Smoked Honey & Goat...Smoked Honey & Goat Cheese Panna Cotta with Blackberry-Thyme Gelée

An elegant, multi-textured dessert pairing the earthy creaminess of artisanal goat cheese with a delicate smoked honey infusion, bright blackberry-thyme gelée, and a buttery pistachio crumble.

Ingredients

Cooking Instructions

1. 01

   Bloom the gelatin: Place 2 gelatin sheets in one bowl of ice-cold water, and 1 gelatin sheet in another bowl. Let soften for 5-10 minutes.

2. 02

   Prepare the Pistachio Sablé: Toast pistachios at 160°C (320°F) for 8 minutes. Cool completely, then finely grind in a food processor. Mix with flour, powdered sugar, and a pinch of fleur de sel. Rub in the cold cubed butter with your fingertips until a sandy crumble forms. Spread on a lined baking sheet and bake at 170°C (340°F) for 12-15 minutes until golden brown. Cool and set aside.

3. 03

   Infuse the cream: In a medium saucepan, combine heavy cream, milk, scraped vanilla seeds and pod, and smoked honey. Bring to a bare simmer over medium heat, then remove from heat. Cover and let steep for 10 minutes.

4. 04

   Create the Panna Cotta base: Discard the vanilla pod. Squeeze the excess water from the 2 bloomed gelatin sheets and whisk them into the warm cream mixture until fully dissolved. Put the mild goat cheese in a medium bowl and gradually whisk in the warm cream until completely smooth and emulsified. Strain through a fine-mesh chinois.

5. 05

   Set the Panna Cotta: Divide the mixture evenly among 4 elegant serving glasses. Place in the refrigerator to set for at least 3 hours.

6. 06

   Make the Blackberry-Thyme Gelée: In a small saucepan, combine blackberries, sugar, thyme sprigs, and lemon juice. Cook over medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes, crushing the berries gently to release juices. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl, pressing to extract all liquid while leaving seeds behind.

7. 07

   Finish the Gelée: Squeeze excess water from the remaining 1 bloomed gelatin sheet and whisk it into the warm blackberry liquid until dissolved. Let the mixture cool to room temperature, but do not let it set.

8. 08

   Assemble and serve: Gently pour a thin layer of the cooled blackberry gelée over the set goat cheese panna cottas. Return to the refrigerator for 1 hour to set. Just before serving, garnish with a generous spoonful of pistachio sablé crumble, fresh blackberries, and fresh micro-thyme leaves.