Australian recipe
How to make Pavlova
Australia or New Zealand, early 20th century
A large round of baked meringue, crisp outside and soft like marshmallow inside, topped with whipped cream and fresh fruit such as strawberries, kiwi fruit and passionfruit. It is a favourite summer dessert, especially at Christmas.
Ingredients
- 4 egg whites, at room temperature
- 220 g caster (superfine) sugar
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 300 ml cream for whipping
- Fresh fruit: strawberries, kiwi fruit, banana and the pulp of 2 passionfruit
Method
- Heat the oven to 150 °C. Draw a 20 cm circle on baking paper and put it upside down on a tray.
- Beat the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until soft peaks form. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time, beating well after each, until the meringue is thick and glossy and the sugar has dissolved.
- Gently fold in the vinegar, cornflour and vanilla. Spread the meringue inside the circle, making the sides a little higher than the middle.
- Put it in the oven, lower the heat to 120 °C and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes. Turn the oven off and let the pavlova cool completely inside with the door slightly open, about 1 hour.
- Just before serving, whip the cream, spread it on top and cover with fruit and passionfruit pulp.
Made it at home? Tick it off and it goes into your kitchen passport.
It was named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, who toured Australia and New Zealand in the 1920s. Both countries claim to have invented it, and food historians still disagree.
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