Christmas pavlova wreath
- Preparation and cooking time
- Total time
- Easy
- Serves 8
- 225ml (about 6 eggs) or use a carton of egg white eggs whitesat room temperature
- 350g white caster sugar
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
- 50ml cassisplus more for decoration
- (these are a darker red) Luxardo maraschino cherries
- (dipped in egg white and then caster sugar and left to dry) frosted mint leaves
- 300ml double cream
- champagne or sparkling wine
CHAMPAGNE CREAM
- 300ml double cream
- 150ml champagne (or other sparkling wine)
- kcal417
- fat20.2g
- saturates12.5g
- carbs49.6g
- fibre0.2g
- protein3.2g
- salt0.2g
Method
step 1
Heat the oven to 150C/fan 130C/gas 2. Whisk the egg whites in a stand mixer until stiff peaks form, then whisk in the sugar a couple of tablespoons at a time. Once all the sugar has been whisked in, keep whisking for another 5 minutes then whisk in the vinegar. You should have a very thick, glossy meringue.
step 2
Using a large serving spoon and spatula, push spoonfuls of meringue at intervals onto 2 baking sheets lined with baking paper – they should fall off the spoon in oval shapes. Drizzle the cassis quickly over the meringues using a jug with a narrow pouring lip, and slide the trays straight into the oven. Bake for 5 minutes, then turn the heat down to 120C/fan 100C/gas 1/2 and cook for a further 30 minutes, or until they have risen and feel set. Turn off the oven and leave them in for 30 minutes before cooling.
step 3
To make the champagne cream, whip the cream to soft peaks, then whisk in the champagne. To assemble, arrange the meringues on a serving plate using the cream to fix them in place. Spoon some more cream between the meringues, then drizzle over more cassis and dot with the cherries and mint leaves.