Sticky Toffee Pavlova

Creating this dessert for you has been a total joy, I think you'll find it hard to resist the combination of these two classic desserts and if you haven't made a pavlova before I'd like to assure you that this showstopper is rather straightforward. Although don't be fooled into thinking the pavlova base is just a regular meringue recipe. It actually requires slightly more patience and needs cornflour (cornstarch) and an acid mixed in with the whipped egg whites to create its signature marshmallowy centre. It’s simple but the process of making the pavlova itself needs care and time.

Sticky Toffee Pavlova has four component parts but you’ll be thrilled to hear these components are incredibly straightforward and easy. Although do read through my Tips and Troubleshooting section for making your pavlova as it actually takes longer to whip up the eggs and the sugar correctly than you might think.

Taking it slow and double checking the method here to make sure the sugar is properly dissolved into the egg whites will pay off huge dividends in making sure your finished Pavlova is a perfect triumph.

As I was developing this recipe I read time and time again that Pavlova should really be served with fruit or light fresh ingredients to cut through the sweetness of the meringue. But I can assure you that even though the original Sticky Toffee Pudding is a heavier dessert, this finished pavlova is light and just the right amount of sweetness.

So, let’s grab our mixer (not absolutely essential but if you do have one you’ll be forever grateful as we’re whipping those egg whites a while) and let me show you how to make this devastatingly delicious Sticky Toffee Pavlova.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

The meringue base is the perfect combination of crisp shell giving way to a fluffy marshmallowy centre.

The whipped mascarpone cream is light and creamy, the perfect companion to the textures of the meringue.

The Sticky Toffee Sauce has a contrasting deep rich flavour as it’s made with dark mascarpone sugar. It only needs 3 ingredients and takes a little over 5 minutes to make.

The soft date crumble topping is like sprinkles of fluffy cake but it’s a no-bake mixture in which the simple ingredients are placed in the food processor and whizzed to create.

Most of this recipe can be made ahead of the day you want to serve it so then all you need to do is assemble it on the day for the wow factor.

Ingredients Needed

Pavlova

Egg whites. Make sure these are from new fresh eggs (and not from a carton) as they stabilise much better in the oven to create a meringue base which doesn’t collapse.

Caster sugar. This is a fine white baking sugar available in the UK. If you can only get hold of granulated sugar then you need to grind more finely in the food processor before you use it in the recipe. The fine grain of the sugar more easily dissolves into the egg whites.

Cornflour (cornstarch). This is the fine white powdery flour which is used as a thickener and stabiliser here as it absorbs some of the texture of the meringue to help create the marshmallow centre and avoid ‘weeping’.

White vinegar. You can use rice vinegar, white vinegar or fresh lemon juice (weigh carefully). But an acid is needed to lower the pH of the egg whites to stabilise the proteins and hold air. This means the meringue is more stable and helps keep its volume.

Salt. The versions I made of the pavlova base with just a pinch of salt were more stable as it strengthens the proteins of the egg whites.

Sticky Toffee Sauce

Unsalted butter. We need unsalted so we can control the salt content of the recipe. Unlike a caramel you start by melting the butter which means it’s a more foolproof method as you don’t need to be concerned with burning molten sugar.

Dark muscovado sugar. It’s the intensity of the muscovado sugar that gives it a rich colour and depth of flavour. You could substitute for dark brown sugar but won’t quite achieve the molasses flavour.

Double cream. You can use heavy cream.

Date Crumbles

Medjool dates. These dates give the best and softest result. I did also try the recipe with another date (deglet noor – as that was all that was available at the supermarket I chose) which are not as caramelly flavoured and they worked just fine if you need to substitute.

English breakfast tea bag. The dates are soaked in freshly brewed tea to emulate the method used in sticky toffee pudding. It does impart a gorgeous flavour.

Almond butter. This is used to hold our cake crumble together. Along with the almond flour it produces our soft moist texture like little no-bake cake crumbs. Use fresh and drippy almond butter (not the stiff dregs from the bottom of the jar).

Almond flour. You are looking for blanched ground almonds. There is a bit of labelling confusion over almond flour which is sold as ‘ground almonds’ in most major UK supermarkets and found in the baking aisle. If you want to know what exactly you are looking for then check out this post >>>Is Almond Flour The Same As Ground Almonds.The flavour of the almond flour is rich and delicious here.

Orange zest. The citrus notes cut through the richness of the date crumble and provide a lovely contrast to the intensity of the toffee flavours.

Vanilla extract. Use a good quality extract, I like Nielsen Massey.

Salt. I like to use kosher salt in my baking as it has a round gentle flavour. Using salt in the date crumbles lifts and sharpens all the other flavours.

Mascarpone Cream

Double cream. You can substitute for heavy cream or whipping cream for a lighter result.

Mascarpone. This adds body to our creamy topping and again, is a perfect flavour foil to the toffee notes.

Vanilla extract. No sugar is needed but a bit of vanilla just enriches the cream a little. Use a good quality extract, I like Nielsen Massey.

How To Make Sticky Toffee Pavlova

For full recipe instructions go to the recipe card at the end of this post.

Preparation: Preheat oven to 160°C / 140°C fan / gas mark 3 / 320°F. Draw a circle (18cm/7 inches) on baking parchment, then place it on a baking tray (drawn side down).

Make the meringue: Whisk egg whites on medium-low speed until soft peaks form.

Add the sugar: Gradually add sugar (1 tbsp at a time), waiting 10-15 seconds between additions, scraping the sides of the bowl. Once it's all been incorporated, whisk for 5 more minutes and check the sugar has totally dissolved by rubbing between your fingertips. The meringue will hold very stiff peaks and be smooth and glossy.

