Easy Meringue Roll with Cream and Berries
Yes, even meringue can be rolled and the result is amazing! You will get an elegant, delicious, wow-effect dessert with few ingredients and in a short time.
A gluten-free dessert, easy and fast, but impressive, ideal for holidays and important occasions, like Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, etc.
In particular, the success of this fresh and indulgent dessert is guaranteed thanks to Yotam Ottolenghi who is always meticulously precise in describing his recipes, a soft meringue with a crisp shell, filled with a delicate cream made from cream, mascarpone, and berries. The dessert is cracked on the surface (that’s how it’s supposed to be, it’s its feature) but the slice can be cut intact without crumbling.
You can prepare the cooked meringue the day before, then fill it the next day and keep it in the fridge for at least two hours before serving the dessert.
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 8 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for the Easy Meringue Roll with Cream and Berries
- 4 oz egg whites (about 4 eggs, at ROOM temperature)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (superfine Zefiro)
- 0.5 tsp white wine vinegar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1.75 cups heavy whipping cream (cold)
- 0.5 cup mascarpone (at room temperature)
- 2 tbsps powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 0.8 tsp rum (optional)
- 5.3 oz raspberries (or strawberries or mixed berries, must be fresh)
- A few sprigs red currants (optional)
- as needed chopped pistachios (for decoration, optional)
- as needed powdered sugar (for decoration)
- edible flowers (optional)
Tools
- Bowl
- Mixer electric 350 W power
- Stand Mixer Kenwood with 1400 W power, illuminated bowl
- Spatula angled for desserts
- Parchment paper
- Baking tray extendable
Steps for the Easy Meringue Roll with Cream and Berries
Beat the egg whites at room temperature (NOT cold from the fridge) with an electric whisk (I use a stand mixer with a wire whisk) until they form a foam, then start to add little by little the superfine sugar and keep beating for about 5 minutes, until you have a shiny and stiff meringue.
Then, add in the white vinegar, then the sifted cornstarch and the vanilla extract, and continue to beat until you get the classic “peak” that is shiny and well-fixed when you lift the whisk.
Preheat the oven to 320°F and line a 13×9 inches rectangular baking tray with parchment paper, pour immediately (see FAQ below) the meringue mixture into the tray and level it well with a spatula (preferably angled for desserts).
Bake the meringue in a preheated oven at 320°F for about 30 minutes, until a light crust forms, but do not let it brown (if so, cover the meringue with foil after 5 minutes of baking).
Remove the meringue from the oven and let it cool completely in the tray, then cover it with a sheet of parchment paper and flip the tray over, gently peeling off the meringue from the parchment paper used for baking.
Place the mascarpone (at room temperature) in a bowl with the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and rum, and beat for 2 minutes with an electric whisk (or stand mixer), then add the liquid cream (cold from the fridge) and beat for about 3 minutes, until you get a dense cream that does not drip.
Spread the cream (reserve some for the surface) on the meringue, leaving a little space on the edges.
Scatter the whole fresh raspberries (NOT frozen) and currant berries (or strawberries or mixed berries) over the cream.
Then, using the parchment paper, gently roll the meringue from the long side and, always using the parchment paper, slide the roll onto the serving plate.
Spread the remaining cream on the center of the surface and decorate with the raspberries, currants (or other berries or strawberries), crushed pistachios, and edible flowers (optional).
Before serving, place the meringue roll in the refrigerator for at least two hours and finally dust with powdered sugar, remove from the fridge at least 20 minutes before serving.
The meringue roll is crunchy and crumbly on the outside and soft inside, BUT it should be consumed the same day it is filled, otherwise it slightly loses its crispness.
Notes and Tips
If you want, you can also freeze the already cooked and filled Meringue Roll (even already portioned) but instead of the cream of whipped cream and mascarpone indicated above, it is better to use a cream made of: 250 g of whipped cream mixed with 250 g of condensed milk, which once frozen, will become a sort of creamy semifreddo. This option is ideal in summer!
Shopping Tips!!!
To perfect kneading, I use my Titanium Chef Patissier XL Stand Mixer with 7L illuminated bowl, integrated scale, and blender, a faithful ally in the kitchen for: kneading, weighing, mixing, cooking, grinding, pasteurizing eggs.
If you are looking for a more economical and smaller stand mixer, you can safely choose to purchase the excellent Kenwood Titanium Chef Baker XL, 1200W power, 5L bowl, and integrated scale.
For this recipe, I also used the practical Bosch electric mixer, 350 W power, available at a great price on Amazon.
This extendable baking tray is very useful.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What to do if the meringue is too runny?
You could add a bit of powdered sugar to thicken it.
How to prevent the meringue from deflating?
An important trick is this: Never let the meringues rest before baking because they start to deflate immediately: have your baking sheet lined with parchment paper ready and the oven temperature already stable.
