Red wine pear pavlova wreath
Serves: 8 generously
Prep time: 45 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Toby Scott
Red wine pear pavlova wreath
Glossy red-wine-poached pears and plump blackberries nestle into a meringue wreath with an orange mascarpone cream. A luscious end to a festive feast
Serves: 8 generously
Prep time: 45 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
643Kcal
Fat
24gr
Saturates
15gr
Carbs
84gr
Sugars
83gr
Fibre
2gr
Protein
4gr
Salt
0.2gr
Abigail Spooner
Abi is our Senior Food Producer. An obsessive foodie with a sweet tooth, she is happiest when baking and is a firm believer that there is always room for dessert (preferably following a big bowl of pasta)
See more of Abigail Spooner’s recipes
Abigail Spooner
Abi is our Senior Food Producer. An obsessive foodie with a sweet tooth, she is happiest when baking and is a firm believer that there is always room for dessert (preferably following a big bowl of pasta)
See more of Abigail Spooner’s recipes
Ingredients
- 6 large egg white
- 350g caster sugar
- 1½ tsp cornflour
- 1½ tsp white wine or cider vinegar
For the poached pears
- 1 x 75cl bottle fruity red wine* (such as shiraz)
- 250g light brown sugar
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 250g frozen blackberries
- 8 mini pears
To serve
- 250ml double cream
- 125g mascarpone
- 30g icing sugar
- zest of 1 orange
- sprigs of lemon thyme or mint, optional
Step by step
Get ahead
Poach the pears and store them in their syrup in the fridge for up to 3 days.You may need to bubble the syrup to reduce it again before serving. Bake the meringue up to 2 days ahead and store in an airtight container.
- Preheat the oven to 140°C, fan 120°C, gas 1. Draw a 25cm circle on a sheet of baking paper (use a large plate as a guide) and flip over onto a baking tray, so that the mark is on the underside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Gradually add the sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking well after each addition, until you have a stiff and glossy meringue. Finally, briefly whisk in the cornflour and vinegar until combined. Secure the baking paper to the tray with a few dabs of meringue mixture to hold it down at the corners.
- Spoon 8 large heaps of the meringue mixture around the marked circle in a wreath shape. Using the back of a spoon, make an indentation in each heap that will later hold a poached pear.
- Bake for 1 hour, then turn the oven off and leave the meringue inside for at least 2 hours to dry out as it cools.
- Meanwhile for the poached pears, put the red wine, sugar, cinnamon sticks and blackberries in a saucepan. Slowly bring to the boil over a medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar has dissolved. Simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes to infuse, then strain the liquid into a clean pan that’s large enough to hold the pears. Reserve the poached blackberries for serving. Return the cinnamon sticks to the liquid.
- Peel the pears and remove the core via the base. Lower the pears into the wine syrup, return to the boil then reduce the heat. Cover the pears with a sheet of scrunched-up baking paper to help keep them submerged. Simmer gently until tender, turning now and then so that they cook and colour evenly; 40 minutes to 1 hour depending on ripeness.
- Carefully lift out the pears using a slotted spoon and set aside to cool in a large shallow dish. Bubble the poaching liquid until lightly syrupy and reduced by about two-thirds. Pour over the pears and cool completely.
- Whip the cream and mascarpone with the icing sugar and orange zest until it just starts to form soft peaks (take care not to over whip).
-
To serve, carefully peel the base paper from the meringue and transfer to a serving platter or board. Spoon dollops of the whipped cream into the indentations and top each with a poached pear and a few blackberries. Stir the syrup to loosen and drizzle some over the pears. Garnish with thyme or mint sprigs if you like.
*Check your wine is vegetarian, if required.
