Name: Cherry & Mascarpone Cream Pavlova Roulade
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 105 min
Ingredients: ¾ cup / 200 g mascarpone; 1 ¼ cup / 310 ml full cream; 3 tablespoons icing sugar (confectioner's sugar); 4 large eggs (I used size 7's and you'll only need the whites); ¾ cup / 170 g castor sugar; 1 teaspoon white vinegar; 1 teaspoon cornflour; 1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract; 400 g fresh cherries (2 cups when stoned & cut in half); ¼ cup / 25 g sliced almonds; icing sugar to dust; replace the vanilla extract with ½ teaspoon rose water or orange blossom water

(Originally published, Nov-2017, then updated by Tania, Dec-2018)

This roulade is delicious, I made a few and it was a case of ‘now you see em…..now you don’t’!

Simply put, it’s a flat pavlova that’s filled with mascarpone cream (which is smooth, rich and holds its shape well), fresh cherries and sliced almonds. It’s then rolled up and has more cream, almonds and cherries on top, simple! It’s also gluten free which is bonus. 🙂
It’s flavoured with vanilla but I added orange blossom water to mine which I really love with cherries. If you’ve never tried it, it tastes like perfume…..like you are eating a fragrance, but in a good way. 🙂 I think it’s lovely but I know many don’t like it and unless the people eating your ‘pav’ know of the taste, no one will be able to put their finger on the unusual, but delightful, delicate flavour.

Now because I’m late with posting this recipe I’m not going to embark on a long spiel about who invented the pavlova because Christmas is coming and it’s a serious discussion, I’ll save that for the next pav!

I have to tell you that there are lots and lots of photographs in this post, not because it’s a complex recipe but because I was so proud of these ones. 🙂 Nothing to do with my photography skills at all but more the ‘festive’ props that made them so nice, yay for Christmas when everything looks extra pretty! It’s so beautiful and now my favourite recipe on my blog. 🙂

All about Orange blossom water and rose water (I found this really interesting.) Source: From Akkar to Amel, Lebanon Slow Food Trail, by Rami Zurayk

In Lebanon when it comes to pastries, puddings, cookies, syrups and jams, orange blossom water and rose water are the foremost flavouring.
Orange blossom water is a water extracted from the distillation of the flowers of bitter orange trees. The production of this orange essence started thirteen centuries ago! It was used during the celebration of Muharram or the Islamic New Year, in various milk and rice-based desserts. They even drink it plain with a bit of water and call it ‘white coffee’.
In folk medicine, orange blossom water was sprayed on the faces of people who felt ill and is believed to aid digestion and to be soothing before sleep. It was also used as a perfume.
Rose water is also a distillate of the petals of the Damascus Rose (Rosa Damascena). Its use goes back to the early Islamic era. The distillation of rose petals is an artisanal activity that takes place during the blooming season in May and June. The best method of distillation is with steam rather than water. Unfortunately, most commercial production nowadays uses artificial essences instead of the real thing.
It’s used mainly for desserts, sherbets and syrups. Arab folk medicine also uses rose water on sunburn to soothe and rejuvenate the skin. Rose water is also used for religious purposes, as it is sprinkled inside mosques.
A bottle of rose water will keep for years in a sealed bottle away from light and heat.

A friend mentioned that this roulade looks complicated but it really isn’t, it just looks fancy schmancy because I’ve garnished it (it’s amazing what a bit of icing sugar and greenery can do)! I am certainly no master pavlova maker so if I can make it anybody can!

INGREDIENTS

Mascarpone Cream
¾ cup / 200 g mascarpone
1 ¼ cup / 310 ml full cream
3 tablespoons icing sugar (confectioner’s sugar)

Pavlova
4 large eggs (I used size 7’s and you’ll only need the whites)
¾ cup / 170 g castor sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon cornflour
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract

400 g fresh cherries (2 cups when stoned & cut in half)
¼ cup / 25 g sliced almonds

icing sugar for dusting

Optional – replace the vanilla extract with ½ teaspoon rose water or orange blossom water

Serves 8

Notes

If you don’t possess any white vinegar, white wine vinegar is fine.
I have to mention that if you are tempted to add more orange blossom or rose water, please refrain, it adds a beautiful flavour but is very potent and will make the ‘pav’ taste like soap! If you’ve used it before you’ll know what I mean, lol.
If you have smaller eggs ie; size 6’s, you can use 5 of those instead of the larger ones, I’ve used both and it’s turned out fine.
Pistachios are lovely with cherries so of course, you can use them instead of the almonds.
The yolks will keep in the fridge for 3 days and I would use mine to foster my love/hate relationship with hollandaise or you could make some amazing zabaglione to spoon over some fresh, summer fruit.
It’s my kinda dessert as you can bake and fill the roulade the night before and then just spend 10 minutes decorating it on the day.

