Categories: Desserts
Ingredients
- Mixed Berry Pavlova
- Inspiration from Ina Garten, meringue directions adapted from Joy of Baking and Shuna, and raspberry sauce of my own creation
- Meringue Cake
- 4 large (120 grams) egg whites
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup (200 grams) superfine (castor) or regular sugar
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch, potato starch or arrowroot powder
- Preheat oven to 250°F (130°C) and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and draw a 7 inch (18 cm) circle on the paper.
- Pour the vanilla and vinegar into a small cup. Stir the cornstarch into the sugar in a small bowl.
- In a large bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, fitted with whisk attachment, whip egg whites and salt, starting on low, increasing incrementally to medium speed until soft peaks/trails start to become visible, and the egg white bubbles are very small and uniform,
- Increase speed to medium-high, slowly and gradually sprinkling in the sugar-cornstarch mixture. A few minutes after these dry ingredients are added, slowly pour in the vanilla and vinegar (if you didn’t use cream of tartar.) Increase speed a bit and whip
- Gently spread the meringue inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges, making sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher than the center. (You want a slight well in the center of the meringue to place the whipped cream and
- Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the outside is dry and takes on a very pale cream color. Check on meringues at least once during the baking time. If they appear to be taking on color or cracking, reduce temperature 25 degrees, and turn pan around. Tur
- Jaworski notes: You can make the meringue cake several days in advance. Just store in a cool dry place, in an airtight container. However, once the whipped cream and fruit are placed on the meringue, the dessert should be eaten immediately as the meringue
- Raspberry Sauce
- This is as good for desserts as it is over plain yogurt. Keep it refrigerated.
- 1 10-ounce bag frozen raspberries, thawed
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- Puree the raspberries in a food processor, blender or immersion blender. Press the puree through a fine-mesh strainer with the back of a spoon, removing the seeds. Heat the puree in a small pot with three tablespoons of sugar, until it is heated through a
- 99 percent of the time, I find the consistency of this sauce to be perfect, as is. If you like your thicker, add between one-half and one full teaspoon of cornstarch, potato starch or arrowroot powder to thicken it, stirring to make sure it’s fully dissolved
- Cool the sauce.
- Whipped Cream
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon granulated white sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Whip the cream in the clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. When it starts to thicken, add the sugar gradually and then the vanilla, beating the cream until firm. Be careful not to over-do it, or might end up with a bowl of homem
- Mixed Berry Topping
- 1/2 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
- 1/2 pint fresh blueberries
- 1/2 pint fresh raspberries
- Mix these with 1/2 cup of the raspberry sauce (recipe above).
- Pavlova Assembly
- When the meringue disk is cooled, put it on a plate. Spread the top completely with the sweetened whipped cream. Add the mixed berries and sauce mixture, spooning them carefully into the middle of the pavlova, leaving a border of cream and meringue. Serve