Tonka Bean Panna Cotta is a delightfully creamy and delicately flavoured take on the classic Italian dessert. Paired with roasted strawberries and a crunchy brown sugar crumble, it makes a stunning dessert with plenty of well matched flavours and textures.
Grate the tonka bean and place in a saucepan with the caster sugar, milk and cream
Heat until scalding, but do not let the mixture boil. Stir with a wooden spoon several times as it heats to help dissolve the sugar
Take off the heat and let infuse for 20 minutes
When the remaining infusion time is 10 minutes, put the gelatin leaves into a bowl of cold water and let soak for 10 minutes, then remove and squeeze out the water
Add the softened gelatin to the infused liquid and stir until it has melted in
Pass the liquid through a fine-meshed sieve to remover any lumps of tonka bean, then pour into 4 ramekins or glasses (see notes)
Let cool, cover loosely with clingfilm and carefully transfer to the fridge to set for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight
Make the roasted Strawberries
Remove the stalks from the strawberries and cut into quarters
Place on a baking tin lined with parchment. Sprinkle the sugar and vanilla extract over, toss briefly with a metal spoon and spread the fruit out into a single layer
Roast in a preheated oven 150C/ 300F/ GM2 for 45 minutes
Allow to cool then scrape the fruit and any syrup into a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve
Make the Crumble Topping
In a small bowl rub the butter and sugar into the flour until it resembles sand
Spread it onto a baking tin lined with parchment and cook at 150C/ 300F/ GM2 for 20 minutes
Let cool in the tin and then break up any lumps to ensure the crumble is fine rather than lumpy
Serving
When ready to serve unmold each panna cotta carefully. The best way to do this is to dip the ramekins, one at a time, into a heatproof bowl half-filled with hot water. Leave for about 10 seconds, dry the pot, place a serving plate over the top of the ramekin and swiftly invert so the pot is on top of the plate. Hold the pot firmly and shake gently - the panna cotta should come out of the ramekin onto the plate. (if it doesn't budge, try repeating the process, but take care not to overheat the dessert when dipping the pot into hot water
Spoon a little of the roasted strawberries and syrup around the side and top with a spoonful of the crumble topping
Serve immediately
Notes
If you prefer to serve the panna cotta in glass jars that is perfectly acceptable. The overall look may not be as pretty, but it will still take sensational.