Baking Advent Calendar day 2

It’s Baking Advent Calendar day two and this one is for my Mum. I chose Jens Jorgen Thorsen Meringue as the default picture when I started this blog because it reminded me so much of Mum’s sweet tooth and how desserts were always the highlight of any meal for her. If she was in a restaurant the dessert would always be picked first, then she’d choose a first course that ensured enough room was left. If it was a special occasion there would also be a glass of dessert wine. I never got a chance to make her one of these but something tells me that it would have been a big hit.

The recipe comes from Scandinavian-Baking by Trine Hahnemann and in the book she explains that Jens Jorgen Thorsen was an abstract  Danish artist. The connections with the dessert is the random way that the dark chocolate is splashed across the white meringue.

I will warn you that this one is a seriously rich and sweet dessert. Gorgeous, but not for the feint hearted.

Ingredients

For the caramel cream

• 100g demerara sugar
• 500ml double cream

For the meringue

• 6 egg whites
• 300g caster sugar
• pinch of salt

For the topping

• 6 fresh figs cut into quarters. If you can’t get figs this also works well with dark cherries.
• 50g dark chocolate

Method

• To make the cream spread the sugar over the base of a saucepan. Cook over a medium heat until the sugar starts to melt. Add a quarter of the cream and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Once the mixture is fully combined (this might take a while) turn off the heat and stir in the remainder of the cream. Leave to chill in a bowl. This step can be done the night before.
• Heat the oven to gas mark 1
• Use an electric whisk or food mixer to whisk the egg whites until stiff and thick. Then add half the sugar 1tbsp at a time while still whisking. Once done the mix should be very stiff. Then fold in the remaining sugar and pinch of salt.
• Line two baking trays with baking parchment. Spread mixture on each so that you have circles of approximately 24cm diameter.
• Place in the oven and bake for an hour. Than leave to cool still on the trays.
• Whip the caramel cream until light and fluffy. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over simmering water.
• Remove the meringues from the parchment and place one on a plate, spread with the cream and put the other meringue on top. Then add the fig quarters and drizzle the chocolate in whatever pattern you want.