The Globe and Mail

Most people think of panna cotta, which in Italian means “cooked cream,” as a sweet, silky, chilled dessert. However, it can also be easily adapted to work as a savoury addition to salads or appetizers. Originally from the Alpine regions of northern Italy famous for their milk and cream, the early versions of panna cotta, prior to the 20th century at least, were quite unlikely to have included sugar anyway, as it was an expensive imported ingredient.

Panna cotta is ridiculously simple to make. The only thing that requires any attention is the amount of gelatin used. There is no greater sin than using too much of it, which always results in an over-firm, unpleasantly rubbery feel in the mouth.

The following recipe has been used on the menu at Scaramouche for a number of years, usually as part of a goat-cheese salad, but recently I used it at home as a tangy replacement for buffalo mozzarella in an heirloom-tomato salad. I substituted fresh lemon juice for the more commonly used balsamic vinegar and added slivers of picholine olives, which gave the whole salad a bright, citrusy edge.

Keith Froggett is co-owner and executive chef of Scaramouche in Toronto.