Cocoa Meringue Christmas Puddings

I made these as a trial, putting my Meringue Girls cocoa kisses another shot [a chance to try the technique again too] with a Christmas Pudding twist for next Sunday.  Here's how I got on and what I'll be doing differently.

I invested in some disposable piping bags and put them to the test.  Perfect as you can cut the piping hole to a larger size [which is needed if you want the Meringue Girls shape] and the thin plastic makes the whole thing much more flexible - which I didn't realise would help so much:

 I also was able to practice my meringue girl shape technique, and I think I've started to crack it - don't start piping your meringue at the tray, start piping around 2/3cm from the tray, apply even pressure and as the meringue hits the tray, pull the piping bag up and away to create the peak - I will be having a Christmas colour themed Peppermint Kisses practice to put this to the test with more kisses and I'll let you know how I get on.

Once piped, I applied a very generous layer of cocoa powder and then popped the meringues in a pre-heated oven for 2 hours:

To finish and for decoration, I then whipped some cream and created little spheres between two teaspoons to sit on top of the meringues.  I then added a few red sugar balls and used a green icing pen to make the holly:

These need to be eaten fairly quickly - gravity did try to get the better of some of the cream tops, but as long as you serve not too long after making, they will be fine.  Otherwise, make them up and pop straight in to the fridge to help 'set' the cream in place.

I'll be making these again, but I think I will create rounder, fatter and flatter meringues with my piping bag, to hold the cream on top a little better, and may try some white chocolate toppings as well.  The slight bitterness of the cocoa powder is balanced by the cream.

see you next time x
Want more Christmas treat ideas, including our Pudding teacakes, marshmallow pops, profiteroles and more?  Come this way.