Turkish Coffee Panna Cotta

Turkish Coffee Panna Cotta

Serves 4 greedily, 6 sensibly


400ml cream

75ml full cream milk

75g caster sugar

50ml strong coffee

1 star anise

2 clove

1 small cinnamon stick

4 cardamon pods (seeds removed and crushed)

3 gelatin leaves

Small amount of vegetable oil (if using moulds and flipping the panna cotta out).

I’m making this dessert for someone lovely, who loves coffee. This recipe is adapted from a Gordon Ramsey one and I think the measurements are perfect. It just holds together and has an amazing wobble.

The coffee and spices are subtle and the whole thing is just creamy and delicious. I thought about serving with grated chocolate, or cocoa, or plums or raspberries, or pistachio biscotti, all of which would be good…but really, I think it’s unnecessary. It’s deceptively rich and decadent and works perfectly on its own.

First get your coffee on. Either make a double espresso shot, or a really strong stove top coffee, or strong instant coffee. Just make sure its 50ml of liquid. Steep all of the spices in the coffee and leave to infuse.

Next soak gelatin sheets in a bowl of cold water for about 5 minutes until they become soft.

Heat cream, milk and sugar in a medium pot over a low heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add coffee and spice mix and bring to a simmer. Just before it boils take off the heat.

Squeeze the water out of the gelatin leaves and whisk the gelatin blobs really well into the hot milk mix. Leave this to cool down (15-20 minutes) before pouring through a sieve and into a jug.


If you’re using moulds and turning the panna cotta out, grease them lightly with some vegetable oil. Pour into 4 – 6 ramekins/moulds/cups, cover with cling film and put in the fridge for 4-6 hours to set. They should have a wobble in the middle but be firm around the edges.  

If you’re using moulds, get your serving plates out, run a sharp knife around the rim of each panna cotta and dip the bottom of each mould into boiling water for 5 seconds then flip onto the plate, tap them on the bottom and hope they come out. If they don’t, keep sitting them in hot water for 5 seconds and trying the flip and tap move until eventually…you hear that little suction cup sound and they emerge, jelly like on the plate.

They should wobble as much as possible without breaking apart.  If for some reason they don’t set, just serve them in cups or ramekins and cover any splat disasters with a dusting of cocoa.