Home » Dessert » Chocolate Cherry Pavlova

Chocolate Cherry Pavlova

Recipe Level: Easy to Moderate

This chocolate cherry pavlova has a chewy chocolatey marshmallow centre, is filled with a fluffy pillow of cream and topped with sweet dark cherries. It's the perfect holiday dessert, feeds a crowd and can be made ahead of time; just fill the dessert a few hours before serving. Bonus the recipe is gluten free too!

Baked by Alie Romano

Professional Baker and Recipe Developer

* For best results, read the entire article. Every step matters, and I’ll provide helpful tips along the way!

Chocolate Cherry Pavlova

A chewy chocolatey marshmallow centre, filled with a fluffy pillow of cream and topped with sweet dark cherries; you’re going to drool over this chocolate cherry pavlova! Aren’t the holidays delicious?!

I’m super excited to share this simple holiday dessert with all of you! Maybe it’s in the spirit of giving or the fact that everyone will indulge in dessert around this time of year?!

While creating this recipe I wanted to make it simple yet a show stopper of a dessert to impress your guests at your next holiday party! And I think we have a winner! Not only can you make this chocolate cherry pavlova well in advance but it’s also less than 10 ingredients! I’m going to bet you probably have all or most of the the ingredients in your house (minus a few that you can easily find in your local grocery store).  By choosing a dessert that isn’t too time consuming or complicated you won’t be stuck for hours on end in the kitchen or chasing around the grocery stores looking for some exotic ingredient. I bet all of you have eggs, sugar and cocoa in your house, don’t you? Eggs are one of the most versatile ingredients, making your life easier during the holidays so you can spend more time with family and friends. Isn’t that what the holidays are all about?

Pavlovas are dried out and crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside making it a great combination of textures. As long as you keep moisture away from the pavlova you can make the shell weeks in advance. You can also make your cherry sauce ahead of time, so all you have to do on the day of is assemble the pavlova, whip the cream, and add the cherry sauce. You’ll end up with a dessert that your guests will love and they’ll think you’re a super star (which you are of course!).

There are a few tricks to making your pavlova and it starts with separating the yolks from the whites! I’ve come up with a few tips to help you out.

Tips on Separating Egg Whites

  1. Probably the most important tip – cold eggs separate 100% better than eggs at room temperature. Most recipes dealing with egg whites ask for egg whites at room temperature. That doesn’t mean you need to wait to separate the eggs. Separate the eggs cold then cover in plastic wrap and let them sit on the counter until they come to room temperature.
  2. If you are separating a lot of eggs, always crack each egg into a separate bowl, that way if you break a yolk you only lose one egg instead of a whole batch.
  3. You don’t need a fancy egg separating gadget, your hands will work just fine (if you don’t mind getting a little messy). Simply crack the egg right into your hand and then gently slide the egg from one hand to the next letting the whites slip through your fingers. Or simply crack the egg into a small bowl and gently scoop out the yolk with your hand.

I hope you enjoy this holiday dessert.

Happy Baking!

Chocolate Cherry Pavlova
Chocolate Cherry Pavlova
Chocolate Cherry Pavlova

Thank you to Egg Farmers of Canada who sponsored this post and keep me doing what I love. I’m incredibly fortunate to be Canadian, where eggs are always fresh and local. There are more than 1,000 farm families across Canada who work hard to produce high quality, grade A eggs that travel from their farms to our kitchens in less than 5 days! Bet you didn’t know that!?

Print

Chocolate Cherry Pavlova

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

No reviews

This chocolate cherry pavlova has a chewy chocolatey marshmallow centre, is filled with a fluffy pillow of cream and topped with sweet dark cherries. It’s the perfect holiday dessert, feeds a crowd and can be made ahead of time; just fill the dessert a few hours before serving. Recipe is gluten free!

