Mini Pavlovas with Vanilla Cream and Fresh Fruit
Meringue nests, crisp outside and soft as marshmallow inside, crowned with whipped cream and fresh fruit. An elegant dessert, naturally gluten free, that adapts to any season of the year.
The secret is the temperature, not the time: 100 °C, the lowest setting, for 45 minutes. A pavlova is not baked, it is dried. At a higher temperature the meringue browns, cracks and loses exactly the soft centre that makes it what it is.
And it is topped only just before serving: cream and fruit give off moisture, and a meringue prepared in advance goes soft within half an hour.
Ingredients
- 3 egg whites
- 200 g white sugar
- 200 ml pouring cream
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 50 g powdered sugar (icing sugar), or caster sugar
- 200 g seasonal fruit (mandarins, kiwis, mango, etc.)
Method
- 1
Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks with an electric mixer. Once they have doubled in volume, rain in the sugar and carry on whipping until the crystals dissolve and the meringue looks glossy and firm. It should no longer feel grainy between your fingers.
- 2
With a spoon, shape 'nests' of about 6-8 cm across on a tray lined with buttered baking paper or a silicone mat, leaving a hollow in the centre for the filling.
- 3
Cook in an oven preheated to its lowest setting (100 °C) for 45 minutes. It is vital not to rush this, so they do not brown.
- 4
For the topping: whip the cold cream together with the vanilla extract and the icing sugar to firm chantilly stage.
- 5
Assemble by putting a generous spoonful of cream in the centre of each cooled pavlova and decorating with the fruit, washed and cut into fine slices.