Frozen Meringue Cups Drizzed with Hot Chocolate Sauce

Here is a perfect dessert to prepare for Mother's Day!

These super easy, crazy delicious, melt-in-your-mouth  frozen meringue cups drizzled with warm melted chocolate sauce 

is a great way to show your mom how special she is

I have posted this recipe before, but I thought I should share it again.
First of all, this dessert is in my list of favorites. It's unbelievably delicious: a frozen and slightly melting velvety cream, covered with hot nutella sauce. It's a combination of rich and delicate handcrafted goodness, sprinkled with pieces of crispy meringues. I know ... simply irresistible :-)
This recipe is also quite easy and quick to prepare. It needs to chill and set in the freezer for at least a few hours or longer. So you can prepare it ahead of time, and store it in the freezer, ready at any time for your special occasion. I used store bought meringues this time, which make the recipe a breeze and an assured success. But if you would like to bake your own, here is the recipe for you.
The second reason I thought I should write about this recipe again is ... Mother's Day is coming up! This heart shaped dessert is the perfect way to show your mom how much you love her. And no worries, if you don't have heart shaped muffin cups, you can use round silicone ones. It's still going to taste amazing and look pretty impressive anyways!

And look down here: I have made a video recipe too! So you can see, step-by-step, exactly what I did.

Ingredients: to make 8 cups (2.5 x 2.5 in - heart shaped)                               Printable Recipe

• 10 oz (300 ml) of milk
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/3 cup (65 gr) of sugar
• 2 tablespoons (20 gr) of corn starch
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 3.5 oz (100 gr) of meringues, about 10 (2 inches) meringues
• 4 fl oz (120 ml) of heavy whipping cream
• about three tablespoons of nutella (chocolate sauce) for decoration

Preparation time: 30 minutes, plus 5 hours or more inactive
Directions:
1. Start by preparing the custard cream: in a small pan warm up the milk (or place in the microwave for about 45 seconds). In another pan, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, corn starch and vanilla extract until smooth and fluffy.

2. Add a little bit of warm milk to the egg mixture and whisk well. Add the rest of the milk, and mix until smooth again.

3. Place the pan over medium flame and mix until it reaches a slow boil. It should take about 4-5 minutes. Whisk continuously, making sure the cream doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. Cook until it thickens, then pour the custard in a bowl and let it cool down. Refrigerate covered with plastic wrap for about one hour.

4. Whip the whipping cream and add to the custard. Mix by folding with a spoon until combined.

5. Crush 4 of the meringues with your hands in small pieces. Add the crushed meringues to the cream and mix.

6. Crush the rest of the meringues (6). Sprinkle the bottom of 8 heart (or round) shaped silicone mold with half of the crushed meringues.

7. Spoon the cream evenly in the 8 cups and top with the rest of the meringues.

8. Place the cups in the freezer for three hours or longer.
I suggest removing from the freezer about 30 minutes before serving. Remove the meringue cups from the mold. Warm up the nutella with two tablespoons of water in the microwave (about 30 seconds), or on a small pan.  Mix the sauce and drizzle over the meringue cups. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Meringue Cups Drizzled with Hot Chocolate Sauce

Make your Valentine's dinner special with this super easy, crazy delicious, melt-in-your-mouth

meringue cups drizzled with warm melted chocolate sauce

Today was the end of my giveaway. And the winner of a new set of silicone baking mats from Kitchen Executive Chef is ...

Tanya M.

Congratulations Tanya for your win. Please check your email to claim the prize.
Thank you all for participating. And a special thank you to Kitchen Executive Chef for providing the prize for my giveaway.

Now, let's talk about Valentine's day. It's less than a week away. Have you figure out your plans, and how you will impress your favorite person?
I'm a big believer that the thought is what counts when it comes to presents. Yes, no need for expensive gifts, especially on occasions like Valentine's day. My birthday ... well, that's a different story ;-)
The perfect present is a thoughtful gesture that makes your loved one feel special. So, how about sharing a cozy, homemade, candlelight dinner on Valentine's day? Cooking a delicious meal is a great (and inexpensive) way to show how much you care.
And this recipe is just perfect. These meringue cups are extremely easy and quick to prepare. You don't have to be a professional pastry chef to pull this off. But you have to prepare it ahead of time for the meringue cups to chill and set in the freezer. I used store bought meringues, which make this recipe a breeze. But if you would like to bake your own, here is the recipe for you.
You will be amazed by this dessert. It is to-die-for! And I'm not kidding. Every bite is filled with chilled and velvety cream, crispy and light meringue pieces, and hot, melted chocolate. It's hard to find words to describe how enticing these meringue cakes are. You will have to try!

