Frozen Meringue & Strawberry Cake

In a bowl blend together the egg whites and caster sugar until small bubbles begin to appear in the mixture.

Then add the icing sugar and mix for a further 2 minutes.

When the meringue is forming soft peaks place into a piping bag.

Choose a serving plate roughly the size of a large dinner plate (28cm).

Lay out three sheets of baking paper. Working with one at a time place each sheet of baking paper over your serving plate.

Beginning from the outside of the circle, pipe the mixture around and around until you reach the centre making a large circle.

Make three of these and bake in oven at 120°C for 40 minutes.

Turn the oven off and leave overnight.

Whip the cream with the caster sugar until soft peaks are formed and then fold through the pureed strawberries to combine. If the mixture is too runny, then whip the cream mixture with a hand whisk until if comes to a firmer consistency.

Place the whipped strawberry cream into a piping bag.

Layer up the cake beginning with a meringue layer, a layer of cream (piped from the piping bag in a circle starting from the outside in). Keep building up the layers finishing with a layer of strawberry cream.

If freezing, wrap the layered cake with two layers of glad wrap. Place in the freezer until needed. This can be done way ahead of time to save time on Christmas Day.

Bring out of the freezer a couple of hours before serving and allow to come to room temperature.

Whip between 300ml and 500ml of cream depending no how much cream your family likes until the whipped cream is firm.

Decorate the top of cake with quenelles of whipped cream (tip: to make the quenelles use a spoon in hot water to scoop out quenelles of whipped cream and decorate the top of the cake). Add the chopped strawberries or other berries on top and serve.

Tip: To make the cake look really festive decorate the serving plate with a wreath of fresh mint.

Prepare a glass of hot water and place a dry towel next to it. It's crucial that the water is hot to make the best quenelles.

Take an oval-shaped spoon and place it in the glass of water.

Pull your spoon out of the water, tap it dry on the towel, and start carving into your ice cream, whipped cream, etc. You want to make sure to tap off all the excess water so it doesn't change the consistency of what you are quenelling.

With the spoon angled, carve the spoon directly up towards the edge of the bowl or container. This motion will create the oval quenelle shape that you want.

Repeat this carving motion as many times as necessary until you form the quenelle. If you find that the quenelle has air bubbles on the surface, you can drop it at any time. Just wash your spoon in your water, pat it dry, and pick up where you left off.

Once you have your desired shape, drag the edge of the quenelle across the lip of the container to make a smooth finish on the side. Then, just drop the quenelle gently on your plate!