Pavlova with Julie
Pavlova has always been a dessert of mystery in my house. I don’t remember ever having it as a child but I do remember my Mom always saying “I really want to learn how to make Pavlova”. From that moment, I had this misconception that it was the hardest dessert to make. If my Mom couldn’t do it, nobody could, it was impossible. You had to have a really good oven, a good eye with meringue and super delicate hands. My misconception was debunked last weekend. I had the honour to learn how to make Pavlova from one of the most dedicated bakers in town, if I do say so myself, Ian’s Mom, Julie.
Making meringue is a meticulous task, but the process wasn’t as overwhelming as my years of anticipation had created in my mind. The most important ingredient is patience, as long as you and your guests have that, anyone can make Pavlova. Julie worked with such ease, her Pavlovas were the talk of the town in Victoria, and from what I had heard she would sell them often. I could definitely see why.
In my younger years I remember making lots of meringues with my Mom. Her common dinner party dessert was Quindim, an egg yolk custard cake with coconut, very popular in Brazil. This would result in a lot of egg whites which the kids in the house would turn into meringue for days. After so many weekends making meringues, I did wonder why my Mom feared Pavlovas so much, but now I understand. Heat control is key, making sure the meringue is dry enough without it getting burnt is hard to tell since it rarely gives any signs. You can’t keep opening the door to check or the temperature of the oven would go down too fast and you would get many cracks, you can’t poke it like a cake either since it's so delicate. Visual queues are the way to go, when you see a few golden brown tones, the second waiting game begins, the cool off stage.
Here are a few takeaways I got from Julie:
Add cornstarch and vinegar to help it stabilize and not collapse, this explains the height of the final product.
Add 1 tablespoon of sugar at a time at the beginning so the sugar dissolves, then you can dump the rest.
Get Berry sugar or the finest you can find.
You can add different fruits but a mix of berries is the best (I agree).
When placing the fruit on top, let it fall. It is more visually pleasing.
Pavlovas don’t leave much else to be desired, they are ones of the best desserts in my opinion. Crunchy and airy, smooth and light and a zap of tangy fruit. The perfect dessert for a summer day, or a day you wish it was summer. I look forward to my next pavlova attempt to see if I can get similar results.
I won’t add Julie’s recipe just yet as she has a blog in the works we took pictures for last weekend. I will make sure to share the link once it's out. We are all in for a treat, figuratively and literally!.
Thank you Julie for having me over and sharing your recipe, I’m excited to see what we can bake next.
Have you made Pavlova before? How did it go?
Thank you for your kind words Luisa! You are welcome to come bake with me anytime. Let’s try pavlova in the summer with peaches and blackberries.
I can confirm, it was very very good!!