Rhubarb and custard panna cotta
This rhubarb and custard panna cotta recipe makes the most of the season's most colourful crop, served with Victoria's recipe for ginger crumble topping for added texture.
Ingredients
Rhubarb and custard panna cotta
- 150g of forced rhubarb , the pinker the better
- 35g of caster sugar
- 35g of water, or the same weight in ice cubes if using a sous vide bag
- 4 large egg yolks
- 100g of caster sugar, or vanilla sugar if possible
- 350ml of single cream
- 1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped out
- 3 gelatine leaves, soaked in cold water for 10 minutes
Method
1
For the rhubarb, vacuum pack the rhubarb with the sugar and water in a single layer (it's best to use two bags) and drop them into the water bath at 61°C for 45 minutes. Fish out the bags and plunge them into ice water and then into the fridge until you want it
2
Alternatively you can bake the rhubarb with the water and sugar at 180°C for about half an hour or until soft, but not squidgy. Leave to cool.
3
Place the cream (or milk if using) in a saucepan with the vanilla pod and gently bring to the boil. In the meantime, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until pale and creamy and pop a sieve over the bowl ready
4
Once the cream has come to the boil, pour it through the sieve over the eggs to strain off the vanilla pod and any woody bits that have come off it in the cream
5
Whisk it all together and pour back into the saucepan. Place the saucepan over a gentle heat and whisk constantly until the custard thickens enough so that it can coat the back of a spoon and if you draw a line through the custard with your finger, the line remains
6
Transfer to a jug. Squeeze any excess water out of the gelatine and whisk into the hot custard until it has completely melted
7
I poured my custard into oiled ring moulds with their bases covered tightly with cling film to set, but you can use ramekins or just set it in glasses. Whatever your chosen vessels, once cool, pop them into the fridge for at least 6 hours - overnight is easiest
8
If using ring moulds, remove the cling film before placing one on a serving plate and blasting round the edges with a blowtorch to make sliding off the mould easy. A hairdryer will do the same job, or you can simply run a knife round the inside edge. For ramekins, dunk them quickly in boiling water to release and upturn on to a plate
9
Top the panna cottas with the cooked rhubarb. I served mine with a scattering of cold ginger-spiced crumble topping, cooked simply spread on a baking tray for ten minutes at 180°C before cooling
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Rhubarb and custard panna cotta
