Dreamy marshmallow pavlova

Instructions

1. For the meringue: Preheat the oven to 130°C (250°F).
2. Whisk the egg whites and a pinch of sea salt in a free-standing electric mixer until they form stiff peaks, then with the mixer still running, very gradually and carefully add the sugar, turn to the highest setting and leave to mix for 8 minutes, or until fully dissolved (rub a pinch of the mixture between your thumb and forefinger – if it feels smooth you’re good to go).
3. Meanwhile, line two large baking trays with greaseproof paper, then draw a 24 cm circle on each sheet of paper.
4. Divide the mixture between the two sheets and spread it out to just inside your circles, then use the back of the spoon to flick up peaks and make troughs in the mixture to give you free-form, rustic meringues that are also elegant and delicate. Bake for 1 hour 20 minutes, then turn the oven off, leaving the meringues in there until the oven is cool.
5. When you’re ready to assemble the pavlova, make your marshmallow.
6. This is a precise recipe, so make sure you read through the method carefully before you start, get all your ingredients weighed out and get your equipment ready to go. You’ll be working with hot sugar and syrups, so it’s best to keep your kids out of the kitchen.
7. Mix the liquid glucose syrup and caster sugar together in a pan over a low heat with 125 ml of cold water. Heat gently, stirring until all the sugar has dissolved and you have a clear syrup. Meanwhile, soak the gelatine leaves in a small pan with 60 ml of water.
8. Once the sugar syrup is clear, turn up the heat, pop in a sugar thermometer and allow the syrup to boil vigorously (please don’t stir it). When it reaches 110ºC, place the gelatine pan over a medium heat and stir until dissolved. Whisk the egg whites in a free-standing electric mixer until you have stiff peaks. Once your syrup has reached 122ºC, very carefully and slowly pour it down the sides of the bowl of the moving mixer, then pour in the dissolved gelatine. Halve the vanilla pods lengthways and scrape out the seeds, add the seeds to the mixer bowl, then continue to whisk for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the mixture has significantly increased in volume, but is thick and still pourable.
9. You can use this recipe to make a plain white vanilla marshmallow, or you can add any of the flavours listed (see Note), to taste, remembering to start small as you can always add more, but you can’t take it away! Add any natural food colouring at the same time (if using) – I like to try to match the colour of the marshmallow to the flavour I’m using. For this dreamy pavlova, try rose food colouring with a combination of rosewater and orange blossom water for flavouring. Whisk for a further 2 to 3 minutes to give you a nice even colour and flavour.
10. As soon as the marshmallow mixture is made, divide in big beautiful spoonfuls between the two meringues before it sets, being mindful to spoon in between the lovely peaks and wisps of meringue, so it’s as pretty as possible. At this point, identify the dreamiest meringue and put the scruffier one onto a cake stand to form the base of your pavlova.
11. Put the most perfect-looking half of your berries to one side, then place the other half in a bowl (removing any stalks). Add the lemon juice, sugar and balsamic, toss together and leave to macerate for 10 minutes while you make the Chantilly cream.
12. For the Chantilly cream: Halve the vanilla pod lengthways and scrape all the seeds into a large bowl with the sugar. Pour in the cream and whisk by hand until it forms soft peaks (all elegance will be lost if you overwhip the cream – if anything, underwhip it), then fold in the yoghurt.
13. Spoon three-quarters of the cream into the centre of the base meringue and carefully smooth it out to the edge, trying not to completely cover the marshmallow. Spoon over the macerated berries and juices, then place the second meringue on top. Dot over the remaining cream in between the marshmallow and meringue wisps, then sprinkle with the reserved berries. Pick a few baby mint leaves over the top and serve.

• You can make the marshmallow recipe with various flavours, such as rose water, orange blossom water, natural lemon extract, natural orange extract, natural peppermint extract. For this pavlova recipe, try a mixture of rose water and orange blossom water.
• To use this recipe to make traditional marshmallow pieces, sift 25 g cornflour and 25 g icing sugar into a bowl. Finely sift half the mixture over a deep baking tray (approximately 20 cm x 15 cm) and set the other half aside in the sieve until needed. When the marshmallow mix is ready (i.e. any colour and flavour is mixed in), pour into the prepared tray, use a palette knife to smooth it out, then sift over the remaining mixed cornflour and icing sugar and leave somewhere cool for 2 to 3 hours, or until set and soft. (The recipe can be doubled - see Jamie’s
  original Magnificent Marshmallows recipe
  ).