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For the holidays, the traditional festive pav is getting replaced for a wonderfully different meringue-based treat. Crisp discs of nutty meringue are assembled with a lush pistachio cream and tart cherry sauce. While it sits, the meringue layers give slightly beneath the filling, achieving a soft and tender feel. It's a superb option for a festive dessert without the usual suspects of chocolate and booze.

Pistachio and Cherry Meringue Cake

Thanks to the popularity of a recent social media sensation, pistachio creme is simple to source in many grocery stores. This product is sugar-added and provides a lovely, soft green hue. An alternative is pistachio butter as a substitute, but the color may be duller and you'll likely need to adjust the sweetness.

Prep: 5 min
Cook: 2 hr 20 min
Serves: 12-16

For the Meringue Discs
150g pistachio kernels, plus an extra 50g, chopped, for garnish
50g icing sugar
1 tsp cornflour
A pinch of salt
165g egg whites
155g caster sugar

For the Cherry Compote
350g frozen cherries
Juice of ½ lemon
60g caster sugar

For the Pistachio Cream
600ml whipping cream
60g pistachio creme

Method

Begin by heating your oven to 170C (150C fan)/340F/gas 3½. Line three baking trays with baking paper. Trace around an 18cm plate, mark a circle on the parchment. Turn the paper upside down so the drawn lines don't come into contact the meringue.

In a food processor the 150g pistachios, icing sugar, cornflour, and salt until largely ground – some larger bits of pistachio are perfectly acceptable.

In a large bowl and mix initially until frothy. Turn up to medium-high and continue to whisk until you have soft peaks. While still beating, gradually add the caster sugar until the meringue is thick, stiff, and glossy.

Gently fold the ground nut mix into the meringue, ensuring not to knock out the air. Spoon the meringue into a large piping bag and trim about 2.5cm from the tip.

Pipe from the outside of each drawn circle, fill the circle with meringue onto each tray. Even it out using a palette knife. Place in the oven until the meringues are gently colored and are set to the touch. They should release easily when cool. Allow to cool fully on the trays.

In the meantime, combine the compote ingredients. Add the frozen cherries, lemon juice, and sugar in a pot and warm over low heat until the cherries begin to release juice. Bring to a boil and cook for five or six minutes until the cherries are tender. Transfer the fruit to a bowl, leaving the juices in the pan. Boil the juices until it has halved in volume, then pour it over the cherries. Allow to reach room temperature.

To make the filling, combine the whipping cream and pistachio creme in a bowl until it holds soft peaks.

For construction, even out the discs of each meringue disc with a gentle sawing motion, following the original circle. Set the first layer on a cake stand and cover with a some of the whipped cream. Create a slight well (about 10cm-12cm wide) in the center and place some of the cherries (this contains the compote from running). Top with the next meringue layer and repeat with more cream and cherries, reserving a few cherries for the top decoration.

Set the top layer and mask the cake with the remaining cream, spreading it with a offset spatula. Press the chopped pistachios onto the vertical surface.

Put the remaining filling into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle and add decorative dollops on top. Garnish with the saved cherries and chill until ready to serve.