Berry and Prosecco Roulade | Recipe

Serves: 8 | Takes 50 minutes + soaking time

A roulade for dessert on Christmas day has always been a tradition in our family throughout my teenage years. I hope my mum doesn’t mind me saying it, but she never actually made it; we always bought one from the farm shop when we went to collect the turkey! Not only is  my re-creation a boozy berry version, but I can also actually eat this one – a roulade isn’t always gluten-free, so do always be careful if buying a shop-bought one like we used to.

Ingredients

• 150g berries (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries), defrosted if frozen
• 120ml (½ cup) prosecco, plus an extra
• 2 tbsp for the cream

For the meringue

• 4 large egg whites
• 225g (2 cups plus 2 tbsp) caster (superfine) sugar
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)
• 50g (½ cup) ground almonds
• 45g flaked almonds

For the filling

• 300ml (1¼ cups) double (heavy) cream
• 50g (6 tbsp) icing (confectioners’) sugar, plus extra to finish
• 3 tbsp prosecco
• Freezable: Once decorated, slice and freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Method

Place the berries in a small bowl and add the prosecco, then leave to soak for 2–3 hours or overnight – the longer you leave them, the stronger the prosecco flavour will be.

Preheat the oven to 170°C fan / 190°C. Line a Swiss roll tin (pan), 33 x 23cm, with non-stick baking parchment.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk the egg whites to fairly stiff peaks, then gradually add the sugar while still whisking – I prefer to use an electric hand mixer for this. It should become thick and glossy. next, fold through the vinegar, cornflour and ground almonds, using a silicone spatula, before carefully spooning it into the prepared tin. Spread into an even layer, then sprinkle the flaked almonds evenly over the top.

Bake for 25–30 minutes until golden, risen and fairly firm to the touch. remove from the oven and invert the meringue onto another sheet of non-stick baking parchment. Leave to cool for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the filling. In a large mixing bowl, whip the cream with the icing sugar and gradually add the prosecco – again, I use an electric hand mixer for this. Whip until thick but try not to over-whip.

Drain the berries (be sure to enjoy the prosecco they were soaking in!) and chop any larger ones, then fold two-thirds of the berries through the whipped cream, using a silicone spatula.

Spread a layer of the whipped cream onto the meringue and then roll the meringue up carefully from a short side, using the baking parchment beneath to help you. It will crack as you go; this is normal and exactly what you want to happen!

Decorate with a dusting of icing sugar and the remaining berries.

Tip: You can make this without the prosecco; just omit from the cream  and berries to create a berry roulade.