your jam, feel free to use this trick.
I adapted this recipe from Butterlust.
Serves 8.
Ingredient List:
for the crust:
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1/2 cup cold butter
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup ice water
for the panna cotta:
- 8 oz coconut milk
- 1 tbsp gelatin (aka one packet)
- 1 cup greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp sugar or baking splenda
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 vanilla bean
- 3 tsp matcha powder
- blueberries + lemon zest for garnish
Kitchen Tools: food processor, tart pan or spring form pan, whisk, small saucepan
Prep Work:
About an hour or so before you make your tart, you’re going to have to make and chill the pie crust. Pulse your flour and salt in your food processor until well combined. Cube your butter and add it to the mix. Pulse until the butter is smaller than pea-sized. Turn on your food processor and slowly add your ice water. Your dough is ready to go if when you pinch it, it holds together. If it doesn’t continue to add more ice water about a tbsp at a time until it holds. Dump it out on a flat surface and form the dough into a ball. Wrap it saran wrap and set to chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour and up to 24.
When pie crust is done chilling, preheat your oven to 400*F and begin to roll it out until the diameter is at about 10″. About halfway through rolling, place the dough onto a sheet of parchment and continue to roll it out. Take the parchment and upend it in the center of the tart plate. Push crust into the sides of the plate and remove the parchment. Form your edges however you want them. I just cut the remaining crust off the edge and discarded it.
Cooking:
Place crust in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes until dough is nicely browned and cooked through. You may need to poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork if it begins to puff up. Feel free to use baking weights if you have them. Let pie crust cool before adding your panna cotta mixture.
In your saucepan, whisk together coconut milk and gelatin until you can no longer see the gelatin granules. Heat at medium-low heat until it starts to bubble around the edges, whisking constantly. Add in honey and sugar and continue to whisk until sugar granules are dissolved. Turn off heat and pour half of the liquid into a mixing bowl. Whisk in matcha powder, making sure that there are no chunks, and pour the mixture back into your saucepan. Whisk everything together. Slice vanilla bean in half and use your knife to scrape out the seeds. Whisk these into your coconut milk mixture. Add greek yogurt and whisk until just combined.
Pour panna cotta mixture into your cooled tart shell and place in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours for the gelatin to set. If you need to quicken this process, you can pop it into the freezer for a bit. Just don’t leave it in there too long!
Assembly:
When gelatin is set, garnish however you please with blueberries + lemon zest and serve!
