Pavlova
Pavlova is an Australian dessert named after ballerina Anna Pavlova — a crisp meringue shell with a marshmallow-like center, topped with whipped cream and fresh berries.
Ingredients
- 4 egg whites
- 140 ggranulated sugar
- 1 tsplemon juice
- 0.5 tspcornstarch
- 200 mlheavy cream
- 50 gpowdered sugar
- 1 tspvanilla extract
- 250 gfresh berries
- mint for decoration
Method
- Preheat the oven to 120°C. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Whisk egg whites until frothy. Gradually add granulated sugar, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form. Add lemon juice and cornstarch and mix gently.
- Spread the meringue onto the tray in a round about 20 cm across, with a shallow well in the centre for the cream. Bake for 90 minutes, until the shell is dry and crisp and lifts off the paper cleanly. Turn off the oven and leave the meringue inside with the door closed until completely cool, 1–2 hours.
- For the cream: whisk cold cream with powdered sugar and vanilla to stiff peaks.
- Transfer the cooled meringue to a serving plate. Gently spread the cream over it and decorate with fresh berries and mint. Serve immediately.
FAQ
Some cracking is normal and expected — it's part of the pavlova's rustic charm. Major collapse usually means the oven was too hot or the meringue was opened too soon. Always let the pavlova cool completely inside the closed oven (1–2 hours or overnight) — a sudden temperature change causes it to sink. Also avoid baking on a humid day: moisture weakens meringue.
Humidity is usually the culprit — meringue absorbs moisture from the air. Bake on a dry day if possible. The inside of pavlova is intentionally soft and marshmallow-like, but the outside crust should be dry. If the entire meringue is sticky, it was under-baked or pulled from the oven while still warm. Make sure it dries completely in the closed oven after baking.
Any tart fruit works well: kiwi, sliced strawberries, raspberries, mango, or a mix of fresh berries. The key is balance — you want something acidic to cut through the sweetness of the meringue and cream. A squeeze of lemon juice stirred into the whipped cream also helps. Orange segments or pomegranate seeds add beautiful color.
The meringue base can be baked up to 2 days ahead and kept at room temperature in an airtight container in a dry place — it must stay dry. Add the cream and fruit just before serving, as the cream softens the crust quickly. Once the pavlova is topped with cream, it no longer belongs on the counter: cover any leftovers, refrigerate them and eat them the next day. The shell will soften in the fridge, but the cream stays safe.
Cream that is not cold enough won't hold its shape. Use cream straight from the fridge, and chill the bowl and beaters too. Don't over-whip — stop at soft-to-medium peaks. Adding a tablespoon of icing sugar and a teaspoon of cornstarch helps stabilize the cream. Also add cream just before serving — it will soften over time even when properly whipped.
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Comments (1)
Ingredient temperature matters enormously for pavlova. Unless the recipe says otherwise, everything should be at room temperature. Cold egg whites doesn't cream properly, and the texture suffers throughout.