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Chocolate Panna Cotta with Caramelized Bananas

17/11/2023

Chocolate Panna Cotta with Caramelized Bananas is a sophisticated dessert that combines the creaminess of panna cotta with the intense sweetness of chocolate and the caramel note of bananas. It’s a luscious variation on the classic Italian dessert. Here is the recipe.

Ingredients

  • 500 ml of fresh cream
  • 100 g of sugar
  • 100 g of dark chocolate
  • 3 sheets of gelatin (or 5 g of powdered gelatin)
  • 1 vanilla pod (or a teaspoon of vanilla extract)
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 30 g of butter
  • 3 tablespoons of brown sugar
  • Juice of half a lemon

Preparation

  1. Start by soaking the gelatin sheets in cold water for about 10 minutes.
  2. In the meantime, pour the cream into a saucepan, add the sugar and the seeds extracted from the vanilla pod or the vanilla extract.
  3. Heat the cream over medium-low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved, making sure it does not come to a boil.
  4. Break up the dark chocolate and place it in a large bowl.
  5. When the cream is hot (but not boiling), squeeze out the soaked gelatin well and incorporate it into the cream, stirring until it is completely dissolved.
  6. Pour the hot cream over the broken chocolate and stir until the chocolate has completely melted and the mixture is homogeneous.
  7. Pour the mixture into panna cotta molds or glasses and let cool before transferring to the refrigerator for at least 4-6 hours, until fully set.
  8. For the caramelized bananas, cut them into slices and set aside. In a frying pan, melt the butter and brown sugar until you get an amber mixture.
  9. Add the banana slices to the pan along with the lemon juice and let them caramelize for a few minutes, turning them gently to brown on both sides.
  10. When the chocolate panna cotta is ready to be served, gently unmold it onto a plate and garnish with the caramelized bananas.

Serve it cool but not too cold, to fully appreciate the creaminess of the panna cotta and the softness of the caramelized bananas.

Curiosity

Panna Cotta, which literally means “cooked cream” in Italian, originates from Piedmont. It is a very versatile dessert that can be varied in a thousand ways, from the classic vanilla to more original and bold combinations, as in the case of this recipe with chocolate and caramelized bananas.