Pumpkin-Spice Panna Cotta in a Gingersnap-Toffee Crust
This perfect fall dessert reminds one of a lighter version of pumpkin pie served in individual ramekins. The gingersnap and chocolate English toffee crust adds a surprising burst of flavor and texture to the pumpkin panna cotta.
I usually make panna cotta using heavy cream but considering it as a possible Thanksgiving Day dessert opted to use whole milk and Half and Half which still create a rich dessert but perhaps not quite as rich as cream. Certainly cream can be substituted for with the milk, or Half and Half, or both if wishing pure decadence!
Servings 6 desserts
Calories 626kcal
Ingredients
Ingredients for Gingersnap-Toffee crust:
- 4 cups Gingersnap cookies (gluten-free or with gluten)*
- 5-1.4 ounce /39 gram Heath Bar candy bars
- 3 tablespoons unsalted Butter , melted
ingredients for Pumpkin-Spice Panna Cotta:
- 1 cup Whole Milk
- 1 packet Gelatin
- 1 cup Half and Half
- 1/3 cup granulated Sugar
- 1 cup Pumpkin Puree
- 1/2 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie spice
- 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
Instructions
Instructions for the Gingersnap-Toffee crust:
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly butter 6-1 cup volume ramekins.
- Add gingersnaps to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until making sand-like crumbs. Add Heath Bars and pulse until they too have turned into small crumbs.
- While the food processor is running, drizzle melted butter into the crumbs to fully combine. The mixture will have a texture of lightly wet sand.
- Scoop 1/2 cup into each ramekin and press into a crust covering the bottom and sides of the ramekin evenly.
- Place all prepared ramekins on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 10 minutes for the crust to set. Remove and allow to cool to room temperature on a cooling rack.
Instructions for Pumpkin-Spice Panna Cotta:
- In a small bowl pour 3 tablespoons of the whole milk and the contents of the gelatin packet. Stir to combine. Set aside.
- Place all the cooled ramekins with the crust onto a baking sheet. This will stabilize the finished panna cotta to be chilled in the refrigerator. Set aside.
- In a blender combine the remaining whole milk, Half and Half, sugar, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice and vanilla extract. Pulse to fully combine.
- Pour the pumpkin mixture into a medium saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar fully dissolves.
- Add the milk-gelatin mixture (which will be solid) to the saucepan, whisking to blend in. Stir constantly for an additional 2 minutes to ensure all ingredients have blended well.
- Remove from heat and pour panna cotta into the ramekins (approximately 1/2 cup per ramekin). Place the ramekins on the baking sheet into the refrigerator and chill for 3-4 hours, or until fully set.
- The panna cotta may be covered and chilled overnight, then served chilled or allowed to come to room temperature before serving.
Notes
*I used Midel gluten-free gingersnaps and found one package supplied the amount this recipe requires.
The majority of the recipe time is for the panna cotta chilling.
NOTE REGARDING CHANGING THE RECIPE FORMAT: This recipe was developed as a single-serving scoopable dessert. Based on the qualities of the dessert components I do not recommend changing the format of the recipe into a tart. Should you wish to increase the servings I suggest increasing the number of single-serving ramekins prepared by making additional batches of the dessert to fulfill your serving needs.
Nutrition
Calories: 626kcal | Carbohydrates: 91g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 39mg | Sodium: 497mg | Potassium: 450mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 43g | Vitamin A: 6740IU | Vitamin C: 2.1mg | Calcium: 159mg | Iron: 5.4mg