White Chocolate Pavlova Recipes

CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY PAVLOVA

Steps:

• Prepare the pan: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment. Draw a 9-inch-diameter circle on the paper with a pencil, tracing a round cake tin that size.
• Flip the paper over so your meringue doesn't touch the pencil marks - you'll still be able to see the circle.
• Make the meringue: Beat the egg whites with a mixer until satiny peaks form, and then beat in the sugar a spoonful at a time until the meringue is stiff and shiny.
• Add the chocolate: Sprinkle the cocoa, vinegar and then the chopped chocolate over the egg whites. Gently fold everything with a rubber spatula until the cocoa is thoroughly mixed in.
• Shape the meringue: Secure the parchment to the baking sheet with a dab of meringue under each corner. Mound the meringue onto the parchment within the circle, smoothing the sides and the top with a spatula.
• Bake the meringue: Place in the oven, then immediately turn the temperature down to 300 degrees F and cook for one to one and a quarter hours. When it's ready, it should look crisp and dry on top, but when you prod the center you should feel the promise of squidginess beneath your fingers.
• Let it cool: Turn off the oven and open the door slightly; let the chocolate meringue disk cool completely in the oven. When you'reready to serve, invert onto a big flatbottomed plate and peel off the parchment.
• Decorate the Pavlova: Whisk the cream till thick but still soft and pile it on top of the meringue, then scatter the raspberries on top. Coarsely grate the chocolate haphazardly over the top so that you get curls of chocolate rather than rubble, as you don't want the raspberries' luscious color and form to be obscured. You want the Pavlova to look like a frosted cake.

CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY PAVLOVA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/gas mark 4/350ºF and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Beat the egg whites until satiny peaks form, and then beat in the sugar a spoonful at a time until the meringue is stiff and shiny. Sprinkle over the cocoa and vinegar, and the chopped chocolate. Then gently fold everything until the cocoa is thoroughly mixed in. Mound on to a baking sheet in a fat circle approximately 23cm / 9 inches in diameter, smoothing the sides and top. Place in the oven, then immediately turn the temperature down to 150°C/130°C Fan/gas mark 2/300ºF and cook for about one to one and a quarter hours. When it's ready it should look crisp around the edges and on the sides and be dry on top, but when you prod the centre you should feel the promise of squidginess beneath your fingers. Turn off the oven and open the door slightly, and let the chocolate meringue disc cool completely. When you're ready to serve, invert on to a big, flat-bottomed plate. Whisk the cream till thick but still soft and pile it on top of the meringue, then scatter over the raspberries. Coarsely grate the chocolate so that you get curls rather than rubble, as you don't want the raspberries' luscious colour and form to be obscured, and sprinkle haphazardly over the top, letting some fall, as it will, on the plate's rim.

CHOCOLATE PAVLOVA WITH STRAWBERRIES

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 250 degrees.
• This recipe calls for 1 cup of granulated sugar, which needs to be ground to make more it fine. To do this I put 1 cup of granulated sugar into a blender and pulse it for a few seconds until the sugar is fine. (If you have caster sugar you can use the same amount of that instead.)
• Then, in a small bowl whisk together the sugar and cornstarch. Set aside.
• In a large glass or stainless steel bowl, whip the egg whites until they are foamy with stiff peaks.
• Then while the egg whites are still whipping, gradually add the sugar/cornstarch mixture, 1 tbsp at a time, until the mixture becomes glossy and forms stiff peaks. The texture will be kind of like stiff shaving foam.
• Then sprinkle the mixture with the vinegar and cocoa powder.
• Using a spatula, mix it together.
• Line a baking sheet with a sheet of parchment paper.
• Then using a spoon, add big spoonfuls of the meringue onto the sheet in the shape of a heart. To make the heart, I start at the top of the heart, adding 2 big scoops for the top bumps, then work your way down. The meringue should be at least 2 inches thick.
• Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the pavlova meringue has slight cracking and appears dry.
• Let it cool completely before adding the whipping cream and strawberries.
• While the pavlova is baking you can make the strawberry sauce.
• Cut the strawberries into 4. Then set aside half of them. You are going to leave 1/2 fresh, and 1/2 are going into the sauce.
• In a small saucepan add 1/2 of the chopped strawberries, the raspberries, 1 tbsp water and 1/4 cup sugar. Mix well.
• Simmer over low heat until the fruit is slightly cooked down and the sauce is the consistency of syrup. This takes about 15 minutes.
• Set aside to cool.
• Then stir in the remaining fresh strawberries.
• Using a mixer whip the whipping cream and vanilla until it is fluffy.
• Note: I do not add sugar to this whipped cream because the pavlova and the berries are sweet enough. The unsweetened whipped cream is a nice balance to all the sweetness.
• Once the pavlova has cooled, top it with the whipped cream...be careful not to spread it too hard or the meringue will crack or crumble.
• Then add the strawberry sauce.
• Sprinkle with the grated white chocolate.
• Enjoy!

WHITE CHOCOLATE PAVLOVA

Steps:

• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 170 degrees F (80 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• For the meringues: Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks. Start adding the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue holds very stiff peaks. Test to see if the sugar is fully dissolved by rubbing a little of the meringue between your thumb and index finger. The meringue should feel smooth, not gritty. If it feels gritty the sugar has not fully dissolved, so keep beating until it feels smooth between your fingers.
• Gently spread the meringue into 8 small rounds on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges and making sure the edges are slightly higher than the center. (You want a slight well in the center of the meringues to place the cream and compote.)
• Bake until the outside of the meringues is dry, about 3 hours. (The outside of the meringue will feel firm to the touch if gently pressed, but as it cools you will get a little cracking and it will have a marshmallow texture.) Let cool.
• For the ground cherry compote: Combine the cherries, sugar, and citrus zests and juice in a saucepan. Simmer until the cherries are translucent and the liquid is syrupy, about 25 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and let cool.
• For the white chocolate cream: Bring the cream just to a simmer in a saucepan. Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl. Slowly pour in the hot cream, whisking constantly, than return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat until thickened, about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Put the chopped chocolate in a large bowl. Pour the hot cream mixture through a strainer over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is melted. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Beat the white chocolate mixture with a mixer until pale and thick.
• To serve, place each meringue on a serving plate. Fill the centers with a dollop of white chocolate cream and top with the cherry compote.
• Cook's Note: The cooled meringues can be stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for a few days. The cherry compote can be served on pancakes, waffles, or ice cream. The white chocolate cream can also be used to frost a cake.