Mini Chocolate and Berry Pavlovas

Named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, these graceful little clouds of meringue filled with cream and berries make the perfect, easy to serve dessert. With a deliciously crisp outer, chewy, mallowy inside and creamy fruity topping, they're pretty hard to resist.

For the meringue

• 6 large egg whites at room temperature
• 300g sugar
• 2 tsp corn starch
• 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp cocoa powder
• 50g Lily O’Brien’s Mega Milk Chocolate Share Bag (1 bag – you’ll have some left over to snack on) roughly chopped
   

For the topping

• Raspberries, blackberries and pomegranate seeds.
• 300ml whipping cream
   

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan and line two baking trays with baking parchment. Use the top of a cup or glass to draw 7-8cm wide circles on your paper – keep the circles spaced a few centimetres apart as your meringues will spread slightly as they cook.
• Beat the egg whites on high in a stand mixer until satiny peaks form. Gradually add in the sugar a spoonful at a time and beat on high until the meringue mixture is glossy and stands in stiff peaks.
• Using a spatula quickly fold in the lemon juice and vanilla extract, then fold in the corn starch and cocoa powder until just blended.
• Pipe your meringue mixture inside the circles on your parchment paper, starting in the middle of one of your drawn circles, piping outwards to fill the whole area. Staying inside the circle, pipe another layer of meringue on top of your circle, just around the edge so you create a little nest for the cream and fruit to sit inside once cooked. Sprinkle your chopped chocolate inside each of the nests
• Turn your oven down to 130°C/110°C Fan and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, then turn the oven off and without opening the door, let the meringue sit in the oven for another 30 minutes.
• Transfer the Pavlovas with the parchment paper onto the kitchen side or a cooling rack and allow them to cool to room temperature. Once cool you can top them with your whipped cream and berries. Store in an airtight container and consume within 3-5 days.