Its that time of year again when we start to plan the Christmas Menu – Up and down the land, you hear people asking ‘Do you host Christmas Day?’. The answer is yes for us, its either that or go to my sister’s for Pot Noodle. I love her very much but draw the line at that for Christmas Dinner.
Its probably no surprise that one of my favourite parts of Christmas Lunch is the dessert. I’m not a fan of Christmas Pudding so don’t offer it to our guests – We do tend to offer a selection of desserts though. No surprise there!
Most years I offer some sort of meringue based dessert – For when you are completely stuffed but feel the need for something sweet. Its got to be special meringue though for Christmas – so how about Prosecco Creme, topped with Mini Marzipan Holly leaves and Pomegranate Berries – And for extra indulgence, a sprinkling of edible gold glitter!
| Serves | 8-10 |
| Prep time | 20 minutes |
| Cook time | 2 hours, 25 minutes |
| Total time | 2 hours, 45 minutes |
| Meal type | Dessert |
| Misc | Serve Cold |
| Occasion | Birthday Party, Christmas |
INGREDIENTS
4 Egg Whites (Left at room temperature for 15 minutes)
250g Caster Sugar
1 teaspoon Corn Flour
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 teaspoon White Wine Vinegar
284ml Whipping Cream
80ml Prosecco
Pomegranate Seeds to garnish
Natural Marzipan (A ball about the size of a plum, coloured green is fine)
DIRECTIONS
| Pavlovas | |
| 1. | |
| Preheat the oven to 150C | |
| 2. | |
| Using an electric whisk, in a VERY clean bowl, start whisking the egg whites on a medium speed increasing to a fast speed after 1 minute. Carry on whisking until you have stiff peaks | |
| 3. | |
| Slowly (and I mean really slowly) gradually add in the sugar whilst still whisking – This should take at least 10 minutes. I use no bigger than a teaspoon to add each addition. You should still have a fairly stiff meringue | |
| 4. | |
| Turn off the whisk and very gently fold in the cornflour, vinegar and vanilla | |
| 5. | |
| Scoop the meringue into large piping bags with a star nozzle tip and pipe circles from the centre outwards. I go over the outside circle to make it slightly taller. I do a variety of sizes – I give adults pavlovas of around 5cm but children a fair bit smaller. | |
| 6. | |
| Place into the oven and immediately reduce the heat to 120C | |
| 7. | |
| Bake for between 18-25 minutes. Turn off the oven put keep the pavlovas in there for at least 2 hours or until the oven is completely cooled. I often leave them in overnight. | |
| Prosecco Creme | |
| 8. | |
| When you are just about to eat the pavlovas, whisk the cream until it is stiff | |
| 9. | |
| Pour in the prosecco and keep whisking on a medium speed until it is all combined and you have a stiff creme again | |
| 10. | |
| Use a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle to pipe in the centre of the pavlovas | |
| 11. | |
| Finish off by topping with a marzipan holly leaf and a pomegranate berry. Sprinkle lightly with edible gold glitter dust | |
| 12. | |
| Serve immediately – Pavlovas without creme added can be kept for 2-3 days in a dry atmosphere – lightly covered | |
Guess what?! This is my 100th recipe that I am sharing on Casa Costello – How appropriate that I am celebrating with a bit of fizz. I’m loving sharing all our family recipes and producing new recipes. We are eating so much better and the kitchen is definitely the heart of our home. Thanks for sharing the journey with me so far … plenty more recipes and treats to come!
Disclosure: I was asked by Sainsbury’s to suggest a recipe using Prosecco. I had full editorial control of what recipe I chose and what I did with the leftover prosecco! 😉 I was supplied with Sainsbury’s vouchers to cover the cost of any ingredients I bought to make this recipe.
Oh this sounds tempting, I’m definitely going to try this. Congratulations on reaching your 100th recipe.
How gorgeous and delicious these look!!
I should make them. I always have egg-whites in the freezer……