Vanilla panna cotta with rhubarb and hibiscus

5.00

This delicate vanilla panna cotta is topped with two bright pink delights: forced rhubarb and hibiscus. This dessert takes quite a lot of time to simmer and set, but it’s almost all hands-off time, and well worth the wait.

First published in 2025

Rebecca says: 'Rhubarb and hibiscus is a flavour combination that appears on my restaurant menu every rhubarb season. You really need forced rhubarb here as it barely gets cooked – it’s a pop of colour in the depths of winter.'

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Panna cotta

  • 2 1/2 platinum grade gelatine leaves
  • 300g of double cream
  • 100g of whole milk
  • 60g of sugar
  • 2 vanilla pods

Rhubarb and hibiscus consommé

Equipment

  • four individual serving glasses about 8cm in diameter

Method

1

The panna cotta needs at least 4 hours to set so make it first. Bloom the gelatine in a bowl of cold water for about 5 minutes

  • 2 1/2 platinum grade gelatine leaves
2

Put the cream, milk and sugar together and warm over a low heat – it needs to be warm enough to melt the gelatine but not hot

  • 300g of double cream
  • 100g of whole milk
  • 60g of sugar
3

Squeeze any excess water from the gelatine and stir it into the warm cream until it has dissolved

4

Halve the vanilla pods and scrape out the seeds with a sharp knife (keeping the pods for roasted vanilla cream on page 81 of The Changing Tides or to flavour sugar)

  • 2 vanilla pods
5

Add the seeds to the mixture and put it into the fridge, getting it out to stir occasionally – you want it to be totally chilled (but not set) before you transfer it to your moulds as this will stop the vanilla from sinking to the bottom

6

Pour the mix into your serving glasses and pop in the fridge for about 4 hours to set

7

Meanwhile, roughly chop 375g of the rhubarb and mix with the sugar in a heatproof bowl

8

Tie the hibiscus in a bit of muslin, add it to the bowl and cover with cling film. Set the bowl over a bain-marie and simmer for 2 hours, by which time the rhubarb will be sitting in a pure pink consommé

9

Squeeze out the hibiscus to get every bit of flavour and colour from it, then strain everything through a muslin into a bowl

10

Cut the remaining rhubarb into 5mm dice and add to the warm consommé, then put it into the fridge to chill for a couple of hours. When you’re ready to eat, spoon the rhubarb over the panna cotta and serve

First published in 2025

Roberta Hall-McCarron spent the early part of her career under the wing of Tom Kitchin but has since gone on to carve a path of her own, opening the acclaimed The Little Chartroom in Edinburgh, where her bold, seasonal food brings Scotland’s natural larder to the forefront.

Get in touch

Please sign in or register to send a comment to Great British Chefs.

You may also like

Load more