Chocolate Pavlova

I love all things Pavlova. There is rarely a pavlova variation which I do not want to gobble down at a super human speed. But, forgetting the eating part (just for a moment) pavlova is very easy to make. It has less ingredients than a cake, it can be left alone to cook and it’s easily assembled. Oh, and, of course, it’s delicious. Smother with cream and raspberries and it is unbeatable.

INGREDIENTS

6 egg whites

300 g caster sugar

3 tablespoons cocoa powder, sieved

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

50 g dark chocolate, finely chopped

500 ml cream

500 g raspberries (I use frozen)

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line a large, flat baking tray with baking paper. Beat the egg whites until satiny peaks form and then gradually beat in the sugar, one tablespoon at a time, until the mixture is stiff and shiny. Sprinkle over the cocoa and the vinegar and then add the chopped chocolate. Gently fold the whole mass together until thoroughly combined. Mound on to a baking tray and shape in to a fat, thick disk. Put your meringue mountain in the oven and then immediately turn the temperature down to 140 degrees. Cook for one to one and a quarter hours. When cooked, the meringue will be crisp and hollow on the outside, but the inside should still be soft and meringue-y. Turn off the oven and open the door slightly, leaving the pavlova inside to cool down completely.

When you are ready to serve, edge the paper away from the bottom of the meringue carefully, until free. This can be quite tricky, so you can invert the whole disc in you prefer. You will find the pav is quite crumbly, but don’t worry, it will all be swathed in cream later anyway. Whisk your cream until thick but still wobbly and spread generously over the top of the meringue. Scatter with raspberries and gobble!

Pavlova

Pavlova seems to have developed an unfair reputation as a ‘complicated’ dessert. Let me tell you, it’s not. Baking a pavlova is no harder than baking a cake. Like all things it requires practice and you will, of course, get better the more frequently you try. I have tried a number of recipes and the following is the best. You can easily halve the ingredients and make a 4 egg pav if you don’t want to make this monster 8 egg version.

INGREDIENTS

8 egg whites

Pinch salt

500g caster sugar

4 teaspoons cornflour

2 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

METHOD

Preheat oven to a slow 120 degrees and line an oven tray with baking paper. Beat egg whites and salt until you have satiny peaks. Beat in the sugar gradually, tablespoon by tablespoon, beating all the time, until you have a thick, shiny meringue. Gently fold in the cornflour, vinegar and essence. Pile mixture into a rough circle on your baking tray and cook for 1 ½ to 2 hours. The pavlova should rise and crack all over and begin to look like a giant moon crater. Turn off the oven, open the door and allow the pavlova to cool completely. Gently peel off the baking parchment and mound with whipped cream which is thick and billowing, but still soft and decorate with the fruit of your choice.