If there’s only one dessert you make from this website, let it be this.
Fun fact: it was originally made in Australia/New Zealand in honor of Anna Pavlova, a famous Russian ballet dancer, around when she was on tour. It remains a popular Christmas time dessert in the region!
The recipe that I used is adapted from Once Upon a Chef
Ingredients:
Per 8-10 servings -
For the pavlova:
- 6 large egg whites
- a pinch of salt
- 1.75 cup fine sugar
- Note: if you don’t have fine sugar, you can put granulated sugar in a food processor and pulse it a few times.
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- 2.5 oz chopped semisweet chocolate
For the cream:
- 8 oz mascarpone cheese
- 1/4 cup strongly brewed espresso
- 1.25 cups heavy cream
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the topping:
- 1 cup fresh raspberries, halved
- 2.5 oz semisweet chocolate
Instructions:
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Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
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We start by making the base of the pavlova. In a medium-large mixing bowl, add the egg whites and the salt. Using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, beat the mixture until it’s light and foamy, about a minute or two.
- Slowly, add the sugar and continue whisking between each addition until you get to stiff peaks. This process takes a little bit longer than I originally anticipated, around 10 minutes on medium-high speed.
- Using a sieve/sifter, pass the cocoa powder through, add the red wine vinegar, and then the chopped chocolate. Fold the mixture until fully incorporated. The texture should be similar to whipped cream.
- The pavlova is ready to bake! Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and mound the pavlova in there, in a square or circular shape (I picked a square). The shape should hold since it’s a meringue, which has a steady consistency.
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Bake for ~67 minutes.
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When you pull it out of the oven, the pavlova should be dry to the touch on the outside and soft/fudgey on the inside. It may have some cracks on the outside surface - that’s completely normal.
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Let the pavlova cool for at least 30 minutes. Cooling it by leaving it in the oven after turning it off and cracking the door open slightly will help it cool down slowly and prevent further cracks in the outer shell.
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You can leave the pavlova covered in the fridge for up to 12 hours if you’re making this ahead of time. Otherwise, after it has cooled and shortly before serving, make the cream. In a medium-large mixing bowl, add the mascarpone, heavy cream, and vanilla essence. Using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, beat until all of the ingredients are incorporated. Gradually, add the sugar and espresso, and keep whisking between each addition until you reach soft peaks.
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Transfer the pavlova to a serving plate and separate the parchment paper. Mound the whipped cream onto the pavlova in an even layer.
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Top with raspberries and chopped chocolate.
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Slice and serve!
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I made this once by halving all of the ingredients for a smaller pavlova, and here are the results:
- I used an espresso flavored mascarpone which was pretty good, but I think the coffee flavor is stronger when you use regular mascarpone and add brewed espresso to it instead.
Pavlova base
