Chocolate, Pomegranate and Spiced Orange Party Pavlova

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Christmas brown sugar pavlovaThis show-stopping Pavlova is composed of no less than five incredible elements: a brown sugar meringue, chocolate dipped clementines, a spiced oranges and pomegranate drizzle, chocolate drips, and cinnamon meringue sticks.  Perfect for bringing the ‘wow’ factor to any festive gathering and for spicing up those autumnal months, it can also be paired back to include only one layer.

Serves: 15

Essential equipment

What You’ll Need:

Brown sugar meringue mixture:

  • 250g light brown soft sugar
  • 250g golden caster sugar
  • 250g free range egg whites (7-8 eggs, or use Two Chicks liquid egg whites so there is no yolk wastage)
  • 1 tsp of ground cinnamon

Cream filling:

  • 1kg double cream
  • 50g icing sugar

Chocolate dipped clementines

  • 50g dark chocolate, melted
  • 6 clementine’s, segmented
  • A touch of sea salt (optional)

Sticky spiced orange drizzle

  • Juice of 2 oranges, or a splash of ready made orange juice
  • 50g pomegranate molasses
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 2 whole star anise

Chocolate drips

  • 100g dark chocolate, to be melted and drizzled over the sides

Optional decorations

  • Cinnamon meringue sticks
  • Chocolate orange matchmakers
  • Edible gold leaf
  • Pomegranate seeds

What To Do:

First, make the brown sugar meringue mixture

  • Prepare two flat baking trays with non-stick baking paper for the pavlova, and draw two circles on the baking paper as a guide – 13cm and 18cm in  diameter
  • Line another flat baking tray with non-stick paper for the decorative meringue sticks
  • Preheat the oven to 200C, and line a deep baking tray with baking parchment. Then pour in the brown sugar and the golden caster and heat it in the oven for 5-7 minutes. The brown sugar caramelises quickly, so bash and stir with a wooden spoon every couple of minutes to stop it from clumping up. Heating the sugar helps to create a glossy, stable mixture
  • Pour the egg whites into a mixer and whisk them slowly, allowing small stabilising bubbles to form, then increase the speed until the egg whites form stiff peaks. Don’t let them over whisk!
  • Take the sugar out of the oven, and turn oven down to 100C.  With your mixer on full speed, very slowly, spoon by spoon add the hot sugar into the beaten egg whites, making sure the mixture comes back up to stiff peaks after each addition of sugar.  Don’t add any large lumps of sugar that may have caramelised
  • Once all of the sugar has been added, continue to whisk on full speed until a smooth, stiff and glossy mixture has been achieved. Continue to whisk for at least 5 minutes once the sugar has incorporated. Tip: If the mixture feels gritty between your fingers, keep whisking at full speed until it has dissolved
  • Working quickly, before the meringue begins to deflate, spoon the meringue mixture into the pre-drawn circles, and carefully shape smooth, tall nests with a palette knife.  Use the back of a spoon to create a deep well
  • Bake low and slow in the oven for about 4 hours. When cooked, the meringue should have a firm base and come away from the baking paper. Set aside to cool.  This can be made up to 4 days in advance, and kept in a cool, dry place

Next, make the meringue sticks

  • With any spare meringue mixture, fill up a disposable piping bag, and cut a small 5p-sized hole in the tip.  Use this to pipe long sticks onto a baking tray.  Pop these in the oven with the pavlova, but take them out after an hour and a half

After that, focus on the spiced pomegranate and orange drizzle

  • Put the orange juice and spices in a small saucepan and heat to infuse the spices and slightly reduce – keep an eye on it, as it reduces (and burns) fast
  • When it’s nice and spicy, remove from the heat and add the pomegranate molasses to make a sticky sour and spiced syrup

Chocolate dipped clementines

  • Dip the segmented clementines in melted chocolate, and lay on a piece of baking paper. Sprinkle with a little sea salt and allow to harden

How to serve

  • Place the largest pavlova shell in the center of a serving platter
  • Drizzle with melted chocolate, letting it drip down the sides of the nest
  • Whip the double cream, adding icing sugar until soft peaks form, and slather this over the top
  • Place on top of this the smaller-sized pavlova, and decorate the chocolate drips and cream too
  • Let your inner baker get creative with the chocolate dipped clementines, pomegranate seeds, cinnamon meringue sticks, orange matchstick makers and  gold leaf – then give it a final flourish with the sticky spiced glaze

Creative baking duo, The Meringue Girls, have partnered with Currys PC World to challenge the nation to try something new in the kitchen with a range of impressive dessert recipes. Visit www.currys.co.uk for all your baking needs.

 

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