Strawberry and rose meringue nests

Serves 6

For the crystallised rose petals, you will need:

• About 18 rose petals • 1 egg white • About 50g caster sugar

To make the meringue, you will need:

• 4 large egg whites • 225g caster sugar • 1 teaspoon cornflour

For the topping, you will need:

• 400g small strawberries • 2-4 tablespoons rose water • 200ml cream, whipped • Seeds from half a vanilla pod, see my Top Tip, left • 20g icing sugar 1 Start by making the crystallised rose petals, as these will need a few hours to dry. Using a small paint brush, gently brush both sides of each rose petal with egg white, then sprinkle each one with the caster sugar. Put the sugar-coated rose petals on a tray lined with baking paper, and leave them somewhere warm — such as a sunny window — to dry out for a few hours, until they are crisp. You can do these up to a week in advance, if you like, and keep them stored in an airtight box. 2 Preheat the oven to 150°C, 300°F, Gas 2, and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Draw six circles, with a diameter of 10cm, on the underside of the paper. 3 To make the meringue, put the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer, or into a large mixing bowl, and use an electric hand whisk. Whisk the egg whites until they start to form soft peaks. Add a spoonful of the caster sugar and whisk until it is well combined. Continue in this way, adding a spoonful of caster sugar at a time and whisking it in, until all the caster sugar has been added. Fold in the sifted cornflour. 4 Spoon the meringue mixture evenly into the circles you drew on the baking paper and spread it out to the edges. Make sure the nests are a little higher around the edge than in the middle. Pop the tray in the preheated oven, then immediately turn the oven down to 120°C, 245°C, Gas ½, and cook for 1 hour. Turn the oven off and leave the meringues to cool in the oven until the oven is completely cold. 5 While the meringues are cooking, prepare the topping. Hull the strawberries, then halve them and put them in a bowl. Drizzle over the rose water to taste, and toss to coat the strawberries well. Leave them to macerate for a couple of hours while the meringues cook and cool, to imbue the strawberries with a delicate rose flavour. 6 Put the whipped cream and the vanilla seeds in a bowl and whisk until the mixture is thickened, then gently stir in the icing sugar. You can do this a little in advance and store it in the fridge until needed. 7 To assemble, spoon the strawberries evenly into the dip in the centre of each of the meringue nests, drizzling any excess rose water over too so that it seeps into the meringue and flavours it. Top the strawberries with a spoonful of the cream, then sprinkle the crystallised rose petals over the top and serve immediately.