Tête de nègre

Tête de nègre is a meringue-based ball-shaped dessert flavoured with chocolate.  It is made by sandwiching together two meringues with a filling of chocolate butter cream.  The meringues are covered in whipped cream and sprinkled with chocolate.

Preparation Time: 30 Mins

Cooking Time: 4 Hrs

Total Time: 5 Hrs

Ingredients

For 4 servings…

8                    Meringues  

For the chocolate butter cream

75 gms            Butter       

270 gms          Chocolate  - dark - 70% cocoa 

1 tbs               Cocoa powder         

1 pinch            Salt          

125 gms          Sugar  - icing          

½ tsp             Vanilla essence        

For the meringues

10 cl               Cream  - double, beaten until stiff          

2                    Egg whites

1 tsp               Sugar  - Demerara    

230 gms          Sugar  - caster        

To sprinkle on the top

2 tbs               Chocolate  - grated   

Method

To make the chocolate butter cream…

Gently melt the chocolate in a heavy saucepan.  Once smooth, allow the chocolate to cool.

Beat together the sugar, cocoa powder and the butter, which will need to be a room temperature, until well blended.  Add the salt, vanilla essence and cooled melted chocolate and beat for 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

Use at room temperature.

To make the meringues…

Beat the egg whites until stiff and then beat in one tablespoon of the caster sugar until the mixture is smooth.  Fold in the remaining sugar.

Using a spoon, divide the mixture into dollops on parchment paper on baking trays.  Sprinkle a little demerara sugar on to each meringue.

Bake at 110°C for 4 hours.

To finish the dish…

Make four meringue “sandwiches” with chocolate butter cream filling.  Cover each with whipped cream and sprinkle with grated chocolate.

Wine recommendations

Conventional

     Pineau des Charentes rosé

Interesting

     Barsac

     Jurançon doux

     Monbazillac

     Vouvray doux

Special

     Floc de Gascogne rouge