Chocolate Pavlova
This Chocolate Pavlova dessert is the perfect combination of sweet and decadent flavors thanks to the souffle style base, chocolate cream filling and fresh summer fruit topping.
Servings 8
Calories 241kcal
Ingredients
Pavlova
- 114 grams / 3 large or 5 small egg whites room temperature
- 200 grams / 1 cup superfine/caster sugar
- 30 grams / 2 tablespoons boiling water
- 5 grams / 1 teaspoon vinegar
- 28 grams / ¼ cup cocoa powder sifted
Topping
- 250 milliliters / 1 cup heavy cream
- 14 grams / 2 tablespoons cocoa powder sifted
- 140 grams / 1 cup fresh strawberries
- 140 grams / 1 cup fresh cherries whole
Instructions
Chocolate Pavlova
- Preheat the oven to 140ºC/280F and line a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
- Place the sugar, boiling water, vinegar and egg whites in a clean bowl and beat on medium until the meringue is stiff and holds its shape when you pull the beater away, approximately 12 minutes with a hand beater.
- Add the cocoa powder and fold in carefully until combined.
- Spoon the meringue onto your greased tray and shape carefully into whichever pavlova shape you prefer with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon.
- Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes before turning the temperature down to 120ºC/265F and bake for a further 45 minutes.
- Turn the oven off and allow to cool completely, minimum 2 hours before removing.
Topping
- Whip the cream until soft peaks form than gently fold in the cocoa powder.
- Spoon on top of your meringue and spread evenly.
- Take half of the cherries and strawberries and half, removing pits and scatter over the cream.
- Top the remaining whole fruit over the cream.
- Slice and serve immediately.
Notes
- Egg whites: Room temperature fresh egg whites are best for a great pavlova as they are less likely to collapse.
- Sugar: Superfine or caster sugar will dissolve easily in our meringue and add sweetness without additional flavor. You could replace with white sugar. Brown sugar also works here to create a complimentary flavor to the cocoa, though this hasn't been tested.
- Vinegar: Vinegar strengthens the egg white structure helping stabilize and ensure the there is no seepage.
- Boiling water: The boiling water helps raise the temperature in the egg white mixture which makes this meringue closest to a Swiss Meringue helping make our meringue denser in texture than a French meringue and less fussy than an Italian meringue.
- Only use room temperature egg whites: They absorb air more quickly to develop a nice and stable foam - though to really stabilize that foam we’ll need an acidic element (the vinegar we use here).
- Shaping your Pavlova: Simply stenciling the shape you want for your pavlova onto the underside of your baking paper will help give you an easy border to work with. And the back of a spoon or offset spatula will help you create your desired shape.
- Try not to overbeat your meringue: Over whipping egg whites can result in your meringue collapsing or weeping beads of sugar once baked. The best way to avoid over beating is to ensure you beat at a steady speed and allow at least 20-30 seconds of beating time for the sugar to dissolve between adding more. Try not to beat for longer than 15 minutes (this is around the break point, I’ve noticed). Unfortunately, you cannot repair over whipped meringue, though, dependent on how over whipped they are, you could make an egg white based recipe such as macaroon’s or even a baked Alaska.
Nutrition
Calories: 241kcal