Easter meringue torte

This lovely meringue torte is perfect for Easter or any special occasion dessert. Gluten free but not guilt free! You can make the meringue rounds a day in advance to allow for easy assembling on the day.

EASTER MERINGUE TORTE

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 1 hour 30 minutes (+1 hour of cooling time)
Serves: 12

Ingredients

meringue

• 8 egg whites
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1½ cups (330g) of caster sugar
• 1 tablespoon of cornflour, sifted
• 200g of almond meal
• cocoa powder

ganache

• 400g of dark chocolate, coursely chopped
• 200ml of thickened cream
• 30ml of Frangelico (or any liqueur in your cupboard)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 130ºC.
2. Place the egg whites into a stand mixer and whisk until soft peaks are formed. Add the salt, then gradually add the sugar, a tablespoon at a time.
3. Once all the sugar has been incorporate, add the sifted cornflour. Beat for a further minute to combine, then remove the mixer bowl from mixer and fold through the almond meal by hand with a flat spoon.
4.  Using a pencil, draw 3 x 20cm circles on baking paper.
5. Turn the baking paper over, and then stick down edges using some of the meringue mixture. This stops the paper slipping when you spread the meringue or put the trays into the oven. You will need two baking trays. You may need to turn a baking tray upside down to get a large enough flat surface.
6. Using a palette knife, spread the meringue evenly over the three circles. Smooth the tops and edges of each meringue round.
7. Place in the oven and cook for an hour. It should be hollow to tap.
8. While the meringue is cooking, make the ganache. Place the chocolate and cream into a heatproof bowl over a saucepan with simmering water. Make sure the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl.
9. Stir until chocolate all melted and cream incorporated. Add the Frangelico (or other liqueur), combine, remove from saucepan top and set aside to cool.
10. Remove meringue rounds from the oven once cooked, and set aside to cool.
11. Assemble the cake by placing a teaspoon of ganache on the cake plate or stand and place a meringue round on top. This stops the cake moving as you assemble it.
12. Spread half of the ganache onto the meringue round on the plate, and then place another round on top. Repeat with remaining ganache and top with last meringue round.
13. Dust torte with cocoa and serve.