December Recipe

This is a great dessert for a Christmas party with family and friends and an alternative to Christmas pudding. The Pavlova can be made up to a month ahead and after wrapping it in cling film and foil can be stored in a cool place. 

Christmas Pavlova

This will serve 12 -15

Ingredients

For the Pavlova

• 6 large egg whites
• 350g caster sugar
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp cornflour

Decoration

• Mint leaves and icing sugar for dusting

For the filling

• 600ml double cream
• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
• 50g icing sugar, sifted
• 200g strawberries, hulled and quartered
• 300g raspberries
• 200g blueberries

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160C/140C Fan/Gas 3
2. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment and draw a 30cm circle in the middle of the paper. Draw a 15cm circle in the centre of the larger circle to make a ring.
3. With an electric whisk, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks when the whisk is removed. Whisking on maximum speed gradually add the sugar a teaspoon a time until they are soft and glossy. Mix the vinegar and cornflour in a cup and stir into the egg whites in the meringue.
4. Spoon the meringue onto the ring drawn on the baking parchment. With a large spoon make a shallow trench in the meringue for the fruit and cream to sit in. 
5. Transfer to the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 140C/120C/Gas 1. Bake for an hour to an hour and a quarter until the outside is hard but still white. Turn off the oven and leave the Pavlova inside for an hour or overnight to cool and dry.
6. To assemble, whip the cream, vanilla paste and icing sugar until stiff peaks form when the whisk is removed. Spoon the cream into the trench in the meringue. Arrange the fruit on top and decorate with a few mint leaves and sift over icing sugar before serving. 

Season’s greetings to everyone and enjoy

The Tidy Cook