Pavlova - the ultimate dessert
I have to confess, I don’t have a sweet tooth. At all. But this dessert made me fall in love with it forever. And if I only had to pick one dessert I could eat for the rest of my life - it would undoubtedly be Pavlova.
The origins of Pavlova are unclear. The first time I have tried this dessert was in Australia, but it is well known and loved in Azerbaijan and Russia, as well as New Zealand. One of the theories suggests that this dessert was created by an Australian pastry chef who fell in love with a Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova who was touring Australia and New Zealand in the 1920s. However, there is a similar theory existing in New Zealand. While I am not going to dive into the rabbit hole of the origins, one thing that I can tell you with certainty is that this dessert won’t leave you indifferent. Some of the memories I have of tasting Pavlova for the first time are from Sydney and Moscow. In Sydney, I have tried an amazing strawberry Pavlova at a Christmas dinner that my friend invited me to. In Australia Pavlova is often served as a Christmas dessert. When I visited Moscow for the first time, the student cafe we visited served one of the most stunning and gigantic Pavlovas I have ever seen. As I started falling in love with this dessert, eventually years later I decided to learn how to make it. Terrified by the fact that this will be something extremely complicated, I was relieved that this dessert wasn’t as time-consuming as I expected. Once I nailed it, I couldn’t stop making it, and this is why I am sharing it with you so you can start practicing and master the art of Pavlova.
Mini Pavlova with figs, pistachio, pomegranate and rose petals
Ingredients
Makes 1 big pavlova or 6 mini
Topping
300 ml cream 25%
2-3 tsp vanilla sugar
Fruits & nuts of choice for decoration (my favorite combos are pomegranate +fig + pistachio; strawberry + blueberry; raspberry + pistachio + pop candy)
Base
4 egg whites
250 gr caster sugar
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla sugar
Method
Preheat the oven to 150C
Using a mixer whisk egg whites until they turn white and foamy. Once they reach this consistency start adding sugar one tablespoon at a time until the mass becomes snow white and shiny. Beat the eggs and sugar until soft peaks (meaning the consistency should be rather thick and keep its shape when transferred to the baking tray).
Using a spatula gently mix in vanilla sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch.
If you are making a single big pavlova draw a circle of 20-30 cm in diameter on parchment paper. If making mini pavlovas, then skip this step.
To ensure that your parchment paper stays in place while you transfer the mass from the bowl to the baking tray, apply a bit of the mass to the corners of the parchment paper and “glue” the corners onto the baking tray.
If making one big Pavlova, distribute the mass within the drawn circle and make an indent in the middle. If making mini Pavlovas spoon 6 portions keeping some distance between each portion as the mass will expand with the heat.
Bake Pavlova at 150C for 60 minutes. Make sure to never open the oven while baking as the cool air with result in cracks and make your Pavlova crumble. Once your Pavlova is done (make sure that it maintains creamy white color and does not burn) leave it to cool off for another 40 to 60 minutes inside the oven. During the whole process of baking and cooling off do not open the oven to ensure that your Pavlova remains in good shape.
While the base is cooling off in the oven, prepare the topping. Whip the cream and vanilla sugar with a mixer. Chop the fruits of your choice.
Take the base out of the oven and spread the cream on top. Decorate with fruits and nuts. Your Pavlova is ready, enjoy it with a cup of tea or your favorite coffee.
Mini Pavlova without the topping
