Light as air meringue with a marshmallow-like centre that’s filled with cream and summer berries.
Photographs: Natasha Liviero
Text: Natasha Liviero
Summer Berry Roulade
Makes 1 x 40cm roulade
Ingredients:
200g egg whites
Pinch of cream of tartar
240 castor sugar
20g slivered almonds
15g icing sugar
250g cream
50g mascarpone
40g icing sugar
5g vanilla extract/paste
Mixed berries, mint and grated dark chocolate for decorating
Method:
Set oven to 1600C. If using a fan oven, place the oven rack above the fan.
Prepare a large piece of baking paper and mark out a 30x40cm rectangle. Turn the paper over and place it onto a baking tray.
Whisk the egg whites with the cream of tartar on medium speed until soft peaks form. Slowly add the castor sugar, a tablespoon at a time, then whisk on high speed for 10 minutes until thick, glossy and smooth. Rub the meringue between your fingers to ensure all the sugar has dissolved.
Spoon the meringue onto the baking paper and smooth between the rectangle lines.
Sprinkle the slivered almonds over the surface and gently press them into the meringue to help prevent the almonds from falling off the baked meringue.
Bake for 20 minutes until slightly risen, golden and firm to the touch.
Cut another piece of baking paper larger than the original and set aside.
Remove the roulade from the oven and dust with 15g icing sugar. Place the second piece of baking paper over the roulade, place a cooling rack on top and carefully invert the hot meringue onto the cooling rack. Gently peel the baking paper from the hot meringue and leave to cool completely.
To make the cream filling, whisk the cream, mascarpone, 40g icing sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. The cream mixture must be firm enough to ensure it holds inside the roulade.
Spread the cream filling over the roulade. At this point, you can add sliced berries (optional).
On the long side of the roulade, cut a 2cm border without slicing all the way through. This will assist with rolling.
With your hands, gently fold the meringue over the cut border to start the rolling process. Next, using the baking paper, roll the roulade into a log. It’s normal for the surface to crack. Don’t worry if it breaks in places, as the cream will hold the finished roll together (and you can cover the damaged areas with fruit!).
Snugly wrap the baking paper around the roulade and place it in the fridge for 30 minutes to 2 hours to set. At this point, the roulade may be refrigerated overnight (longer than this is not recommended).
When ready to serve, decorate with summer berries, mint sprigs and a grating of dark chocolate.
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