Indulge in these delicious snacks and desserts…

Mulled Winter Fruits With Meringue

By Struan Macintyre from Alexander’s Bar

and Kitchen, alexanders-skipton.com

Serves 4 | Prep 30 mins | Cook 3 hours

INGREDIENTS

For the mulled liquor

• 350ml (11¾floz) full bodied vegan red wine

• 150ml (5floz) vegan ruby port

• 150g (5¼oz) light brown soft sugar

• juice and peel from 1 orange

• 2 star anise

• 3 cloves

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 5 black peppercorns

The fruit

• 4 plums, firm but not bitter or hard

• 2 apples (Cox or Lancashire Russet)

• 2 large pears

• 4 figs, preserved or fresh

• 12 blackberries

• small bunch of redcurrants to garnish

For the meringue

• 80ml (2¾oz) aquafaba (juice from a tin of unsalted chickpeas)

• 50g (1¾oz) sugar

• 1 tsp white wine vinegar

• grated zest of one lime

• grated zest of one lemon

For the vanilla and soya yoghurt

• 250ml (8½floz) soya yoghurt

• 1 small tsp of vanilla paste or vanilla pod

• 35g (1¼oz) icing sugar

METHOD

1 Set the oven to 100°C/Gas Mark ½.

2 Take the liquid from the chickpeas and whisk with an electric whisk or in a mixer until it resembles fluffy egg whites in soft peaks. Still whisking, slowly add the sugar until incorporated and the mixture is silky and glossy. Spread thinly on to a baking sheet with parchment paper, sprinkle the citrus zest over and bake until dry and crisp. This can be done the night before as the meringue is better when dried out slowly for a long period of time.