Pavlova with Raspberry Coulis

 A couple of years ago, when I made my very first pavlova, I was thrilled that it came out perfect.  Except - the colour of the pav was a light tan.  Though my guests were absolutely thrilled with it, I was disappointed with myself and tried again, following the recipe very carefully.  This time too, the result was the same.  The pav was crisp and fluffy on the inside but the colour was tanned.  I joked to my friends and called it the Indian Pav due to the tan.

At one of my cousin's party I was jokingly telling this story when one of our friends who is a pâtissier advised me to lower the oven temperature right down to 90 degrees.

I was keen to try it out - and at the first opportunity I decided to make this wreath Pav for our X'mas lunch at home. The day was humid and I was sweating even as I was beating up the egg whites.

I turned the temperature right down and cooked the pav at 90 deg C - and viola! the colour was right - but due to the humidity, the pav was very close to collapsing. I quickly dressed it up and served it before it turned into a disaster.

Update:  I managed to crack the "white" ceiling - got a snowy white pavlova.  But the humidity decided to spoil the day and my pav cracked.  But I am not going to let anything spoil my happiness!

Thank you chef Freddy Money for the tip! 

To make the Pav shell: 

Ingredients:

·         6 egg whites (65g eggs), at room temperature

·         250g (1 cup) castor sugar

·         1 tsp vanilla extract

·         2 tsp white vinegar

·         1 level tbsp cornflour

For dressing the Pav:

·         250ml (1 cup) thick cream

·         1 tbsp icing sugar for dusting

·         100g natural yoghurt

·         mixed berries, to serve

·         mint leaves, to serve

Method:

1.    Line a baking tray with baking paper and draw a 23cm diameter circle in the centre. Draw a smaller circle within the large circle. Heat oven to 100 degrees C. 

2.    Using an electric beater, beat egg whites in a clean, dry glass or metal bowl at medium speed until firm peaks form on top. 

3. Add the caster sugar one tablespoon at a time, beating for at least 30 seconds after each addition.             Beat until the meringue is stiff, shiny and no longer grainy. Beat in the vanilla extract and vinegar.         Sift the cornflour over the top and beat until mixed well.

       Spoon the meringue mixture onto the tray, using the circles as a guide. Using a spatula knife, draw the mixture from the bottom up the sides to shape into a round wreath.

4.    Place in the lower rack of the oven and immediately reduce temperature to 90 degrees C. Bake for 1 hour and 40 minutes or until crisp outside (but not coloured), then turn off oven and leave to cool completely.  As you can see here, the baked pav has absorbed moisture and caused the sugar to melt.  The colour however, is pure white and I am happy that it worked out okay!

To assemble the Pav:

1.    Using an electric beater, beat the cream with the icing sugar to firm peaks. Beat in the yoghurt until well combined. Refrigerate until needed.

2.    To serve, gently top the cooled pavlova with large spoonfuls of the cream (if the meringue cracks, glue together with cream mixture). Spoon the berries and the raspberry coulis on top of the pavlova, scatter with mint leaves and dust with extra icing sugar. 

Note:

•   Do not open the oven door during baking, or the pavlova will collapse.
• Egg whites should be fresh and at room temperature. Beat them until they form firm upright peaks before adding the sugar.
•  Add the sugar a spoonful at a time and beat until the meringue no longer feels grainy when you rub a little between thumb and forefinger
• Vinegar helps to stabilise the egg whites, and cornflour helps prevent the meringue from weeping.
• You might find that your over temperatures are slightly different and you might need to adjust accordingly.

Raspberry Coulis

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen raspberries

1/4 cup sugar

juice of half a lime

Method:

• In a medium saucepan, combine the raspberries, sugar and lime juice.
• Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, simmer for 3-5 minutes.
• Set aside to cool.
• Strain through a muslin cloth to remove raspberry seeds.
• Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator until you need it.