S’more Pavlova

My family has done so much for me in the last month that I decided to throw a “Thank You” party for them this passed weekend. We cleaned up the house, bought some flowers, and made some food for my parents and siblings to thank them for helping us adjust to having little Eggs join the family. My husband cooked dinner (he’s so much better at cooking than I am. I burn everything) while I made dessert. One of the desserts I made is a S’more Pavlova.

I’d never heard of a pavlova until this year. My little brother spent 8 months in Australia and had it as part of Christmas (2014) dinner with a family that let him live with them for a couple of months. It’s pretty much just a giant meringue cookie covered in whip cream and, usually, fruit. Yum!

For Christmas, we usually incorporate a review of the year into our day. Sometimes the Christmas decorations are a colour that was important to us that year (like blue because my sister graduated and that was the colour of her dress). Sometimes it’s in the food. This year, we had a pavlova for Christmas dinner because Jo had been in Australia for half of the year. It was the first time any of us had tried it. It was delicious.

This weekend, I decided to have a little something for each member of my family. I made flapper pie for my mom. Brian made taco casserole for my dad. I had sprouted flower bulbs for my sister and her boyfriend. And a s’more pavlova for my brother. And since it turned out so well, I thought I’d share my recipe with you! I modified this recipe to make it my own (her pictures are so much prettier than mine so don’t click the link).

 

 

Recipe For S’more Pavlova

Ingredients:

• 3 egg whites
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Baker’s chocolate bars (dark or semi-sweet – whatever your preference for sweetness)
• 1 tub of cool whip
• graham cracker crumbs (for garnish)

 

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. On parchment paper, drawn two 6″ circles and put on a cookie sheet. In a stand mixer and using the whisk attachment, whisk the eggs until they are stiff. Add the brown sugar one spoonful at a time until it is dissolved in the eggs. Divide the mixture in half.

Spread the mixture on the parchment paper so that it fills the two circles. Spread it flat and then indent the top of both so that there is a large space for the chocolate to pool (make it look like a deep dish pizza). Place the meringues into the oven and immediately reduce the oven’s temperature to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for 1 hour then turn off the heat and let the pavlova sit in the oven for another hour to cool.

Once the pavlovas have cooled, melt your chocolate bars (leaving approx. 1/4 of one to the side for garnish). Pour half of the chocolate on top of one of the pavlovas. Let it cool. Take half of the tub of cool whip and spread it on top of the chocolate-covered pavlova. Sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs. Stack the second pavlova atop the first. Cover in the remainder of the melted chocolate (reheating if necessary). Let it cool and cover it with the remainder of the cool whip. Coarsely chop or grate the remaining chocolate and put on top of the whip cream with any remaining graham cracker crumbs you have.

Voila! There is your s’more pavlova!

Update: After eating this most delicious dessert, I’ve concluded one thing: it’s better to use a chocolate ganache or a chocolate spread because the hardened chocolate was really difficult to cut through. If you’re going to use melted chocolate, make sure to eat the dessert right away.