Mulled wine cherry pavlova

• portions: 12 servings
• temps actif: 20 minutes
• temps total: 2 hours 5 minutes

Ingrédients

4 large egg whites

250g caster sugar

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp cornflour

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

450g frozen cherries

125g caster sugar

185ml red wine

2 mulled wine spice packets (I used Schwartz)

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp cornflour

450ml double cream

100g soft cheese

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

handful of small mint leaves

1 large egg white beaten until foamy

caster sugar for sprinkling

Instructions

The day before you want to serve the pavlova, make the sugared mint leaves. Brush both sides of the leaves with the egg white, then generously sprinkle with the sugar, fully coating both sides. Put on a baking tray lined with baking paper and leave to dry and crisp up at room temperature overnight.

Heat the oven to 140C/120C fan/gas 1. For the pavlova, put the egg whites, sugar and a pinch of salt in the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a bowl and electric whisk). Whisk on medium speed for 10-12 mins until you have a smooth, glossy meringue that holds stiff peaks. Meanwhile, combine the lemon juice, cornflour and vanilla into a paste. Add to the meringue and whisk to combine.

Draw a 20cm circle on a sheet of baking paper and use this to line a large baking tray, template-side down. Spoon the meringue onto the tray and spread into a neat round slightly smaller than the template. Make a deep well in the middle of the round using the back of the spoon – this should push it out slightly so it ends up the same width as the template. Drag some lines through the meringue around the outside edge using a spatula for decoration.

Bake for 10 mins before reducing the temperature to 110C/90C fan/gas ¼. Bake for a further 1 hr 20 mins until the crust feels dry and crisp. Turn off the oven, leave the meringue inside to cool slowly for at least 2 hrs or overnight. It will keep in a dry, cool spot for up to three days.

For the topping, put the cherries, sugar, wine, spice packets and 125ml of water in a large pan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 mins. Meanwhile, combine the lemon juice, cornflour and 1 tbsp of the cooking liquid into a paste. Remove the cherries to a bowl using a slotted spoon. Add the cornflour paste to the cooking liquid and cook for 5 mins until it has thickened into a syrup. Pour this over the cherries in the bowl and chill until needed.

When ready to serve, put all the ingredients for the soft cheese whipped cream in a large bowl and whisk to soft peaks. Spoon this over the pavlova, then top with the mulled wine cherries, any left-over cherry syrup and the sugared mint leaves.

Nutrition

• Calories: 382
• Lipides Totaux: 22 g
• Lipides Saturés: 14 g
• Sodium: 0.2 mg
• Glucides Totaux: 39 g
• Fibres Diététiques: 0.3 g
• Sucres Totaux: 37 g
• Protéines: 3 g