Pavlova with chestnut, cream and macerated winter fruits

Serves 8-10

Preparation time 20 minutes

Cooking time 45 minutes

Ingredients

600g fruits, like pomegranate, lychee, pear, black grape from Elsey & Bent

3 tablespoons crème de cassis

5 large egg whites, room temperature

250g sugar

1 teaspoon cornflour

1 teaspoon vinegar

350g fresh chestnuts from Jock Stark

350ml milk

25g butter

25g caster sugar

500ml double cream from Real France

Method

Preheat the oven to 140°C/gas mark 3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place the fruits in a bowl, stir in the cassis and leave to become good friends!

Place the egg whites in a large bowl and whisk until they achieve the stiff peak stage. Whisk in the sugar, about 25g at a time, until the meringue is glossy. Lastly add the corn flour and vinegar mixing until it has all disappeared.

Spoon the mixture on to the baking tray, spreading it in to a circle about 24cm in diameter, creating a dip in the middle. Alternatively, spoon 10 individual

Cook for 45 minutes then turn the oven off, leaving the meringue to cool in the oven.

To make the chestnut puree, make a deep cut around each chestnut then place in a pan of boiling water and cook until the shells start to separate from each other. Peel the nuts making sure you remove the thin membrane as well. Then place the nuts in a pan with the milk and simmer until tender and the milk has reduced to practically nothing. Stir in the milk and butter.

Whizz the chestnuts to a puree then cool before spreading over the meringue. Whip the cream until it just holds on to the whisk then spread over the chestnut layer.

Pile on the fruits and decorate with fresh bay leaves.