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My stance is that the new year still deserves a sweet treat. During a month often characterised by dreary weather, a little sweetness can lift spirits. Granted, I'm not after anything overly rich, but a dessert such as this light yoghurt panna cotta hits the spot. At first sight, it could easily pass for a fancy breakfast pot.

Yoghurt Panna Cotta with Tahini-Oat Topping

You'll have a generous amount of topping for this dessert. Save the excess in an tightly-closed tub as a ready-made crunchy snack another time.

Prep: 5 minutes
Chill: 2 hours minimum
Cook: 50 minutes
Serves: 4

For the Panna Cotta

• 2 sheets of gelatine
• 300g of whipping cream
• 60g of honey
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste
• A pinch of salt
• 300g of Greek yoghurt

For the Tahini Crumble

• 80g of jumbo oats
• 50g of plain flour
• 40g of light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds
• A pinch of flaky sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 50g of melted unsalted butter
• 30g of tahini
• 2½ tablespoons of honey
• 2 small bananas, sliced

Method

First, place the gelatine sheets in a small bowl of cold water. Leave them to soften for 5 minutes or so, until they are soft. Next, pour off the water and gently squeeze out remaining moisture. Reserve for later.

Place in a pan, combine the cream with the honey, vanilla paste, and salt. Heat gently until steaming taking care not to boil. Remove from the heat and add the softened gelatine until it is totally melted. Then, mix in the Greek yoghurt until smooth. Spoon the blend into four small glasses and place in the refrigerator for a couple of hours, until solid.

Now for the crumble. Heat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan)/375°F/gas 5. Cover a baking sheet with baking paper. Using a large bowl the oats, flour, sugar, sesame seeds, salt, and cinnamon. Toss to blend. Add the melted butter and tahini, then stir until coated so everything is nicely mixed. Tip the blend onto the lined sheet and cook for 18 to 22 minutes, until crisp and coloured. Take it out, let it cool completely, then break it up into irregular pieces.

For the bananas: place in a pot, combine the honey with two tablespoons of water. Stir in the banana slices and heat until they soften slightly and the mixture becomes a bit sticky. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

Finally, top each panna cotta over the set panna cottas. Finish with the tahini crumble and dig in.