# Ideas for plating panna cotta



## jellly

OK, I have had panna cotta on my menu before. I often just set it in a shallow bowl, then arrange accompaniments on top. However, I am experimenting with other plate ups and am wondering what tricks other chefs have used.

I don't love the look of the disposable molds that allow you to unmold the panna directly onto the plate. I have tried freezing the panna in silicone molds, but then it needs to be unmolded onto something (like shortbread) so that once it thaws, it can be moved onto the plate. However, I saw some photos of tubes of panna - like this one

__
https://flic.kr/p/3085773125
, but I am wondering how to do that. I don't want to set the panna with too much gelatin, but find it is hard to move the panna to plate unless it is on something.

Any ideas?


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## chefross

A flat clean and dry dessert plate will allow the panna cotta to adhere to it....(if the mold is flat that is). The fruited sauces can be poured around the dessert without it moving about.

Also....have you considered another serving suggestion being leaving the panna cotta in its' own serving dish like you would for

Couer d la Creme or Pots du Creme?


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## jellly

I don't have the right type of individual dishes, like for pots de creme, though that is similar to when I set the panna in the shallow bowls.  I can't unmold the panna on the dessert plates ahead of time.  There just isn't room in our walkin to hold them.  I have to be able to either unmold them (not-frozen) to order or be able to move them after they have thawed.  Does that make sense?


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## petemccracken

My question is why are they frozen in the first place???


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## durangojo

what about placing it on a pizzelle? the recipe i use has whipped cream folded into the cream mixture which makes it even creamier...it also has lemoncello in it.... maybe first a grape gelee layer with grappa and thin slices of red and green grapes...might be interesting....or perhaps multiple layers of varying fruits and liqueurs.  when i plate pc, after running the knife around i very very briefly dip the ramekins in very warm water, then invert onto a plate or bowl. i don't usually have a problem lifting the ramekin off, but if i do i just redip in the warm water....hmmm the freezing has me curious..... i am curious if freezing it changes the delicateness noticeably? maybe serve it like you would a creme brulee... maybe you can make your own molds out of pvc to get height, width etc.

joey


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## petalsandcoco

Jellly,

I found where that dessert was served :

http://docsconz.typepad.com/docsconz_the_blog/las-vegas/

Petals.

ps. they used acetate cylinders to mold it.


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## durangojo

yeah, greek yoghurt...nice...

petals, glad to hear you're feeling better...seems it's the time of year this gets shared universally...yes, we are indeed a very small planet....flu bugs, food, love.....we all share!!!

joey


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## gypsy2727

Seconds to Greek Yogurt!!!!

Hey Petals and Joey!!!!

Happy New Year girls!!!!

Gypsy


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## jellly

I do appreciate all of the suggestions, but I am afraid I must not have explained what I was trying to accomplish exactly.  I don't have individual molds to set the panna cotta in, though I would love to get them eventually.  I have been trying to find a way to plate the panna cotta differently and have it be one of several components on the plate.

I do have silicone molds, but they are too soft sided to use in the traditional manner with panna.  Therefore, I tried freezing the panna cotta in the mold, which allowed me to unmold and thaw.  This gave me a great shape, but then presented me with a problem of how to get it onto the plate.  Once it is thawed, the panna is rather soft and hard to move without messing up the shape.  I don't have room to thaw them directly on the individual plates and hold all of those plates in the cooler during service.

So the only option I have found so far is to unmold them onto a firm base, like pate sucree.  This would work, but was wondering if there were other options I wasn't aware of yet.  

Petalsandcoco - Thank you.  I thought acetate would be hard to unmold and perhaps I will have to add more gelatin to stabilize it.  However, I would like to give this a try because I do really like the look.


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## petalsandcoco

Jellly,

I found this site interesting as far as having another idea for plating the panna.

http://www.alacuisine.org/alacuisine/2004/10/coconut_panna_c.html

You can put whatever flavors you feel like but its the terrine idea and the layered look you can go for. It will hold up great, slice as you need and then garnish ....

You have superb taste in flavor combinations, whatever route you go , I know it will be a winner with your clients.

ps. Hello Joey and Gypsy, good to see you. Yes, its winter which means chicken soup , vicks and kleenex lol.


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## durangojo

what if you froze them on individual plates and pulled them from the freezer instead of the walk in, then just cleaned up the plate before garnishing? can't you simply slip a thin metal spatula underneath the panna cotta to move it? if it's too soft, perhaps a bit more gelatin,no? i like the layered look with gelee as well as the terrine idea, which you could cut to whatever size or shape you want.... ramekins and ring molds are not very expensive...what are you using now for molds?  

joey

hi gypsy! nice to see you again...what have you been up to? did you ever open your restaurant? maybe post in another thread and catch us up....


