Raspberry Pavlova

July already? When did that happen? I swear the days are going by twice as fast since I've returned home from vacation.

The Secret Recipe Club blogger I was assigned to this month is Searching for Spice, which is written by Corina. Her blog covers just about every type of cuisine out there; Indian, Mexican, Greek, Italian, Chinese... I'm sure if you chose a cuisine a week to make from Searching for Spice it'd be just like taking a culinary tour of the world.

I'm not even sure where I first heard of a pavlova. I'm guessing it was on Food Network or the Cooking Channel because I don't know anyone (in person) other than myself who is willing to attempt a meringue. Personally, I don't find them all that difficult, but to each their own.

If you aren't aware, a pavlova is meringue crust topped with whipped cream and fruits. Google seems to be unsure of actual origin but confirms that the dessert became popular after the ballet dancer Anna Pavlova began touring the world.

While you could use just about any fruit, it seems as though strawberries and kiwis are the most popular. I debated on using strawberries, but the raspberries looked delicious at the store and I couldn't pass them up.

Raspberry Pavlova
Source: Searching for Spice
Servings: 8 slices
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Ingredients:

3 egg whites

¾ cup caster sugar*

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

7 oz. heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoon powdered sugar

14 oz. raspberries

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 teaspoon sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. On a piece of parchment paper trace a 9-inch circle. (I used a pie plate)
3. Add the egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium-high speed until the egg whites turn opaque. Slowly start adding in the sugar until fully combined and the egg whites hold soft peaks. The mixture will just start to turn glossy. Add in the cornflour/vinegar mixture. This should take between 6-8 minutes total.
4. Place the parchment paper on a large baking sheet. Spoon the meringue into the circle, creating a slight indent in the center to add the cream and berries.
5. Place in the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 285. Bake for 45 minutes, then turn the oven off and allow the meringue to cool for at least 1 hour.
6. Once the meringue has cooled, add the heavy whipping cream to the bowl of your stand mixer and beat until you reach the consistency of whipped cream, 7-9 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, combine the raspberries with the lemon zest and sugar in a medium bowl.
8. Spoon the whipped cream in the center of the meringue and then spoon the raspberries on top. Slice and serve immediately.

*If you cannot find caster sugar, you can add granulated sugar to a food processor and pulse until it's fine.