{"id":8281,"date":"2026-10-19T15:18:22","date_gmt":"2026-10-19T06:18:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/parade.kyoto\/?post_type=sweetlore&p=8281"},"modified":"2026-10-31T18:49:25","modified_gmt":"2026-10-31T09:49:25","slug":"panna-cotta","status":"publish","type":"sweetlore","link":"https:\/\/parade.kyoto\/en\/sweetlore\/panna-cotta\/","title":{"rendered":"Panna Cotta"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Unwhipped cream gives way softly when a spoon goes in. Panna cotta, associated with Piedmont in Italy, is a dessert whose name means \u201ccooked cream.\u201d The widely known version is made by adding sugar and gelatin and chilling it until set. There is also a method that uses egg whites and bakes the dessert in a water bath; even when the finish is similarly white and smooth, the way it sets is different.<\/p>\n

\n\"White\n
Panna cotta turned out of its mold and garnished with fruit and leaves (February 20, 2010; location unknown). The photograph alone cannot show whether it was set with egg white or gelatin. Photo: hiro \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a> \/ CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>. A reduced-size version was obtained from Commons. No content alterations or cropping on our part.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Adding Gelatin and Chilling Until Set<\/h2>\n

Sheet gelatin is softened in cold water, and cream with sugar added is warmed with vanilla seeds and the pod. The pod is removed, the gelatin is dissolved, and the lump-free liquid is poured into molds. The formula in Piedmont\u2019s tourism material is 8 grams of sheet gelatin to 500 milliliters of cream, refrigerated for at least 5 hours. The outside of the mold is warmed briefly and the panna cotta is turned out onto a plate. The amount of gelatin is adjusted to give a firmness that holds its shape when unmolded yet melts softly in the mouth.<\/p>\n

In a method handed down in this region that also uses milk, gelatin is dissolved in warmed milk, which is then added to cream warmed with sugar in a separate pan. It may be flavored with rum, Marsala or coffee and poured into a large rectangular mold lined with caramel. Besides individual molds, it is also made by setting it in a large mold and cutting it into portions.<\/p>\n

Baking in a Water Bath with Unwhipped Egg Whites<\/h2>\n

In the method that sets with egg whites, milk, cream, sugar and vanilla are warmed and then cooled to room temperature before the egg whites are mixed in. The egg whites are broken up and mixed in evenly, without whipping. The molds are set in a baking tray containing hot water and baked slowly in the oven; the water moderates sudden rises in temperature and drying, and the liquid sets through the heat coagulation of the egg whites.<\/p>\n

After baking, the panna cotta is cooled in the water of the bath and then refrigerated before being unmolded. Some versions take on light browning, and the surface also looks different from panna cotta set with gelatin and chilled.<\/p>\n

\n\"Cylindrical\n
Panna cotta with caramel sauce (April 16, 2016; location unknown). The cylindrical panna cotta and the sauce are arranged on a plate. Photo: Toben \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a> \/ CC BY-SA 4.0<\/a>. A reduced-size version was obtained from Commons. No content alterations or cropping on our part.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Finishing with Sauces, and a Mixture with Chocolate<\/h2>\n

The bitterness of caramel, the acidity of berry coulis and the aroma of chocolate sauce are added to the sweetness of the cream. Caramel can be put into the mold first, or a sauce can be added after the panna cotta is turned out.<\/p>\n

Putting chocolate into the panna cotta itself requires an emulsifying step. In a recipe (the proportions of ingredients and the method) using Valrhona\u2019s P125 chocolate, the warm milk, cream and sugar, with the gelatin dissolved in them, are poured little by little onto the melted chocolate, mixed until smooth, and processed with a hand blender. Without incorporating air bubbles, the mixture is poured into glasses at about 30 degrees, covered with film pressed directly onto the surface, and refrigerated overnight. It is served in the glass with a cocoa and almond streusel. The blending is done not to whip it like a mousse, but to combine the dairy and cacao evenly.<\/p>\n

A Cream Dessert Recorded in an 1827 Letter<\/h2>\n

In a letter sent from Bologna to his father on June 1, 1827, Giacomo Leopardi described latte e mele. He gave the ingredients as cream, unsalted gelatin and sugar, and remarked that the cook\u2019s handiwork was important. Although its name differs from today\u2019s panna cotta, it is an old record of a sweet made with dairy and sugar.<\/p>\n

