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Pistachio panna cotta with chopped pistachios in glass.
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5 from 3 votes

Pistachio Panna Cotta

This Pistachio Panna Cotta is a decadent Italian dessert recipe! It's made with heavy cream, homemade roasted pistachio butter, and honey.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Chilling Time:2 hours
Total Time2 hours 20 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Italian
Diet: Gluten Free
Keyword: panna cotta, pistachio butter, panna cotta with pistachio
Servings: 4
Calories: 920kcal

Equipment

  • Food Processor

Ingredients

Instructions

For The Panna Cotta:

  • Pour ¼ cup of cold water into a small mixing bowl. Sprinkle 1 packet (equals 2 ¼ tsp.) unflavored gelatin into the water. There is no need to stir the mixture.
  • Allow the water and gelatin mixture to sit for 10 minutes at room temperature until it sets. The mixture will form a gel-like texture.
  • Place 2 cups of heavy whipping cream, ¼ cup sugar, and 1 tsp. vanilla extract into a small sauce pan. Heat the mixture to just below a boil, stirring often. Continue to stir with the heat just below a boil until all of the sugar has dissolved.
  • Add the gelatin mixture to the sauce pan and continue to stir while the mixture cooks just under a boil. Stir until the gelatin has dissolved. Remove from heat.
  • Pour the cooked cream mixture into 4 small glasses (or serving glasses of choice). Allow the cream mixture to sit and come to room temperature. Once the cream has reached room temperature, transfer the glasses to the refrigerator and allow to set for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours.

For The Pistachio Butter:

  • This step can be completed while the panna cotta is chilling in the refrigerator. Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  • Pour 10 oz. (equals 1 ¼ cup) of unsalted pistachios (remove the shells if pistachios are unshelled) onto a baking sheet.
  • Place the baking sheet in the oven and roast the pistachio nuts for 8-10 minutes, shaking the pan once during the roasting process to prevent the nuts from burning. Remove the baking sheet from the oven. The pistachios should be fragrant.
  • Reserve ¼ cup of the roasted pistachios and set aside. Place the rest of the nuts in a food processor. Pulse the pistachios a number of times until they begin to break apart.
  • Turn the food processor 'on' for a minute or two. Repeat this process until the pistachios begin to form a thick paste, pausing for a minute or two in between pulsing. This will help to prevent your food processor from overheating. Use a spatula to scrape the sides if necessary.
    This step can take up to 10 minutes.
  • Once a thick paste has formed, add 1 Tbsp. unrefined coconut oil to the food processor and pulse until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
  • Place the reserved ¼ cup of pistachios in a small plastic bag and crush with a meat tenderizer.

Serve The Panna Cotta:

  • Remove the panna cotta from the refrigerator and top each one with desired amount of roasted pistachio butter.
  • Sprinkle the crushed pistachios over the butter.
  • Drizzle with a little bit of honey (or sweetener of choice) and sprinkle with a bit of flaky sea salt (or salt of choice) (both optional).

Notes

See notes above for ideas on how to use up leftover pistachio butter and how to store unused pistachio butter.
Panna cotta requires at least 2 hours of chill time and can be made a day in advance.
Make sure to pause every minute or so when making the pistachio butter so that your food processor does not overheat.
Pre-made pistachio butter can be purchased online or in a high-end grocery store or Italian deli if you do not feel like making it from scratch.

Nutrition

Serving: 3cups | Calories: 920kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 79g | Saturated Fat: 34g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Monounsaturated Fat: 30g | Cholesterol: 163mg | Sodium: 56mg | Potassium: 808mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 1933IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 156mg | Iron: 3mg