Choc Vino Cotto Pavlova

Family birthdays when I was young always featured Pavlova. Mums meringue dessert with a crisp crust and soft, light inside but always oddly decorated; half with an array of various fruits and half with grated peppermint crisp. Why?? A fussy brother who still to this day doesn't do 'fruits or citrus'.
This is without a doubt my favorite Pavlova recipe! So I thought I would bake it for two recent special occasions - New Year with my Indian Family and Valentines Day with 'all the single ones'.

Thank you Maggie Beer for perfecting this dessert  (not surprising she has been making pavs for dinner parties since she was 18 years old). The words of wisdom - "don't worry if your pav isn't a perfect circle or looks a little rough around the edges... I love things that look rustic and home-made – like your own hands have touched it, and the cream can be a great cement"

Choc Vino Cotto Pavlova - Maggie's Kitchen by Maggie Beer

6 egg whites
1 1/2 caster sugar
3 tbls of best quality cocoa powder
1 tbls vino cotto
40g of finely grated bittersweet chocolate (70% cocoa)
pinch of cream of tarter
1 tablespoon of vino cotto or balsamic

To serve -
300ml of cream fresh or whipped cream
1 punnet of strawberries or raspberries
2-3 tablespoons of grated bittersweet chocolate (70%) to decorate

Method
Preheat oven to 180C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Draw a 23cm circle onto the paper, and then set aside.

Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, adding a pinch of tartar once the machine is going, and then, a spoonful at a time, beat in the sugar until the meringue is stiff and shiny. When it’s stiff, sprinkle in the cocoa and beat again. Then fold in the chopped chocolate and the vino cotto gently by hand.

Mound onto your baking sheet within the marked circle, smoothing the sides and top just little. Place in the centre of the 180C conventional oven, then immediately turn the temperatures down to 150C and cook for 55 minutes.
When it’s ready, the pavlova should look crisp around the edges and be dry on top – but when you prod the centre, you should feel the promise of squidginess. Turn off the oven, open the door slightly and let the chocolate meringue disc cool completely.

To serve, invert meringue onto a big, flat bottomed plate. Whisk cream until its thick but still soft, then pile on top of the meringue and scatter over the strawberries. If you want to add the chocolate, coarsely grate it so you get curls rather than rubble, and sprinkle it haphazardly over the top, letting some fall on the plate’s rim.

I like my pavlovas gooey in the centre but if you prefer a drier meringue, leave it in the turned-off oven with the door slightly ajar until there is no heat left at all in either the oven or meringue. If you make this recipe in late autumn try using beautiful fresh figs instead of strawberries (see note below).

Note - Brush a hot char-grill pan with olive oil, then quickly grill fig halves, cut-sides down, until lightly caramelised and grill marks appear. Remove from heat and leave to cool.  Pile cream over centre of meringue, then place figs over the top and drizzle with vino cotto.