Easy Strawberry Panna Cotta (No-Bake Italian Dessert)
Made with real strawberry puree, this no-bake panna cotta sets overnight and tastes like fresh strawberries.
Strawberry panna cotta is the dessert to make when strawberries are good and you want something that feels a little fancy without actually being hard.
The flavor hits as real strawberry — bright, fresh, not the pink artificial version. The texture is silky and just-set, somewhere between a custard and a mousse, and it disappears off the spoon. Worth making for that texture alone.
It’s a great pick from the world of Italian desserts when you want something hands-off and make-ahead — think dinner parties, weekend desserts, or anything where you don’t want to be plating while guests are at the door.
Heads up: it needs 6–8 hours in the fridge to set, so this is a make-it-the-night-before situation. If that fits your timing, it’s one of the easiest no bake dessert recipes around, and one of the better make ahead desserts to have ready when you need to feed people something nice.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Real strawberry flavor. Strawberry puree carries the whole recipe. No syrups, no jelly powder, no pink food coloring doing the work.
- Set-and-forget timing. Active time is under 15 minutes — the fridge does the rest while you sleep or get on with your day.
- Works fresh or frozen. In-season strawberries are best, but frozen ones cooked down work just as well in the off-season.
Ingredients and Substitutes
- Strawberries. The flavor base. Fresh in-season berries give the brightest flavor; frozen work year-round and often have more concentrated taste since they’re picked riper.
- Heavy cream. Rounds out the strawberry and gives the panna cotta its silky texture. Use at least 30% fat.
- Granulated sugar. Sweetens the puree. Adjust to taste — strawberries vary a lot in sweetness depending on the season.
- Lemon juice. Brightens the strawberry and keeps the flavor from going flat. Don’t skip it; even a small amount makes a noticeable difference.
- Powdered gelatin. Sets the panna cotta.
- Cold water. For blooming the gelatin.
- Vanilla extract. Backs up the strawberry without competing with it.
- Salt. A pinch sharpens the flavor and stops the dessert from tasting one-note sweet.
Step-by-Step: How to Make Easy Strawberry Panna Cotta
👉 For an in-depth guide to panna cotta along with tips about unmolding, see the vanilla panna cotta recipe.
- Bloom the gelatin. Sprinkle the gelatin evenly over the cold water in a small bowl, give it a quick stir, then let it sit for 5–10 minutes until it absorbs the water and looks like wet, wrinkled sand.
- Make the strawberry puree. For frozen strawberries, cook them with a splash of water in a small saucepan over low heat until soft and broken down, then blend smooth and pass through a fine mesh sieve. For fresh, just wash, hull, blend, and strain. You want about a cup of smooth puree — no seeds, no pulp.
- Heat the puree. Bring the strawberry puree to a gentle boil in a small saucepan, then stir in the sugar, vanilla, and salt until the sugar dissolves. Take it off the heat.
- Add the gelatin. Scrape in the bloomed gelatin and stir until it’s completely melted and the mixture looks smooth — no visible specks or strands.
- Add the cream and lemon juice. Pour in the cold cream and stir, then add the lemon juice and stir again. Adding the cream cold cools the mixture down fast so you can get it into the fridge sooner.
- Taste test. Taste the mixture and dial in the final flavor — strawberries vary a lot, so adjust sugar, salt, or lemon until it tastes the way you want.
- Blend and strain. Blend briefly with an immersion blender, then pass the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a measuring cup or pitcher. This catches any unmelted gelatin specks or leftover strawberry pulp and gives you that silky, properly smooth panna cotta texture.
- Pour into molds. Divide between 4 small ramekins, glasses, or silicone molds (around 1/2 cup each), or 3 larger vessels if you want bigger portions.
- Chill. Let them cool on the counter for 15–20 minutes, then cover and refrigerate for 6–8 hours, ideally overnight.
- Serve. Eat straight from the glass with a spoon, or unmold onto a plate. Top with whatever you like — fresh strawberries, a strawberry compote, white chocolate ganache, or just as-is.
