Stacked Pavlova with Raspberries

Stacked pavlova cake with raspberry, coconut, and whipped cream filling, this meringue cake is incredibly delicious!

This stacked pavlova with raspberries is really out of this world! I just love the contrast between the crunchy and sweet meringue layers and the soft and tangy raspberry filling.

I do have a soft spot for anything meringue and quite a few recipes on Where Is My Spoon to prove it! For instance this amazing Polish Bezowy Torte, these Meringue Brownies or this Meringue Apple Cake. All favorite cakes, I have been making repeatedly for years now.

This stacked Pavlova recipe is a new discovery. I found the recipe in an old issue of the magazine Good Food, a magazine I have discovered while living in England and to which I have been having a subscription for years now.

I have modified the recipe a little bit, but the main idea remains the same. And the result? Three scrumptious coconut meringue layers stacked together with whipped cream and raspberries. A deluxe cake, I am telling you, you will love every bite of it!

How to make a stacked meringue cake

Despite the way it looks with the many layers and filling, this cake is not difficult to make. Meringue might sound and look impressive if you haven't made before, but trust me, the reality is that meringue is beginner's stuff, really easy to make.

Tips for making meringue

The eggs:

• Your eggs don't have to be fresh, actually using older eggs is better, the meringue made with older eggs will be fluffier.
• Bring the eggs to room temperature before starting. Take them out of the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before.
• If using leftover, frozen egg whites, defrost them in the refrigerator (preferably overnight as they will need several hours) and bring them to room temperature before using them.

Cleanliness:

• Make sure that the bowl and the mixing whiskers you are using are very clean.
• The egg whites must be totally free of egg yolk residues as well. If there is any trace of fat on the bowl or of egg yolk in the egg whites, you will not be able to beat the egg whites properly.

Kitchen machine or hand mixer:

• Making meringue takes a bit of time, so using a kitchen machine is good, if you happen to have one. However, a hand held mixer would do as well.

Sugar:

• Use fine sugar, it will dissolve faster and better, giving you a smoother, silkier meringue.
• Add the sugar very slowly to the egg whites while beating continuously. One tablespoon at a time would be ideal.

Stabilizer:

• Add some stabilizer to the egg white mixture. Some people use cream of tartar, but I have had very good results with cornstarch, so now I am using that all the time, instead of buying cream of tartar just for this purpose.
• Also, add a little apple or white wine vinegar to the meringue. It also helps stabilize it and used in such small quantities it will not influence the taste. The stabilizers will help the meringue hold its shape better, so it will have nicer edges and peaks when baked.

Baking times:

• There are a few methods out there on making meringue, most differences regard the baking temperature and time. I have tried a few of these methods, some were complete failures, some were better.
• In the case of this cake, I used the method indicated by Good Food magazine and it worked perfectly. It is very similar to the way I would usually bake my meringue, which is to bake it for roughly one hour at low temperature, turn off the oven and leave it inside for a while.
• You can definitely bake it one day in advance.

What to do with the leftover egg yolks?

• You can make the meringue with fresh egg whites or leftover egg whites.
• If you use fresh egg whites, then you will be left with five egg yolks.
• How about trying this amazing Carbonara recipe? The recipe is meant to serve two people and uses three egg yolks. You could double the quantities and use all the five leftover egg yolks, it won't matter if you have one less than the doubled recipe requires.
• You could also make lemon curd.
• Or this Greek lemon soup with chicken and orzo? The recipe also requires six egg yolks, but you will be fine with using only five again.
• You could also use the five leftover egg yolks to make this luscious Mexican chocolate ice cream.

And if you like meringue, have a look at these other recipes as well:

Best Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe

Crushed Meringue Dessert with Strawberries and Cream

The Best Rhubarb Meringue Pie