Raspberry & Rose Vacherin with Crushed Pistachio

⏱ 240 min · Serves 8

A crisp, snow-white meringue tower layered with rose-scented Chantilly, raspberry ripple and a glossy fresh raspberry compote. It shatters beautifully under the spoon and looks like something from a Paris patisserie window — but it's really just egg whites, sugar and patience.

Per serving: 528 kcal · 6.5g protein · 55.0g carbs · 32.0g fat

Ingredients

• 6 large egg whites (about 200g), at room temperature
• 350g caster sugar
• 1 tsp cornflour
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 500g fresh raspberries
• 3 tbsp icing sugar, plus extra to dust
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 600ml double cream, well chilled
• 1 tsp rose water (or to taste)
• 1 tbsp caster sugar, for the cream
• 50g shelled pistachios, roughly chopped
• A few dried rose petals, to decorate (optional)

Method

1. Heat oven to 110C fan / 130C conventional. Line two baking sheets with parchment and draw a 20cm circle on each.
2. In a spotlessly clean bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. Add the caster sugar a tablespoon at a time, whisking hard, until the meringue is very stiff, glossy and no longer grainy when rubbed between your fingers — 8–10 minutes.
3. Whisk in the cornflour and vinegar for 30 seconds.
4. Spread or pipe the meringue into two even 20cm discs, plus a few extra small kisses on any spare space for decoration. Keep the discs flat rather than domed.
5. Bake for 2 hours, then turn the oven off and leave the meringues inside to cool completely, ideally overnight. They should lift cleanly off the paper and sound hollow.
6. Make the compote: put 250g raspberries, the icing sugar and lemon juice in a small pan and warm for 4–5 minutes until saucy but still with some whole fruit. Cool completely, then chill.
7. Whip the cream with the caster sugar and rose water to soft, billowy peaks — stop before it stiffens. Taste and add a few more drops of rose water if you like, but keep it subtle.
8. Ripple one third of the cooled compote through half the cream with two strokes of a spatula.
9. Sit one meringue disc on a serving plate. Spread with the rippled cream, scatter with a third of the fresh raspberries and a little compote. Top with the second disc.
10. Crown with the remaining plain rose cream, the rest of the raspberries, spoonfuls of compote, the chopped pistachios, meringue kisses and rose petals. Dust with icing sugar and serve within the hour.