Christmas Pavlova

This Christmas pavlova makes a meringue with a crispy exterior and a marshmallow-like center, tops it with some fun Christmas tree meringues, whipped cream, and plenty of berries. A perfect winter pavlova recipe to impress your guests. Ready in less than two hours.

If you’re looking for a festive dessert that will impress a crowd, then this Christmas-themed pavlova is for you. All the deliciousness of a traditional pavlova recipe, with all the merriment and cheer of the holidays.

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Jump to:

• What is a Christmas Pavlova
• Ingredients
• How to make a Christmas Pavlova
• Tips
• Variation ideas
• Serving suggestions
• Storage suggestions
• Final thoughts
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews

What is a Christmas Pavlova

Pavlovas are delicious desserts made using meringues and cream (and very often, some sort of fruit or sweet topping). This Christmas Pavlova is a festive twist on the classic dessert, that includes Christmas decorations in the form of a meringue Christmas tree, and some Christmassy berries as toppings.

If you enjoy pavlova, it’s very similar to a raspberry Eton Mess (which is essentially a crushed pavlova), which is a perfect option for the summer.

Ingredients

For the meringue

• Egg whites
• Superfine sugar
• Agar agar
• White vinegar
• Cornstarch
• Green food coloring
• Cake sprinkles (optional)

For the whipped cream

• Heavy cream
• Powdered sugar

For the toppings

• Pomegranate arils
• Strawberries, quartered
• Blueberries
• Fresh mint leaves

How to make a Christmas Pavlova

This Christmas wreath pavlova recipe is as fun to make as it is to eat. Start by preheating your oven to a gentle 285 degrees F (140 degrees C) and by lining a baking sheet with parchment paper. Next whisk your room temperature egg whites, vinegar, and agar agar until soft peaks form (I recommend using the balloon whisk attachment with your stand mixer on high speed). Gradually add the superfine sugar, whipping the mixture to glossy, firm perfection, followed by a bit of cornstarch, and whip until just combined with stiff peaks.

Now comes the fun part-transforming your meringue into a festive wreath. Most of the white meringue goes into a piping bag with a star tip, while about a quarter of it gets tinted a festive green – simply mix it with the green food coloring. Using a round mold as a guide, pipe a beautiful white meringue circle, smoothing it gently (so that the tips don’t burn in the oven). Next, pipe adorable little green Christmas trees around the wreath, adding a playful touch of holiday spirit with some birthday cake sprinkles if you’re feeling extra merry.

Baking a pavlova does require a bit of patience. Pop the pavlova into the preheated oven and let it bake undisturbed for 75 minutes. Once done, turn off the oven and let the meringue cool completely inside to prevent cracking (don’t worry if you get cracks though, it happens sometimes, and is mostly quite easy to cover up. It actually happened to me while shooting this recipe too!).

When it’s completely cool, whip up some cream with powdered sugar – you’re looking for a light and dreamy consistency to top your crunchy meringue. Spread the cream over the white meringue, being careful not to cover the green trees. Lastly, decorate with a festive scatter of pomegranate seeds, quartered strawberries, blueberries, and mint leaves for a colorful holiday dessert.

Tips

Make it ahead of time

You can prepare the meringue up to three days ahead of time. Store it in an airtight container, and remove only when you’re ready to make the pavlova. This is handy for that busy holiday period.

What kind of food color to use

You can use as much or as little food coloring as you want. However, should you use food color, I recommend using a gel food color to avoid adding excess moisture to your meringue.

Clean, dry bowls

When whisking your meringue mixture, you’re looking to obtain stiff peaks. If you find yourself continually whisking without the meringue becoming firmer, it may be due to moisture or residue/grease in your bowls or on your whisk. Make sure everything is clean and completely dry before starting.

Room temperature means room temperature

Generally, unless otherwise specified all recipes assume your ingredients are room temperature, but in this case, it’s actually important to use room temperature eggs. They’re quicker and easier to whip, and also incorporate more air, meaning you’ll get a lighter and fluffier meringue.

How to prevent cracking

Despite what social media might tell you, it’s easy for your meringue to crack, and it’s not a big deal if it does. The biggest reason for cracking is sudden temperature changes (i.e. from opening the oven door to check on your meringue). Let your meringue bake at a low temperature, and don’t open the oven door immediately. Once it’s done baking, let it cool with the oven door closed. 

It’s also the reason we’re using white vinegar, agar agar, and corn starch (to help stabilize the meringue), and superfine sugar, which dissolves more easily to help prevent over-whisking the meringue.

Gluten-free

Good news for those with gluten sensitivities – this Christmas pavlova is naturally gluten-free! The meringue base is made from egg whites, sugar, and cornstarch (make sure to verify your cornstarch is certified gluten-free as some brands may have cross-contamination during processing), agar agar, and food coloring. 

Just be careful when selecting your toppings and sprinkles – while all the fruits suggested in this recipe are gluten-free, some sprinkles do contain gluten, so always check the packaging if serving to someone with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Variation ideas

The thing with pavlovas (or meringues, in general) is that they can be a bit fussy. For this reason, I don’t recommend changing or adjusting the meringue base. However that leaves us three areas of the recipe we can still play with:

Toppings. While I use strawberries, pomegranate seeds, and blueberries, you can easily swap them out for raspberries, peaches, or your preferred fruit or berry. For an added bit of fun (but a lot of sweetness), you can swap them out with Christmas candy. 

Cream. This recipe is made with a simple sweetened whipped cream, however there’s room to play around here. You can infuse flavors into the whipped cream (a teaspoon of vanilla extract is a good place to start), or even add a little cocoa powder and chocolate chips to make a chocolate whipped cream.

Presentation. It’s easy to play with the presentation of pavlova wreaths. For a start, it doesn’t need to be a wreath – it can be any shape you want (just make sure you have enough meringue to work with). You can use more food colors to give your Christmas pavlova wreath a different look too (think: changing the green trees into red Santa hats). 

Serving suggestions

This Christmas pavlova is wonderful and festive dessert to end a holiday lunch or dinner. Personally, I enjoy serving pavlovas during the day because I think they look better in the daylight.

It doesn’t necessarily need to be paired with anything special, but if you’re interested in creating a Christmas dinner with some international flavor, try serving it as dessert after a mains of tallarines verdes with a chicken escalope side.

Storage suggestions

The meringue can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. The whipped cream can be refrigerated for up to three days in an airtight container. Combine just before serving.

Technically, meringue can be frozen in a freezer-safe container for up to two months and then thawed it back to room temperature for use. I urge caution here as additional moisture from any freezer ice can impact the texture and thawing of your meringues. 

Final thoughts

There’s always something extra magical about holiday baking, I almost always recommend making holiday desserts with your favorite kitchen buddy. 

It’s no different for this Christmas Pavlova recipe. It’s a showstopper dessert, and sure to be a family favorite. If you give it a try, or prefer it with other flavors, let me know in the comments below. 

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