Chocolate Berry Pavlova Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C).
• Beat together egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar to soft peaks in a large bowl. Beat in sugar, about three tablespoons at a time, until stiff and glossy peaks form. Sift cocoa and cornstarch over egg whites, and gently fold in. Gently fold in vinegar, vanilla, and melted chocolate.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and spread the meringue into an eight inch circle. Bake in the center of the oven for 1 1/2 hours until the outside is crispy and the center is soft. Using a metal spatula, loosen the meringue from the parchment paper, and remove to cool on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely, about one hour.
• Whip cream with the sugar, and spread over the meringue. Arrange strawberries decoratively over the top, and drizzle with chocolate.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees F.
• Place a sheet of parchment paper on a sheet pan. Draw a 9-inch circle on the paper, using a 9-inch plate as a guide, then turn the paper over so the circle is on the reverse side. (This way you won't get a pencil mark on the meringue.)
• Place the egg whites and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites on high speed until firm, about 1 minute. With the mixer still on high, slowly add the sugar and beat until it makes firm, shiny peaks, about 2 minutes.
• Remove the bowl from the mixer, sift the cornstarch onto the beaten egg whites, add the vinegar and vanilla, and fold in lightly with a rubber spatula. Pile the meringue into the middle of the circle on the parchment paper and smooth it within the circle, making a rough disk. Bake for 1 1/2 hours. Turn off the oven, keep the door closed, and allow the meringue to cool completely in the oven, about 1 hour. It will be crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.
• Invert the meringue disk onto a plate and spread the top completely with sweetened whipped cream. Combine the strawberries, blueberries and raspberries in a bowl and toss with about 1/2 cup of raspberry sauce, or enough to coat the berries lightly. Spoon the berries carefully into the middle of the Pavlova, leaving a border of cream and meringue. Serve immediately in large scoops with extra raspberry sauce.
• Sweetened Whipped Cream:
• Whip the cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (you can also use a hand mixer). When it starts to thicken, add the sugar and vanilla and continue to beat until firm. Don't overbeat!
• Yield: 1 cup
• Triple Raspberry Sauce:
• Place the raspberries, sugar and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 4 minutes. Pour the cooked raspberries, the jam, and framboise into the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until smooth. Chill.
• Yield: 2 cups

Steps:

• Make the pavlova: Heat oven to 250 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and draw an 8-inch circle in the middle, then flip the paper upside down. You should still be able to see the outline.
• Mix egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar and salt in a mixing bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until sugar dissolves and mixture is warm, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat and, using an electric mixer, beat with the whisk attachment on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 5 to 7 minutes.
• Gently sift cocoa powder over the egg whites, then use a rubber spatula to fold the cocoa into the whites until just combined. A few cocoa streaks are O.K. and in fact better than overmixing, which can deflate the meringue.
• Spoon half the meringue mixture onto the circle on the parchment paper to form a round, spreading it all the way to the edges. Dollop remaining meringue around the outer edges on top of the circle, creating a nest to hold the filling.
• Bake for 2 hours, or until dry and firm to the touch. Turn off the oven and allow the pavlova to cool in the oven 1 hour. Remove from oven and, if necessary, continue to cool to room temperature.
• Make the mousse: In a medium saucepan, whisk together 1 1/4 cups/295 milliliters cream, the yolks, 3 tablespoons/35 grams sugar and the salt. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture coats the back of a spoon, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and pass through a fine-mesh strainer into a large bowl. Whisk in melted chocolate, vanilla and rum. Chill until cold, at least 2 hours.
• Using an electric mixer, whisk together the remaining 1 3/4 cups/415 milliliters cream with remaining 3 tablespoons/35 grams sugar until firm peaks form. Stir 1/3 of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then gently fold in the remaining cream. Refrigerate, covered, at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days.
• Just before serving, spoon mousse into the center of the cooled pavlova, then top with crème fraîche. Top with fresh berries or chocolate shavings if desired.

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.

Steps:

• Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, ensuring the bowl doesn't touch the water, or in short bursts in the microwave, then set aside to cool a little. Butter two 20cm loose- bottomed deep cake tins and line the base and sides with baking parchment. Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3.
• Put all the brownie ingredients, including the melted chocolate, in a bowl, then beat with an electric whisk until well mixed. Divide between the cake tins and level the tops using the back of a spoon or a palette knife.
• Work quickly to make the meringue, ensuring your whisks and bowl are entirely clean and grease-free (or the egg whites won't whip up to their full volume). Put the egg whites in the bowl and whisk for a couple of minutes until stiff. Add the sugar, a spoonful at a time, whisking continuously to stiff peaks, then whisk in the cornflour. Use a spoon to dot the meringue all over the top of one of the cakes, then using the back of the spoon, spread it to the edge of the tin, being careful not to disturb the cake mixture underneath. Make nice swirly dips and peaks as you spread.
• Bake both cakes for 45 mins, then remove the cake without the meringue topping and quickly close the oven door. Cook the meringue-topped cake for a further 30 mins, then remove from the oven and leave both cakes to cool completely in their tins.
• Slice any strawberries (if using), keeping a few with stalks on for the top of the cake. Whisk the cream and icing sugar to soft peaks. Remove the brownie base cake from its tin and peel off the baking parchment. Place it on a plate or cake stand. Use a spoon to swirl a little over half of the cream over the cake and top with half of the berries. Carefully remove the meringue-topped cake from the tin and remove the parchment. Place it on top of the cream and berries, and spoon dollops of the remaining cream on top, filling any cracks or dips in the meringue. Top with the remaining fruit and some chocolate shavings, if you like, and serve within an hour. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for two days.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 250°F Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch and cocoa powder. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat egg whites and salt on medium-high until they form soft peaks, about 2 minutes.
• With the mixer on low, add vinegar and almond extract. With mixer still running, sprinkle in cornstarch mixture and beat until just incorporated.
• Carefully spoon mixture onto center of prepared baking sheet, using a rubber spatula to gently spread it into about a 12-inch circle about 2-inches thick, with a slight dip in the center. The mixture should resemble a thick hollow bowl,.
• Bake for 1 1/2 hours, then turn the oven off and allow meringue to cool for 1 hour in the oven.
• Once the meringue has cooled and just before serving, make whipped cream. In a large bowl, combine heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Use an electric mixer.
• To assemble pavlova, carefully remove meringue, from parchment paper, and place on a large serving tray or platter.
• Mound whipped cream in center, then top with fresh berries. If desired, garnish with fresh mint leaves.
• To serve, use a serrated knife to cut pavlova into wedges.
• For a plain meringue, leave out the cocoa powder.