\n\"Panna\n
Elderflower panna cotta at The Meeting Place (June 28, 2025; location unknown). According to the menu, it is scented with elderflower and served with blueberry compote. Photo: Andy Li \/ Wikimedia Commons<\/a> \/ CC0<\/a>. A reduced-size version was obtained from Commons. Provided under CC0 by the photographer. No content alterations or cropping on our part.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

The Langhe Tradition and the Origin Stories Kept by Restaurants<\/h2>\n

Materials from the regional government relate a history connected with a woman of Hungarian origin in the Langhe in the early 20th century. She is said to have brought the method to this area, where cream was easy to obtain, and it then spread to the surrounding area. The maker\u2019s name has not been passed down, but it is a tradition that describes how the cream dessert took root here. Today it is counted among the traditional foods of the entire region.<\/p>\n

The recollections of the Bovio family of La Morra hold that a Hungarian traveler who came to the Belvedere inn inspired its cook around 1940. The restaurant\u2019s method passed from the cook Settimo to his son Giorgio, then to Gian, and then to Gian\u2019s son-in-law, Marco Boschiazzo. Marco, the successor, still keeps some of the steps as the restaurant\u2019s secret.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, there is also a theory that names Ettore Songia, the cook at \u201cI Tre Citroni\u201d in Cuneo, as its creator, so the origin has not been settled on a single account. Ada Boni\u2019s 1968 book includes \u201cCrema Belvedere,\u201d made by refrigerating cream and sugar until set. In the 20th century, while methods were handed down in restaurants, dairy desserts of this kind also began to appear in cookbooks for home cooks.<\/p>\n

Food-Service Panna Cotta That Spread in Japan in the 1990s<\/h2>\n

The December 22, 1993 issue of the Nihon Shokuryo Shimbun (Japan Food Journal) reported on a 65-gram frozen dessert from Morinaga Milk Industry. It was a product for restaurants, thawed in the refrigerator and turned upside down out of its container onto a plate. It had already been added to the menus of major family restaurant chains and was attracting attention as Italian cuisine became established. In this system, the step of pouring warmed ingredients into molds was completed at the factory, and the product was then delivered to restaurants.<\/p>\n

A later chronology lists Suntory\u2019s food-service powder in 1992 and Morinaga Milk Industry\u2019s cup product in 1993. The Morinaga Milk Industry product reported at the time was an item for restaurants that was delivered frozen, then thawed and plated. Its use differs from that of retail desserts eaten straight from the container. Panna cotta spread not only through restaurant cooking but also through the distribution of food-service ingredients and frozen products.<\/p>\n

Glossary<\/h2>\n

Bovio family \/ Belvedere<\/strong>: The family that carried on a restaurant in La Morra, and the name of the inn and dining room they formerly ran. The cooks Settimo, his son Giorgio, Gian, and the son-in-law Marco carried on the work.<\/p>

Marco Boschiazzo<\/strong>: The successor cook of the Bovio family.<\/p>

Ettore Songia<\/strong>: A cook in Cuneo. According to one theory, he was involved in the creation of modern panna cotta.<\/p>

Ada Boni<\/strong>: A 20th-century Italian food writer.<\/p>

Sheet gelatin<\/strong>: Gelatin processed into thin sheets. It is softened in cold water before being dissolved in a warm liquid.<\/p>

Gelatin<\/strong>: An ingredient processed from animal collagen. A liquid in which it has been dissolved forms a gel when chilled.<\/p>

Water-bath baking<\/strong>: A baking method in which molds are placed in a tray of hot water or similar and heated gently through the water.<\/p>

Heat coagulation<\/strong>: The process by which proteins, such as those in eggs, bind together and set when heated.<\/p>

Coulis<\/strong>: A pourable sauce made by straining fruit or other ingredients.<\/p>

Emulsification<\/strong>: The process of finely dispersing fat and water so that they blend uniformly.<\/p>

Streusel<\/strong>: An ingredient made by gathering flour, sugar, fat and other ingredients into crumbs and baking them. Some versions use cocoa and almonds.<\/p>