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## jellly

Thanks for the link, the terrine looks beautiful.


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## Iceman

I use these. Well, not exactly these, but just like them. Simple metal ramekins. You make up your PCs, wrap them w/ a piece of plastic, set them in the cooler until service. Pull them out, warm them in your hands, then plop ... out on a plate nice and pretty.

  

The pics are not in any order, and the sizes are not to scale. I've used from 2 1/2-oz to 8-oz for desserts.


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## dcarch

Make your own mold.

I made this mold using food grade silicone rubber.

dcarch


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## durangojo

dcarch,

seriously wow!!!! what are the layers? is that 4 or 6 i count? is the coulis mint?...i would have guessed kiwi, but don't see any seeds in it.  hmmm... the top red...white chocolate with fruit puree or [gasp} food coloring?.... looks too waxy to be just dark chocolate or fondant.....what do you call this? is this your creation? as in all of your art dcarch, you take things to a whole other incredible level...truly an art form...thank you.....just wow!.....but now i just want a bite....

joey

can you explain how you made the mold please...thanks...


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## blueicus

We have a chocolate cremeux on the menu that is essentially like a panna cotta.  It gets poured into flexible silicone moulds and frozen.  For banquets it's a fairly straightforward job of thawing because you can put them on the plate some time before they are put out, which gives them time to thaw on the plate.  For our a la carte version the frozen bars are dipped in chocolate and subsequently placed in the fridge to thaw, where they are kept.  The coating of hard chocolate makes it easy to plate.

The dessert shown in the Le Bernardin photo was done using sheets of acetate, which are taped into cylinders then filled with the panna cotta mixture.  Thawing frozen panna cottas are certainly more viable for tasting menus since you can start plating them a couple courses before they're served, but for a la minute service you would use a different approach.


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## jellly

Hey thanks for all the suggestions and I love the pictures.  I picked up a plastic tube at Home Depot (the kind that covers a fluorescent bulb) and have cut it to size.  I have some panna setting up in those and we will see when I get to work how easy they are to unmold.

I love the idea of making my own silicone molds and am definitely going to look into that.  Is it quite difficult?


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## petalsandcoco

I am curious to know to Jellly.

I have seen beautiful floral motif molds that can make great shapes for sugar art , I wonder if that is it ? Would love to know how you made yours dcarch, does it take long ? Is there a tutorial or a video that we can look at just to get an idea ?

Thank you for sharing your pictures.

Petals.


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## dcarch

petalsandcoco said:


> I am curious to know to Jellly.
> 
> I have seen beautiful floral motif molds that can make great shapes for sugar art , I wonder if that is it ? Would love to know how you made yours dcarch, does it take long ? Is there a tutorial or a video that we can look at just to get an idea ?
> 
> Thank you for sharing your pictures.
> 
> Petals.


It is very difficult, requires a lot of training, practicce ----Are you sure you want to do it, are you sure you are smart enough to learn? LOL

Here you go:

food grade silicone casting rubber (ebay, amazon.com)

Mix equal parts A, and B, into mold. Wait one day. Done.

dcarch


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## petalsandcoco

Hey......wait a second here dcarch......what are you trying to say ????

That went way over my head , I mean, you may have to repeat it again ........ /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif /img/vbsmilies/smilies/smoking.gif cool.....dc.

Petals.

ps. project for the summer.


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## petemccracken

Here are some other resources for silicon mold making:

http://www.makeyourownmolds.com/
http://www.smooth-on.com/Smooth-Sil=-Plat/c1131/index.html
http://thechocolatemoldfactory.com/siliconemold.aspx
https://www.google.com/search?q=foo...s=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a


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## Iceman

I had a toy set called _*"Creepy Crawlers"*_ when I was a kid. We made all sorts of rubbery stuff with it.


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## jellly

Thank you so much for sharing, I can't wait to try this out.


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## pastrymama

If you use acetate sheets rolled into tubes and taped you can keep the panna cotta just refrigerated.  When needed, untape and roll out of the acetate onto the plate.  Unless your panna cotta is so soft it won't hold shape it should work easily.


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## petalsandcoco

Jellly, (scroll down)

I came across a pic today and thought of you and this thread. 

Black sesame ganache

Cherry yogurt panna cotta

Rose-Mahleb semifreddo

raspberry meringue

pink peppercorn crisp

sour cherry glass

maraschino almonds

cherry petals

cherry leaf.

When I see food created this way, it gives me sheer pleasure. Hanami in March is the place to be (bucket list)

Petals.


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