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My stance is that January still deserves a delightful dessert. At a time typically filled with grey skies, a little sweetness goes a long way. Granted, I'm not after dense confections, but something like this light yoghurt panna cotta is absolutely perfect. At first sight, it could easily pass for a fancy breakfast pot.

Yoghurt Panna Cotta with Banana and Tahini Crumble

Prepare more crumble than needed for four servings. Keep the leftovers in an tightly-closed tub for a handy textured garnish 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

Begin by putting the gelatine sheets in a little dish of cold water. Let them sit for roughly 5 mins, until they are soft. Then, drain them and remove any excess liquid. Put them to one side.

Place in a pan, add the cream with the honey, vanilla paste, and salt. Warm over a low flame until hot but not boiling. Turn off the heat and whisk in the softened gelatine until it is totally melted. Then, mix in the Greek yoghurt thoroughly. Pour the mixture into serving pots and refrigerate for a couple of hours, until completely set.

Now for the crumble. Preheat your oven to 190°C (170°C fan)/375°F/gas 5. Line a small baking tray with baking paper. Combine in a bowl the oats, flour, sugar, sesame seeds, salt, and cinnamon. Stir together thoroughly. Pour in the melted butter and tahini, then stir until coated so everything is well covered. Tip the blend onto the prepared tray and cook for 18 to 22 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove from the oven, allow to cool fully, then crumble it up into irregular pieces.

For the bananas: in a small pan, gently heat the honey with two tablespoons of water. Stir in the banana slices and cook until they are tender and the syrup thickens like a glaze. Turn off the heat and set aside to cool.

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