Panna Cotta (Naturally Gluten-Free)

Panna cotta — cooked cream — is one of Italy's most elegant desserts and one of its simplest: cream, sugar, and gelatin, set in moulds and turned out. It is naturally, completely gluten-free. The genius of panna cotta is its restraint — it is the perfect vehicle for whatever flavour you add (vanilla, coffee, berries, caramel, citrus), and its texture — silky, barely set, almost molten — is unique to the gelatin-set cream preparation. The technique hinges on getting the gelatin quantity exactly right: too much and the panna cotta is rubbery; too little and it doesn't turn out cleanly. The classic ratio — 2g gelatin per 250ml liquid — produces a barely-set cream that quivers when the plate is tapped. Served with a fruit compote or caramel sauce that pools around the unmoulded cream, panna cotta is the benchmark for elegant simplicity.