I think a pavlova is the perfect holiday dessert. It is beautiful enough to be a centerpiece on your table, so light that it can follow a big holiday meal and its flavors can change with your every whim.
This Boozy Cherry Pavlova was inspired by the cherry cordial filling in the chocolates that are a holiday stocking tradition in my house. I cooked the cherries in champagne, cherry juice, and just a touch of sugar until they created a boozy syrup. This can be done with just juice for a virgin cherry variation.
The pavlova also has a layer of lemon curd and lots of whipped cream. “Man, this is delicious!” was the response from my always willing (and very opinionated) taster (and husband). You can see how I baked the pavlova in this shape in my “Pavlova” IGTV on Instagram.
So many people asked about baking Mini Pavlovas that can be individual servings, so I created a video for that too. The recipe and directions are below, but to watch me make the mini Boozy Cherry Pavlovas and how I fill them, watch this mini pavlova IGTV video.
If you are looking for the equipment I use in any of my recipes, you can find them all here, on my ZoeBakes Kitchen Essentials page, where you can also find my list of favorite cookbooks and sign up for any updates – I add to it with every post.
Ingredients
Mini Pavlovas
- 150g egg whites, at room temperature approximately 5 egg whites
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar optional. It will make the meringue stronger, especially if you have older, weaker egg whites.
- 3 tbsp cold water
- 250g superfine sugar 1 1/4 cups
- 1 tsp vinegar white wine, cider or distilled
- 1 tsp vanilla extract homemade vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp plus 1 tsp corn starch
Boozy Cherries
- 4 cups fresh or frozen, pitted sweet and/or sour cherries fresh cherries will take much longer to break down and cook, so lower the heat
- 2 cups cherry or pomegranate or cranberry juice anything tart and red, preferably without added sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 cups prosecco, cava, or champagne or 1/2 cup brandy
- 1/2-1/4 cup sugar this will depend on how sweet your cherries, juice, and wine are. You want them to be rich and sweet, but not cloyingly so
Lemon Curd
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 1 cup sugar
- 6 egg yolks
- pinch salt
- 8 tbsp unsalted butter cold
For Assembly
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream whipped to soft peak for filling
- fresh cherries or fresh figs for topping
- rosemary or savory sprigs
Instructions
Mini Pavlovas
- Preheat oven to 275°F. Trace eight 3-inch circles on a piece of parchment and set it in a baking sheet.
- Whip the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt together until medium-stiff peaks.
- Add the water slowly while whipping the whites on low speed. Drizzle in the sugar, then turn up the speed and whip until stiff peaks.
- Fold in the vanilla, vinegar and cornstarch.
- Mound the meringue evenly into the circles on the parchment. Use a spatula to create the design in the meringue. Watch my Instagram video to see how I do this.
- Bake at 275°F for 15 minutes or until the meringue starts to turn a very pale tan color, then reduce the heat to 225°F and continue to bake for 30 minutes. Turn off the oven (don't open the door), turn on the light in the oven (don't stress if the light doesn't work) and let the meringue sit in the cooling oven for a couple hours, or even over night.
Lemon Curd
- Whisk together the lemon juice, sugar, yolks, and salt. Add the butter and set over a double boiler.
- Use a rubber spatula to stir the lemon curd until it starts to thicken. It should coat the spatula and cling to it before you remove it from the heat.
Boozy Cherries
- Cook the cherries, juice, lemon, booze, and sugar down until the juices are the thickness of maple syrup. Allow to cool. This can be made days in advance.
Assemble
- This can be done several hours before serving. The pavlova actually benefits from some time sitting in the refrigerator. It makes it easier to slice if it is not served immediately.
- Fold together 3/4 of the lemon curd with 3/4 of the whipped cream. Pipe the lemon curd/cream filling into the cavity of the pavlova. Don't come quite to the top. There may be some leftover filling, depending on how deep the cavity of your pavlova. Snack on any remaining filling.
- Spread the remaining lemon curd over the filling, then top with the remaining whipped cream. Top with boozy cherries, fresh fruit, and garnish with herbs.
This pavlova looks amazing! Perfect for Christmas!
How do you make your vanilla extract
Hi Christine, here is the recipe! https://zoebakes.com/2012/01/03/homemade-vanilla-extract/
So mine cracked. I don’t know why? I ground the sugar abs didn’t open the oven door. It’s also tan not white What happened??
Hi Neda,
That is typically caused by an oven that’s too hot, so just turn the temperature down by about 25°F and it should fix that problem. All ovens are different, so the temperature can vary a bit.
Thanks, Zoë
I’ve made this incredible dessert .. Zoe’s instagram video was so helpful . Can this recipe be doubled to make 2 pavlovas ? Thank you
Hi Vicki,
I am so thrilled you made it. Yes, you can double the recipe, just make sure you leave enough room on the sheet for each to expand. They may end up taking a bit longer to bake, so leave them in an extra 30 minutes before turning off the oven and drying them out.
Thanks, Zoë
This looks delicious!
Can I freeze the lemon curd?
Thanks and a happy New Year!
Great question. Zoë always uses all of the lemon curd, so she hasn’t tried, but it should work just fine!
Another lemon curd question : can I make it the day before assembling the pavlova ? Thanks !
Absolutely! Just cover with plastic wrap when cool and refrigerate.
Amazing way of doing meringue!! I just have my mini pavlovas righ now in the oven, but the meringue was super glossy, stiff and amazing in flavour! Thanks!!!!