STEP BY STEP

Mascarpone Cream

Let’s get started…..Christmas is coming!

To make the mascarpone cream, place the mascarpone, cream and the icing sugar in a medium-sized bowl and using an electric beater, beat it all together until it’s lump-free.

Place it in the fridge for later.

Pavlova

Lightly spray a 33 x 23 cm Swiss roll tin with non-stick cooking spray and then line it with non-stick baking paper. Then give it a light spray all over.

If your tin is a different size to mine it will affect the cooking time, ie; a little bit bigger or smaller will be fine but quite a bit smaller and it will need 5 minutes extra cooking time and larger will cause it to be ready a little sooner.

Also, cut a similar sized piece of the paper that you’ll need later on.

Next, place an oven rack just below the centre of the oven (the top of the tin should be in the centre of the oven) and turn it to 150°C fan bake/convection oven or 170°C conventional oven, on bake.

Separate the eggs, placing the whites into a large bowl, being careful to make sure that no blobs of yolk have ‘snuck’ their way in there.

Using an electric beater on medium/high speed, beat them until they are stiff-peaked…just taking them to that stage and no further, so they don’t get ‘dry’ (mine took 1 minute).

Stiff-peaked means that when you lift the beaters out, the peaks with stand up straight and will not flop over at all.
I like the whisk attachments that come with the electric beaters for making meringue or whipping cream as they create more volume and whip up faster.

Now turn the beater speed down to medium and continue beating whilst adding 1 tablespoon of sugar at a time, thoroughly beating it in between spoonfuls (mine took 5 minutes). The mixture should be stiff, glossy and tripled in size.

You should be able to rub some mix between two fingers and it won’t feel sandy or gritty.

Using a spatula, gently fold through the vinegar, cornflour and the vanilla or if you are using it, the rose water or the orange water.

Scrape the meringue out of the bowl and into the lined tin.

Gently spread it around but try not to push it down so as not to knock the air out.

Place it in the oven for 12 – 15 minutes or until it’s light golden brown and the centre feels firm to touch.

Once done leave it to cool in the tin for 10 minutes.

Next, dust that extra sheet of baking paper with icing sugar and place it on a clean bench or a large cutting board.

Flip the pavlova upside down onto it…don’t be scared, it’ll be okay!

Gently peel the paper off and…..

…..leave it to cool down further.

Make sure the pavlova totally cools down or it will sweat when it’s rolled up in the paper.

Whilst the ‘pav’ is cooling down a bit more, set 8 cherries aside and stem and stone the remaining ones.

I use a cherry stoner. If you don’t have one you can pull the stem out, cut them in half around the pip and twist the two sides in opposite directions so that one side comes off and you can flick the pip out.

Next, retrieve the mascarpone cream from the fridge and spread roughly half of it over the pavlova.

Gently push the cherry halves, hickelty, picklety into and all over the cream.

Also, scatter over the almonds, leaving approx 1 tablespoon aside for decorating later.

Start to roll it on the long side using the paper to guide it and your palms to mould it.

Fairly tightly roll it over once…

…..then pull the paper back and use it as a guide again to roll it over more…..

…..until it looks like this.

Finish it off and then fully encase it in the paper (with the seam underneath) and place it in the fridge.

Leave it rolled up in the fridge (still with the seam underneath) for at least one hour (or overnight) before decorating.

When you’re ready to make it look gorgeous, thinly trim the ends with a serrated knife (so that they look ‘neat’) and of course, eat them…..quality control and all that!

Use a large star nozzle to pipe the remaining mascarpone cream all along the top.

If you are not a confident ‘piper’ that’s cool, just spoon it over the top and spread it out nice and thick, it’ll still look awesome I promise!

Scatter the remaining tablespoon of almonds over the cream.

Place the cherries you set aside on (I like to put 1 per slice on so in this case, 8), dust it with icing sugar and lastly add some mint sprigs or lovely angelica leaves.

Slice it in between the cherries and serve with some pretty little dessert forks.

P.S. Just a wee tip to help your Christmas food look pretty. My family has a Christmas bin that houses all of our Christmas plates, platters and bowls. I also keep in there little decorations that I find in the post-Christmas sales. I put them with the ham and desserts or place around the table to make things look prettier. They are all plastic so can easily be washed in hot, soapy water afterwards.

Keepin’ it fresh – Place cling wrap loosely over it (so as not to squash the cherries and cream) and it will keep refrigerated for 3 days from when it was first filled with cream.