What would a Christmas menu be without a delicious dessert? While I’ve shared a few of my fave recipes over the past few weeks including this baked ham, roast turkey breast and prawn, mango and avocado salad, we need to turn our attention to the most important part of the meal: dessert!
There’s nothing like a pavlova as the perfect ending to a Christmas feast! While I love the traditional version, in this recipe I’ve given it a chocolate-y twist for the ultimate sugar hit at the end of a meal. It still has the undone, rustic texture of a pav, but with the chocolate meringue based and topped with seasonal fruits like raspberries (or cherries if you want a decadent touch) it’s a modern take on this Aussie fave. Enjoy!
Total Time
Cooking: 1.5 hours
Cooling: 4 hours (preferably overnight)
Ingredients
Meringue base
6 egg whites
300g caster sugar
3 tbsp cocoa – sifted
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
5Og dark chocolate, finely chopped
Topping
500ml thickened cream
500g raspberries or cherries
100g dark chocolate, shaved
Directions
- Preheat oven at 180c.
2. Beat egg whites till satiny peaks form – approx 5mins.
3. Beat in the sugar 1 spoonful at a time till meringue is stiff and shiny. Sift cocoa over the mixture. Add vinegar and chopped chocolate.
4. Gently fold ingredients together with a large spoon.
5. Cover baking sheet with baking paper. Dollop meringue on sheet creating a large high circle approximately 20cm wide. Smooth sides and peak the top.
6. Place in oven, turn temperature down to 150 c. Cook for 80 minutes.
7. Turn off oven and cool completely in oven*.
*best to make it the night before to allow for necessary cooling time.
8. Prior to serving, whip cream until it has thickened up enough to be able to spread. Spread over the pavlova then decorate with berries/cherries and shaved chocolate.
This post was produced in collaboration with Macquarie Centre
Photography: Ashleigh Larden
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