Pavlova with strawberries, cardamom, honey and rose petals

Pavlova with strawberries, cardamom, honey and rose petals

Summer

I have lots of recipes for delicious pavlova's but this one has to be the prettiest. Topped with strawberries, cardamom, honey, and delicate rose petals. This is a delightful combination of flavours and textures. 

8 - 10

Ingredients

  • 400ml double cream 
  • Juice and finely grated zest of 1 orange
  • 300–400g ripe strawberries, hulled and halved
  • 1 tbsp runny honey
  • 4 – 5 cardamom pods bashed and seeds crushed
  • For the meringue 
  • 6 egg whites 
  • 300g unrefined caster sugar 
  • A couple of freshly picked rose buds or dried rose petals

Method

Heat the oven to 120°C/100°C fan 

First, make the meringue. Place the egg whites in a large, clean bowl. Whisk with a hand-held electric whisk until they form and hold soft peaks. (You can do this in a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, if you prefer.) Keeping the whisk running, add 1 large spoonful of sugar at a time, until all the sugar is incorporated. Continue to whisk for a further 6–8 minutes, until the meringue is thick, pale, smooth and glossy. 

Lightly grease a sheet of baking parchment and lay it on a large (at least
30 x 30cm/12 x 12in) baking sheet. Spoon the meringue onto the parchment, trying to make a large disc with slightly peaked edges – it doesn’t have to be perfect. Bake the meringue in the oven for 25–30 minutes, then turn down the heat to 110°C/90°C fan/225°F/gas mark 1⁄2 and bake for a further
2 hours, until the meringue has formed a crisp shell. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. (If you’re not using the meringue straight away, store it in an airtight container for up to 1 week.) 

When you’re ready to serve the meringue, pour the cream into a large bowl and whisk until the cream is thick enough to just hold soft peaks. 

Place the strawberries in a bowl. Sprinkle over the crushed cardamom then scatter over the orange zest and squeeze over the juice. Trickle over the honey and tumble everything gently together. 

Spoon the cream onto the meringue, top with marinated strawberries and Serve with a scattering of rose petals if you like.

 

 

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