Meringue Nests

Cup of Yum
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat mat.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt on high speed until frothy.
3. Add in the vanilla then continue to whisk on high speed.
4. Slowly add in the sugar with the mixer running until very stiff peaks form.
5. Using a rubber spatula, gently scoop the meringue into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip.
6. Pipe a disk of meringue into a 4 inch circle. Pipe another layer around the edge to form the sides of the shells.
7. Bake the meringues on the middle rack of the oven for about 2 hours or until they are dry and crisp, but not browned.
8. Turn the oven off and let them cool completely in the oven, 2 hours to overnight.
9. Store in a dry airtight container until you are ready to serve.

Cream Filling

1. Beat all of the cream filling ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment on high speed.
2. Beat until soft peaks form, about 2-3 minutes.

Berries

1. Toss the berries with the teaspoon of sugar in a bowl and let them macerate for at least 15 minutes.

Assembling

1. Divide the cream filling between 4 meringue nests filling them with a spoon or piping the cream in with a pastry bag fitted with a large tip.
2. Top the cream with the berries and finish with dark chocolate shavings if desired.
3. Serve immediately.