Caramelised Fig Pavlova With Cardamom Cream

A caramelized fig pavlova with cardamom cream makes a sweet and fragrant dessert for a dinner party. The cardamom cream tames the sweetness of the brown sugar meringue and sticky figs and tastes fancy whilst being surprisingly simple to make! This fig dessert doesn't require any special skills but looks beautiful, tastes elegant, and makes the perfect dinner party dessert.

Jump to:

• Why this is the best fig dessert
• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Top tip
• Wine pairing for fig and cardamom pavlova
• Substitutions and variations
• Equipment
• Storage
• Other dinner party dessert recipes
• Recipe Card
• FAQ

Why this is the best fig dessert

1. The flavor combination: Fig and cardamom are a delicious flavor combination. The sweet figs and meringue paired with delicately fragrant cardamom cream taste elegant and refined, and this is a great dessert for dinner parties.
2. Guests love meringue: Meringue desserts like this fig pavlova or Eton Mess are always so popular with dinner guests. Pavlova has the benefit of being a gluten-free dessert, and it can be made in advance, so it's handy in a multitude of ways. And it is a recipe that uses only egg whites, so if you are looking for leftover egg whites recipes, definitely try this.
3. It's surprisingly easy: Making homemade pavlova is one of those desserts that taste and appears to be much more complicated than it is. It's suitable even for beginner cooks, and I'll take you through each stage with all my chef tips and pointers.

Ingredients

Here is what you will need to make this fig and cardamom pavlova.

1. Egg whites: Meringue uses egg whites only, and it is important to use eggs at room temperature and separate the whites from the yolks carefully.
2. Fine sugar: I use fine light brown sugar or golden sugar for meringue as it has a deeper, richer flavor and works so well with the figs. You can use golden caster sugar or fine white sugar instead. Do not use regular or dark brown sugar; it has too much moisture.
3. White wine vinegar: I do not put cream or tartar, or vinegar into the meringue itself, but I do make a habit of wiping out the bowl and whisk attachment with vinegar as it helps clean off any residual fat and creates a stronger meringue.
4. Butter: We gently caramelize the figs in butter and a touch of extra sugar to get them sticky, sweet, and soft.
5. Figs: Figs are in season from spring until autumn, and any variety will work, but for this fig pavlova recipe, I used Bursa figs from Turkey. They are large, sweet, and juicy and generally available between June and November.
6. Cardamom pods:
7. Heavy cream: We make a cardamom whipped cream filling spiked with lemon zest for extra zing, which pairs perfectly with the sweet and sticky figs piled on top of the brown sugar pavlova.
8. Yogurt: I like to add a small amount of plain Greek yogurt to the whipped cream filling as it gives a touch more acidity and balances out the sweetness better.
9. Lemon: Lemon juice and zest enhances all the flavors and adds a bit of citrus zing.

See the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full quantities and step-by-step directions on how to make fig and cardamom pavlova.

Instructions

How to make golden sugar meringue

1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius/300 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Line a large low-sided baking tray with parchment paper or silicon liner.
3. Separate the egg whites from the yolks into a large mixing bowl, taking particular care not to get any egg yolk into the white. Even a tiny speck of egg yolk in your egg white will result in a failed meringue.
4. Whisk the egg whites until they reach a pale with stiff peaks using an electric hand whisk or stand mixer.
5. Slowly add the light brown sugar, a small amount at a time, whilst continuing to whisk. The meringue mixture will turn opaque creamy white/beige color with thick and glossy texture.
6. Spoon the brown sugar meringue onto the tray and use a spatula to spread it into a circle with a slight dip in the middle.
7. Bake the meringue in the oven for 1 hour, turning the heat down to 140 degrees Celsius/285 degrees Fahrenheit as soon as you put it in.
8. When the hour is up, turn the oven off but do not open it. Leave the meringue in the oven to cool and dry out, which will ideally be at least a few hours.

Top meringue baking tip: Put some vinegar onto a piece of kitchen paper and wipe it around your mixing bowl and whisk attachment before whipping egg whites.

How to make caramelized figs

1. Slice the figs into quarters
2. Melt butter in a frying pan over medium heat.
3. Add the figs and a teaspoon of cardamom pods to the sizzling butter and sprinkle a tablespoon of sugar over the top.
4. Gently cook the figs in the butter, and sugar, with a teaspoon of cardamom pods, until the figs soften and caramelize slightly.
5. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely. Then, remove the cardamom pods from the pan and discard them.

How to make cardamom cream filling

1. Split open the remaining cardamom pods with a knife to remove the small black seeds inside.
2. Grind the cardamom seeds into a fine powder using a pestle and mortar, coffee, or nut grinder. Some hard outer shells might remain, so pass them through a fine mesh sieve and discard the larger pieces that remain.
3. Pour heavy cream into a large mixing bowl and add the ground cardamom seeds and lemon zest.
4. Whip heavy cream until thick and starting to stiffen, then gently mix in the yogurt, which will loosen it slightly again.

Hint: If you can find ground cardamom seeds ready prepared, buy them instead of doing it yourself from cardamom pods. It does take a bit of time to crack, deseed and then grind them.

Assembling fig pavlova

1. Place the meringue base on a serving dish or platter.
2. Spoon the whipped cardamom cream filling onto the brown sugar pavlova
3. Arrange the caramelized figs on top of the whipped cream. Serve and enjoy!

Wine pairing for fig and cardamom pavlova

This dessert provides a bit of a wine pairing challenge (which I love). The tricky factor is the cardamom, as it almost acts as a barrier between the other flavors and the wine and needs something powerful to stand up to it. The more cardamom you put in, the more you need to veer towards a much sweeter wine, like a tawny port or intense sweet wine. The other option is a sweet or off-dry sparkling wine, a Prosecco, for example. I'd love to know what you try and how it works; let me know in the comments!

Substitutions and variations

Here are a few ways to change up this fig pavlova recipe to suit you.

1. White sugar - if you don't have any brown sugar, white will work just as well.
2. Yogurt - increase the ratio of yogurt to cream to make this recipe lighter and lower in fat.
3. Fruit - try other stone fruits instead of figs, e.g., plums, apples, or apricot.

Love this flavor combination? Try my fig and cardamom macarons, or find other elegant desserts for dinner parties here.

Equipment

1. Large lined baking tray.
2. Large mixing bowl.
3. Electric whisk or Kitchen Aid
4. Paring knife.
5. Pestle and mortar or coffee/nut grinder.
6. Frying pan.

Storage

The light brown sugar meringue for fig pavlova can be made in advance and kept in an air-tight container for 3 weeks or even frozen.

Once filled and assembled, the caramelized fig and cardamom pavlova will need to be stored in the fridge and consumed within 3 days. It is best enjoyed soon after assembly.

Other dinner party dessert recipes

Recipe Card

FAQ