rhubarb & ginger eton mess (…or what to do with failed pavlova)

My biggest piece of advice for low sugar baking is: temper your expectations. Decide what tradeoffs you don’t mind! Roll with the punches! Because in some cases, sugar is pretty important… such as in the case of pavlova. I’ve been trying to inch my way down with the sugar (usually I do 1:1, here I tried a cautious 0.67:1), and more recently wanted to give it a try in individual form.

Low sugar pavlova, as it turns out, does not crisp so well. Hence while you’re in the business of trying to achieve a thin, crisp outer layer, mini pavs can become dry all the way through – cooked to styrofoam stage instead of marshmallow.

Another issue with low sugar pavlova is that it develops a bit of a gumminess. It is semi-remedied if you cook it all the way through to the styrofoam stage… and the softening effect of plenty of cream and fruit juices will help re-soften it again too.

Eton mess shares some similarities to pavlova, but with fully crisped meringues requiring far less specific textural descriptions for both outer and inner…and its brilliance is in breaking up the meringue and tossing it with the cream and fruit so that you can generate your multiple textures during post-hoc eating analysis.

As always, we keep our fruit lightly sweetened and tart, while the cream is unsweetened – all balanced by still very sufficient sugar in the meringue.

rhubarb & ginger eton mess

• Servings: 3-4ish
• Print

meringue

• 2 egg whites
• 1/16th tsp cream of tartar
• 40g granulated sugar – or even better, toasted

roasted fruit

• 100g chopped rhubarb
• 100g hulled and chopped strawberries
• 20g chopped crystallized ginger (if dried out at all, soak in hot water first to plump it up)
• 1 1/2 tbsp granulated sugar

to serve

• 100g heavy cream, softly whipped

meringue

Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 250F.

Whip the egg whites in the bowl of a standmixer using the whisk attachment. Once frothy, add the cream of tartar. Then mix in the sugar in a few additions. Continue whipping until the egg whites reach stiff peaks.

Dollop the meringue onto the baking tray in 3-4 mounds (feel free to shape them if you desire). Bake for around 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the meringues are dry. 

Turn off the oven. Wedge a wooden spoon handle into the oven door to keep it open a crack and allow to cool completely while still in the oven (to prevent shrinking).

roasted fruit

Preheat the oven to 375F. Toss the strawberries, rhubarb, ginger and sugar together on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 20 minutes, stirring once at the 10 minute mark, or until the fruit is tender and has released juices. Let cool.

to serve

Crush the meringues (it’s pretty easy to shatter them if you just press down with the heel of your hand). Distribute amongst 3-4 plates. Dollop fruit and softly whipped cream overtop. Eat right away.