Tips for Success
- Want a softer, more classic texture? This recipe makes a fairly firm panna cotta because the strawberry puree is thicker than dairy. For a looser, more traditional set, add ¼ cup of whole milk along with the cream.
- Use ripe strawberries. The puree carries the whole dessert, so flavor in equals flavor out. Pale, watery, or under-ripe berries will give you pale, watery panna cotta no matter what else you do.
- Don’t boil the mixture after adding the gelatin. High heat weakens gelatin’s setting power. If you need to reheat for any reason, keep it warm, not hot.
Storage
Keep the panna cotta covered in the fridge for up to 4 days. If you want to unmold the dessert, do so before serving, not 2 days in advance.
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 287.8kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup heavy cream ~232 g
- 1 cup strawberry puree ~240 g, from about 360 g strawberries
- 4 tbsp granulated sugar ~50 g, more to taste
- 1 ½ tsp lemon juice more to taste
- 1 envelope powdered gelatin ¼ oz / 7 g
- 3 tbsp cold water for blooming the gelatin, ~44 g
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt to taste
Instructions
- Bloom the gelatin. Sprinkle the gelatin evenly over the cold water in a small bowl, give it a quick stir, then let it sit for 5–10 minutes until it absorbs the water and looks like wet, wrinkled sand.1 envelope powdered gelatin, 3 tbsp cold water
- Make the strawberry puree. For frozen strawberries, cook them with a splash of water in a small saucepan over low heat until soft and broken down, then blend smooth and pass through a fine mesh sieve. For fresh, just wash, hull, blend, and strain. You want about 1 cup of smooth puree — no seeds, no pulp.1 cup strawberry puree
- Heat the puree. Bring the strawberry puree to a gentle boil in a small saucepan, then stir in the sugar, vanilla, and salt until the sugar dissolves. Take it off the heat.4 tbsp granulated sugar, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1 pinch salt
- Add the gelatin. Scrape in the bloomed gelatin and stir until it's completely melted and the mixture looks smooth — no visible specks or strands.
- Add the cream and lemon juice. Pour in the cold cream and stir, then add the lemon juice and stir again. Adding the cream cold cools the mixture down fast so you can get it into the fridge sooner.1 cup heavy cream, 1 ½ tsp lemon juice
- Taste test. Taste the mixture and dial in the final flavor — strawberries vary a lot, so adjust sugar, salt, or lemon until it tastes the way you want.
- Blend and strain. Blend briefly with an immersion blender, then pass the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a measuring cup or pitcher. This catches any unmelted gelatin specks or leftover strawberry pulp and gives you that silky, properly smooth panna cotta texture.
- Pour into molds. Divide between 4 small ramekins, glasses, or silicone molds (around 1/2 cup each), or 3 larger vessels if you want bigger portions.
- Chill. Let them cool on the counter for 15–20 minutes, then cover and refrigerate for 6–8 hours, ideally overnight.
- Serve. Eat straight from the glass with a spoon, or unmold onto a plate. Top with whatever you like — fresh strawberries, a strawberry compote, white chocolate ganache, or just as-is.
Notes
Yields 4 servings of ~ 1/2 cup (small ramekin or glass). For a looser, more classic panna cotta texture, add ¼ cup whole milk along with the cream.
Macros calculated on heavy cream at ~36% fat, using ~360 g of whole strawberries (some pulp/seeds are lost in straining, so real per-serving values will be slightly lower).
Nutrition
Calories: 287.8kcal | Carbohydrates: 21.3g | Protein: 3.3g | Fat: 21.3g | Fiber: 1.8g
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Recipes You Might Like
- Lemon Posset. Even simpler — just cream, sugar, and lemon. No gelatin, no fruit puree, but the same silky no-bake set dessert format.
- Orange Posset. The orange version of the posset, set the same way. Good move if you want to play with citrus instead of berries.
- No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake. Similar flavor profile, still no oven. Bigger project (crust, white chocolate filling, macerated berry topping), but completely doable if you want something more substantial for a crowd.
- Strawberry Compote. The obvious topping. Make a batch alongside the panna cotta and spoon some on top before serving.
