Chocolate Pavlova – Audrey's 74 A blog by Giulia Doyle Tue, 31 Jan 2017 21:28:05 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.1.17 Chocolate Pavlova with Mascarpone Cream and Cherries /2014/05/21/chocolate-pavlova-with-mascarpone-cream-and-cherries/ Wed, 21 May 2014 13:18:43 +0000 http://www.audrey74.com/?p=2836 Chocolate Pavlova Audrey'sMy husband celebrated a big birthday the other week. And since he’s not a big fan of cake, I try to find new ways to celebrate his special day. Last year was a take on Tiramisu and this year was a spin on the Pavlova. While traditionally the Pavlova is white meringue, topped with whipped cream and berries, I wanted mine to look more like a layer cake. So I decided to adapt the meringue recipe, by adding some brown sugar and some cocoa, making a larger batch, baking it in two rounds, and adding a mascarpone cream and sweet dark cherries. It turned out great, everyone asked for a second helping, so I think it was a success. However, due to the added cocoa and brown sugar, the meringue is denser – it almost has a brownie texture at the bottom and it didn’t keep its rise as well as the white meringue would. Chocolate Pavlova Audrey's

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Chocolate Pavlova with Mascarpone Cream and Cherries

Prep Time: 2 hours

Cook Time: 1 hour

Yield: Enough for 10 people

Ingredients

  • 6 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 1/4 + 1/8 cup dark-brown sugar (almost 1/2 cup)
  • 1 cup superfine sugar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup of mascarpone
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cups of sugar
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 cups of sweet dark cherries (jarred, or defrosted)
  • Milk-Chocolate Curls, for garnish
  • 1/4 cup of crushed pecans for garnish

Instructions

  1. Make the meringue: Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Draw two 7-inch circle on parchment, then flip. Mix whites, sugars, and salt in a mixer bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until sugars dissolve and mixture is warm, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat, and whisk on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 8 minutes. Beat in vanilla.
  2. Sift cocoa powder over meringue, and fold until barely any streaks remain. Using an offset spatula or a large spoon, spread meringue into two rounds, using circle as a guide. (Be careful not to spread out too much; meringue will spread more during baking.) Make sure you have slight well in the centre, not a dome.
  3. Bake meringue until dry to the touch, about 1 hour. Let cool in turned off oven.
  4. While meringue is baking make sure your cherries are ready. If using jarred you are set to go, if using defrosted, simmer them in a pot with a tiny bit of sugar until they are soft and sweet to your taste.
  5. In a mixer, combine mascarpone, sugar and vanilla and mix until smooth. Add heavy cream and whip until peaks form and you have a whipped cream consistency.
  6. To assemble pavlova: Carefully lift completely cooled meringue onto your serving plate. Spread mascarpone cream evenly, leaving a 1/2-inch border from edge. Add a couple of cherries and sprinkle with pecans and chocolate curl. Gently top with second layer of meringue. Top with mascarpone cream, pile cherries in centre and garnish with chocolate curls and pecans.
  7. Best served immediately.

Notes

This takes a while to bake and cool. This version does not include vinegar and/or cream of tartar as pavlova recipes usually do. Feel free to try your regular recipe and just adding the 2 tablespoons of sieved cocoa.

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Chocolate Pavlova Audrey's

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