Marsala<\/strong>: A fortified wine made in Sicily, Italy. It is also used to flavor sweets.<\/p>

Giacomo Leopardi<\/strong>: A 19th-century Italian poet. In a letter to his father, he wrote about a dairy sweet he had come to know while traveling.<\/p>

Latte e mele<\/strong>: The name of an old Italian dairy sweet. In historical sources, sweetened whipped cream and similar preparations are also referred to by this name.<\/p>

References<\/h2>\n
  1. PANNA COTTA | Piemonte Italia<\/a> \u2014 500 ml cream \/ 8 g sheet gelatin, infusing with vanilla, chilling for at least 5 h and unmolding, and the various sauces.<\/li>
  2. Paste e dolci – PiemonteIS-Eccellenza Piemonte<\/a> \u2014 PAT status for all of Piedmont, cream and milk, the caramel-lined rectangular mold, alcohol\/coffee, 3 h chilling, and the Langhe Hungarian tradition.<\/li>
  3. P125 Panna Cotta | Valrhona<\/a> \u2014 Emulsifying the P125 liquid, using the hand blender without aerating, pouring into glasses at 30 degrees, contact film overnight, and baked cocoa-almond crumbs.<\/li>
  4. Ricetta Panna cotta senza colla di pesce – La Ricetta di GialloZafferano<\/a> \u2014 Mixing egg whites, unwhipped, into the room-temperature liquid; water-bath baking and refrigerating after cooling; browning.<\/li>
  5. Giacomo Leopardi – Lettere al padre<\/a> \u2014 Full text of the letter to his father from Bologna dated June 1, 1827; the ingredients and handiwork of latte-e-mele; the advance mention of May 14.<\/li>
  6. Giacomo Leopardi, giovane goloso | Georgofili<\/a> \u2014 Researcher Ballarini\u2019s study of the 1827 letter and the place of the sweet.<\/li>
  7. Lattemiele, il dolce pi\u00f9 antico \u2013 Ruminantia \u2013 Web Magazine del mondo dei Ruminanti<\/a> \u2014 That the old name lattemiele was also used for sweet whipped dairy desserts.<\/li>
  8. Regione Piemonte: 2015 PAT product G62 Panna Cotta<\/a> \u2014 The entire region and the Langhe; gelatin, egg-white and starch types; alcohol; caramel; traditions of production and storage; and the history that a Hungarian woman brought the method.<\/li>

  9. \u2022 Nihon Shokuryo Shimbun, \u201cMorinaga Milk Industry\u2026 launches panna cotta,\u201d December 22, 1993<\/a> \u2014 The 65 g frozen product, its use by thawing and turning out onto a plate, and its earlier adoption by family restaurants.<\/p><\/li>

  10. \u2022 Aji no Techo, \u201c100 Years of Sweets\u201d<\/a> \u2014 A later chronology listing the 1992 powder and the 1993 cup product.<\/p><\/li>

  11. Accademia Italiana della Cucina, Civilt\u00e0 della Tavola No. 315 (May 2019), panna cotta report<\/a> \u2014 Based on direct interviews with the Bovio family and the successor cook: the memory of a Hungarian traveler around 1940, the succession, the difficulty of verifying the Songia theory, and Boni\u2019s 1968 Crema Belvedere.<\/li><\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Its white, smooth surface trembles as the spoon moves. Panna cotta is an Italian dessert made by warming fresh cream and then chilling it until set. Its name means \u201ccooked cream.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":6734,"menu_order":36,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_parade_sweetlore_meta":{"en":"Panna cotta","subtitle":"A dairy dish of warmed fresh cream, chilled until set","topics":"Fresh cream \/ Gelatin \/ Piedmont","country":"Italy","show_toc":true,"ingredients":["cream","egg"],"texture":[],"occasion":[],"method":["baked","chilled"],"season":[]},"footnotes":""},"sweetlore_category":[164],"class_list":["post-8281","sweetlore","type-sweetlore","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":{"sweetlore_related_products":[8905,8904],"sweetlore_related_faqs":null,"sweetlore_related_voices":null,"sweetlore_related_mode":"manual","sweetlore_related_articles":[8280,8320,8272,8273,8282,8290,8310,8322]},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t