Name: Berries on a Cloud
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 6 oz. cream cheese, softened; 3 egg whites; 1/3 cup white chocolate chips; 1 cup sugar; 2 6-oz. packages fresh raspberries; 1/2 tsp vanilla; 1/4 tsp cream of tartar; 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream; 1 Tbsp powdered sugar; 1/2 cup sour cream; 1 Tbsp sugar; 1/2 tsp vanilla; 1/2 cup chocolate chips; 1/4 cup raspberry jelly

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Berries on a cloud is the perfect dessert for so many occasions, especially Valentine’s Day. It looks so fancy and has a unique combination of flavors, from light, airy meringue to bursts of both white and dark chocolate amid a cloud of creaminess and the tartness of raspberries.

The elegance and presentation of this dessert make it look like you spent all day in the kitchen. But in fact you can whip it together rather quickly.

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To summarize the steps for Berries on a Cloud: You’ll first make a meringue (pronounced MA-RANG) shell. Meringue is made with whipped egg whites and has a unique soft yet crunchy and light as air texture. Then you’ll add a layer of a cream cheese-whipped cream mixture. Next comes a drizzle of chocolate, then the berries, and last, a drizzle of raspberry jelly.

Meringue Shells: First Step in Berries on a Cloud

Meringue shells can be slightly tricky, so follow these directions to a T for best results! Don’t worry, though. Even beginning bakers will have great success by carefully following each step.

Before you separate the eggs, take out your 6 oz of cream cheese so it can get soft for the filling step.

Separate Eggs

Separate eggs for the meringue shells by using three bowls: One bowl is your mixing bowl (make sure the bowl is clean with no fat residue in it), the second bowl is for egg separating, and the third is for storing the yolks or (hopefully not) mistakes.

Crack the egg over the separating bowl and transfer the contents back and forth between the two halves of the egg shell, letting ONLY the egg white fall into the bowl. If ANY yolk gets in with the white or if the yolk breaks, pour it all into your storage bowl to make scrambled eggs later. Then start again with a clean separating bowl.

When you have successfully separated an egg white from a yolk, dump the good egg white into your mixing bowl and the yolk into your storage bowl. The extra bowl prevents mistakes (egg yolk in the white) that affect all the egg whites in the mixing bowl.

Let egg whites sit for 30 minutes to come to room temperature.

Preparation to Do during the 30-Minute Wait

Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil. Draw eight 3-inch circles on the paper. A wide-mouth jar lid works great as a template.

Measure 1/3 cup white chocolate chips and dice into small pieces using a butcher knife.

Measure 1 cup sugar and run it through a sifter if necessary to get rid of any chunks. Set aside.

Rinse your raspberries so they can be dry by the time you place them on the shells.

Locate your vanilla and cream of tartar. You’ll need 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar when you are ready to beat the egg whites.

Beating the Egg Whites

Beating egg whites can be tricky as well. Start with a clean mixing bowl, clean wire beaters, and clean utensils. If anything might have fat residue on it, rinse with vinegar and then with water.

Add the vanilla and cream of tartar to the egg whites.

DO NOT ADD SUGAR YET!

Mix on MEDIUM SPEED until eggs whites are frothy, and then a little longer until you get soft peaks. That means when you pull a spoon out of the mix, the tips curl like an ocean wave.

Now you can add your sugar. And you can increase your mixing speed to high. Add sugar one tablespoon at a time. Soon the egg whites will get glossy and to the stage called stiff peaks. When you lift a spoon or the beaters out of the mix, the egg whites stand straight up. Now we can call this meringue!

Add sugar to egg whites beaten to soft peaks.

Spoon the meringue evenly onto the 8 circles you drew. Form each one into a circle with a slight indentation in the middle. Sprinkle the cut-up white chocolate chips on top of each shell.

Baking the Meringue Shells

Usually the baking step isn’t all that tricky. But with meringue shells, one part of the baking is very important. After you have baked the shells for 30 minutes,

DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN!

Instead, turn off the oven and let the shells sit inside the unopened oven for at least an hour.

Baked shells:

shells for berries on a cloud after they have come out of the oven

Filling for Berries on a Cloud

Whip 1/2 cup whipping cream in clean mixing bowl. When it gets stiff peaks, add 1 tablespoon powdered sugar. Set aside.

Next, mix your 6 oz. softened cream cheese, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Fold in your whipped cream. Place a dollop on each meringue shell and flatten it out a bit.

Refrigerate the shells for 1 hour.

shells with creamy layer on top for berries on a cloud

Use a double boiler (two pans the same size; the one on the bottom has water that you bring to a boil; the one on top has the chocolate) to melt the 1/4 cup chocolate chips. When the chocolate is 80% melted, remove it from heat and stir to melt the rest.

Drizzle chocolate on top of each meringue shell.

chocolate drizzled on top of shells for berries on a cloud

Now add your raspberries to the shells.

In a small pan, melt 1/4 cup raspberry jelly with 2 teaspoons water. Drizzle the jelly on top.

Refrigerate until serving.

I hope you love this dessert! Let me know in the comments. And if you love fruit desserts as much as I do, next time try Strawberry Pie with an Easy Press-in-the-Plate Pie Crust.