Add the vinegar, cornflour, then salt and mix for a final 2 minutes, scraping down the sides to make sure it has evenly combined.

Shape the meringue: The consistency of the final meringue should still be smooth, thick and glossy and hold its shape securely. Spoon the meringue pile high into the centre of the drawn circle on your baking parchment.

Shape the meringue and bake: Smooth the meringue out to the edges of the circle then shape it with a palette knife. Place meringue in oven, reduce temperature to 120°C / 100°C fan / gas mark ½ / 250°F, bake for 1 ½ hours. Leave to cool completely in the oven with the door cracked open.

Sticky Toffee Sauce: Start to melt the butter in a saucepan. As it's melting whisk in the brown sugar until dissolved and it has become a cohesive mixture. Slowly whisk in the double cream until combined and continue heating until the sauce is hot but not boiling. Remove from heat to cool.

Date Crumbles: Soak dates with tea bag in hot water for 10 minutes. Drain, remove tea bag, then blend dates, almond butter, almond flour, orange zest, vanilla, and salt in a food processor until crumbly. Chill until ready.

Mascarpone Cream: Whisk mascarpone to loosen, then add cream and vanilla. Whisk until soft-medium peaks form.

Assembly: Place meringue on serving plate, top with mascarpone cream, piling it high without overhandling to avoid overwhipping. Drizzle Sticky Toffee Sauce over the cream, ensuring some drips into the meringue base and down the sides. Scatter the date crumbles on top.

Tips and Troubleshooting

Use room temperature egg whites which will mean your eggs will whip to a greater volume. If you keep your eggs in the fridge then remove at least an hour before you make the pavlova to come up to the right temperature.

Use new fresh eggs as the older the eggs are then the less stable the meringue.

Make sure your mixing bowl is incredibly clean. Any greasiness will affect the finished result of the meringue.

Ensure there is no fat at all in your egg whites so take extra care when you are separating them from the yolks. I recommend separating in smaller bowls one at a time before adding to your mixer to ensure any broken yolks will not affect the whole batch.

Keep the mixer on a medium – low speed throughout. If you are using a stand mixer then not more than 4 (which is about half the speed it goes up to).

Expect to be at your mixer a long time. It can take 30 - 45 minutes to prepare the meringue correctly.

Add the sugar in slowly to ensure it dissolves into egg whites.

Check the sugar is dissolved by rubbing in between your fingertips to ensure there is no graininess at all.

Be careful not to overbeat the egg whites, you’ll notice this is the case if they start to look less glossy. Keeping the mixer on low should ensure this doesn’t happen.

To create the perfect meringue round shape then draw an 18cm (7 inch) circle onto baking parchment. Stick the parchment down onto a large baking tray, drawn side down, using a blob of extra meringue as ‘glue’ at each corner.

Spoon the meringue into the centre of the drawn circle then spread out to the edges using a palette knife. Use the same palette knife to shape the meringue, you can pull it up the sides to create a ribbed effect or swirl it around for a dreamy cloud like pattern.

The pavlova should be placed into a medium heated oven, then once it’s in the temperature turned right down to a low heat. This higher heat helps to secure a crisp outer shell, then the low heat cooks the pavlova throughout ensuring its fluffy soft inner texture.

Keep a quiet kitchen whilst it's baking, pavlovas can be tricky customers and any excess banging or thumping around the oven can disturb the baking process. And don’t use the oven or hob (if you have a range cooker) whilst its baking so that the temperature of the oven is totally stable.

Avoid opening the oven door at all during the bake. Once the time is complete then turn off the heat and crack open the door. Leave the pavlova to fully cool in the oven, overnight if possible. Leave a sticky note on the oven door to remind you it’s there and to avoid using the oven. This slow and prolonged cooling time helps avoid cracking and collapse.

Make sure when you are whipping up the mascarpone cream to underwhip it and do it by hand if possible as you will have more control over it. Stop whipping when it just reaches soft - medium peaks so it barely holds its shape with the whisk. As you are piling it into the meringue it’s amazing how quickly it stiffens up as you are handling it and overwhipped cream doesn’t have as nice a texture.

If the pavlova does crack don’t worry at all, the cream and toffee topping will distract any attention from that and it will still taste amazing.

Once the pavlova has cooled in the oven then you can move it to a cool dark undisturbed place (don’t worry about covering it) to store up to 24 hours before assembling the pavlova.

Assemble the cream, toffee sauce and cake crumble topping directly before serving.

How To Avoid A Weeping Pavlova

This is the most common problem when making a pavlova and it refers to the leaking of sugar syrup during the bake which you’ll see as soon as you open the door at the end of the baking process. This means your pavlova isn’t quite as stable as you want it to be (it will probably be teamed with a softer base) and isn’t as attractive when you serve it.

The weeping is usually down to the sugar not having been fully dissolved into the egg whites before baking. This is why you really need to take time during this process:

Only add the sugar once the egg whites have reached the soft peak stage.

Keep the mixture on a medium – low speed, (no higher than 4 on a stand mixer) throughout the whole process.

Add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time with 10-15 seconds in between each addition.

Keep scraping down the sides of the bowl so any excess sugar is added and mixed back into the egg whites.

Once all the sugar has been added, continue mixing for another 5 minutes before you test the consistency.

Check the consistency of the egg whites between your fingers, there should be absolutely no grittiness, just soft and silky smooth.

Once your pavlova has been made then over time it will start leaking sugar syrup if not eaten straightaway.

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