Ingredients: to make 8 cups (2.5 x 2.5 in - heart shaped)

• 10 oz (300 ml) of milk
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/3 cup (65 gr) of sugar
• 2 tablespoons (20 gr) of corn starch
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 3.5 oz (100 gr) of meringues, about 10 (2 inches) meringues
• 4 fl oz (120 ml) of heavy whipping cream
• about three tablespoons of nutella (or chocolate chips) for decoration

Preparation time: 20 minutes, plus 4 hours in the freezer
Directions:
1. Prepare the custard cream: in a small pan warm up the milk (or place in the microwave for about 45 seconds). In another pan, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, corn starch and vanilla extract until smooth and fluffy.

2. Add a little bit of warm milk to the egg mixture and whisk well. Add the rest of the milk, and mix until smooth again.

3. Place the pan over medium flame and mix until it reaches a slow boil. Whisk continuously, making sure the cream doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan. Cook until it thickens, then pour the custard in a bowl and let it cool down. Refrigerate for about one hour.

4. Whip the whipping cream and add to the custard. Mix by folding with a spoon until combined.

5. Crush the meringues with your hands in small pieces. Add only half of the crushed meringues to the cream and mix.

6. Sprinkle the bottom of 8 heart (or round) shaped silicone mold with crushed meringues (using half of the meringues left - the rest will go on top).

7. Spoon the cream evenly in the 8 cups and top with the rest of the meringues.

8. Place the cups in the freezer for three hours or longer.
I suggest removing from the freezer 30 to 60 minutes before serving, based on how long the cups have been in the freezer, and how soft you like to eat them.
Warm up the nutella with two tablespoons of water in the microwave. 30 seconds should be enough. Mix well. You can also melt chocolate chips with a bit of water, if you prefer. Remove the meringue cups from the mold and drizzle with the hot chocolate. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Meringue Cake with Fresh Strawberries

Indulge yourself in this deliciously creamy and rich meringue cake with fresh strawberry. 

The perfect dessert for these hot summer days.

For today, an exquisitely amazing cake perfect for these hot summer days. REALLY! I'm not exaggerating.
Here is how I know it: my mother-in-law loved it :-) She really doesn't care much for dessert and generally turns it down. But not only she liked this meringue cake, she thought it was absolutely delicious. So, if you are wondering: yes! I made it to impress her, and it totally worked :-)
The meringue cake is a relatively easy dessert to make, with the exception of the meringue part. But once the meringues are ready, it's only a matter of whipping the cream, preparing the custard and having fun assembling and decorating the cake.
You will need to prepare the cake several hours in advance. It needs to be firm and mostly frozen, so it won't fall apart. And you will need to remove it from the freezer at least 30 to 60 minutes before eating it, based on how creamy and soft you wish to eat it.
I will make this dessert again, soon!! Next time though I will buy the meringues. So the cake will be a lot faster and a lot easier. I will post the recipe for you as soon as it's ready!


Ingredients: to make a 9 in cake, serving about 8-10 people       Printable Recipe

For the meringues:
6 egg whites
1 and a half cups of powder sugar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

For the custard cream:
16 fl oz of milk
4 egg yolks
2/3 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of all-purpose flour
half lemon

For the rest of the filling and decoration:
1 lb of fresh strawberries
about 12 fl oz of whipping cream
half tablespoon of powder sugar

Preparation time: 30 minutes to prepare, plus 2 hours to bake, and at least 4 hours of refrigeration

Directions:
Step 1: Follow the recipe for the meringue here, step 1 and 2. Note: save the egg yolks - you will need 4 to make the custard cream later. When the mixture is ready, prepare three discs using the removable sides of the baking pan you are planning to use to hold the cake.  Pipe the mixture in circles starting from the edge, moving in. Smooth the top if you like using a knife or a stirring stick. You will need one disk for the top, one for the bottom of the cake, and one will be broken in pieces and mixed in with the filling. Bake for about 1 hour as directed in the meringues recipe and leave in the oven for at least one more hour.

Step 2: Prepare the custard cream, following this recipe. Let it cool down in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

Step 3: Whip 8 fl oz of whipping cream and mix it with the custard cream.

Step 4: Cut about 2/3 of the strawberries in small pieces (the rest will be used for decorating the cake). Break one disc of meringue in pieces. Mix the strawberries and the meringue pieces with the custard cream.

Step 5: Place one disc of meringue inside the baking pan you used earlier (all you need is the sides, not the bottom). Pour in the filling and cover with the last disc. Cover with aluminum foil and freeze for at least 4 hours or until set, better if overnight.

Step 6: Whip the remaining cream with the powder sugar. Remove the side of the cake and decorate with whipped cream and the remaining strawberries... This is the fun part!!

Remove from the freezer 30 to 60 minutes before eating. And store the rest ... assuming there is anything left!! ... in the freezer. Enjoy :-)