  • Author: Alie Romano
  • Prep Time: 20 mins
  • Cook Time: 2 hours
  • Total Time: 2 hours 20 mins
  • Yield: serves 10 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Cuisine: Australian
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 4 large egg whites at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon white-wine vinegar
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons superfine sugar, divided
  • 1/2 cup icing sugar, sifted
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder, sifted

Filling

  • 2 cups frozen cherries
  • 2 Tablespoons sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 1/2 cups fresh whipping cream
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 200ËšF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, beat egg whites, cornstarch and white-wine vinegar together on medium speed until frothy.
  3. Slowly and gradually add 1/2 cup of the superfine sugar, raise the speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form (approx. 4 mins). Lower the speed and slowly add icing sugar. Bring the speed back to high and beat until stiff and glossy. Add vanilla extract.
  4. Using a spatula gently fold cocoa powder (in two or 3 additions) into your meringue mixture, don’t overmix (it’s okay to see white streaks).
  5. Spread meringue onto your prepared baking sheet and make a circle approx. 8 inches in diameter; form a well in the centre (the meringue will spread while baking so better to keep the circle higher and smaller).
  6. Bake in the centre of the oven for 2 hours (make sure not to open the oven door and check). Turn off the oven and leave the pavlova inside to cool and dry out (if you can, leave it in the oven overnight to cool).
  7. Make your filling: In a saucepan add sugar and cornstarch, mix together. Add 1/2 cup water and mix together. Add cherries and mix to coat.
  8. On low – medium heat bring to a gentle boil, and cook for about 5 minutes until cherries have thickened, remove from heat and let cool (mixture will thicken as it cools).
  9. Before serving, whip whipping cream with vanilla extract.
  10. Fill the centre of the pavlova with all of the cream. Top with cherry sauce and dust with extra cocoa powder.
  11. Serve within 4-5 hours.

Notes

Always work with a clean bowl and whisk, if there is any grease residue your meringue won’t whip to stiff peaks and will collapse.

If you get egg yolk in your egg whites toss them out and start over. Again your meringue won’t whip to stiff peaks and will collapse.

You can make your pavlova ahead (unfilled) and store in a dry place for up to a week before filling ad serving.

You can make your cherry sauce ahead and store in the fridge for 3 days. Let sauce come to room temperature before adding.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 slice of 12
  • Calories: 133
  • Sugar: 7.4g
  • Sodium: 19mg
  • Fat: 6.4g
  • Saturated Fat: 4g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 0
  • Trans Fat: 0
  • Carbohydrates: 18.2g
  • Fiber: 0.7g
  • Protein: 2g
  • Cholesterol: 22mg

Did you make this recipe?

Write a review and let me know!

Share a photo and tag me on Instagram @bakingforfriends_

I can’t wait to see what you’ve made! xo alie

Check out Egg Farmers of Canada (@eggsoeufs) on Twitter and Instagram and like Get Cracking on Facebook.  How will you be using eggs in your dishes to keep things simple this holiday season?

You may also like:

Persian Inspired Pavlova - 2 Tiered Cake
Persian Inspired Pavlova
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

1 Comment
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Cathy Braden
Cathy Braden
7 years ago

I think that I can do this!!!!! You are so right, I have 8 of the ingredients for the meringue so here I go!
Thanks so much. Can’t wait to serve it at our family brunch on Saturday..
Oh yes and we are chicken farmers so we have lots of fresh, free range eggs!

Life is uncertain, but dessert doesn't have to be!

Make Ahead Lemon Cream Cheese Bars

These make ahead lemon cream cheese bars are bright, creamy and smooth with pockets of lemon bursts throughout! The bars feature tangy lemon curd that's swirled into the cream cheese filling and baked onto a graham cracker crust.

Alie Romano

Meet

Alie

I'm a professional baker, recipe developer & photographer behind Baking For Friends. I specialize in classic & comforting baking. I hope you enjoy the recipes & find inspiration of your own to bring your family & friends together over home-cooked food!

1
0
Let me know what you think of this recipe!x
()
x
Peach Cobbler

Bake like a Pro

Discover 5 Secrets to Baking

16108
Share to...