COOL WHIPS
At once cake and pie, the baked meringue pavlova is easy, stunning and delicious
It’s a dessert that is the culinary definition of something being greater than the sum of its parts. A joyously simple froth of egg whites and sugar, it makes a stupendous show — elegant but humble, ridiculously easy but thrillingly theatrical, refined but giddy fun.
We’re talking, of course, about the pavlova, a baked meringue “cake” that is topped with whipped cream and fruit that can turn even the most jaded sweet-toother into a fawning dessert fan.
Maybe that’s because it hits so many notes in one bite. It’s crispy yet volup-
tuous, airy yet indulgently fulfilling, sweet yet fresh-fruit virtuous, cake yet pie.
So why hasn’t the pavlova been part of my dessert repertoire for years? Well, my aversion to meringue pies had something to do with it. Meringue was never my thing — that airy indecisiveness, that unstable pile of eggy foam.
But with time on my hands during the pandemic, I found myself testing more recipes, including foods that I have avoided or considered a fuss. An Instagram photo of a ravishing pavlova hooked me. It was time to get right with meringue.
After baking my first pavlova, I quickly discerned that this meringue disk or cake was not the same meringue lather that sits atop lemon or coconut cream pies. The rich, stiff meringue for a pavlova is baked low-and-slow until it becomes a solid “cake” that is crisp and crunchy while still retaining some degree of interior chew. Thanks to cornstarch and a bit of vinegar that act as stabilizers, the meringue holds its shape and retains volume while also achieving crispness. Before baking, the meringue is spread onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or nonstick mat. Most meringues are freeform circles, about an inch or two high, that resemble clouds. But the meringue can take any shape — oval, for example — or mini cumuli for individual desserts.
After a long bake, the meringue is left to cool slowly in the oven. When fully cooled, it can be topped with whipped cream and/or lemon curd and any combination of fresh fruit. Cut it like a pie and serve in pretty wedges.
The pavlova is named for the Russian prima ballerina Anna Matveyevna Pavlova, who founded her own ballet company that was the first to tour ballet around the world. Those tours brought her to Australia and New Zealand in 1926, an occasion that, as the story goes, prompted an Australian pastry chef to create the dessert that now bears her name. I have come to learn that both Australia and New Zealand lay claim to the invention of the pavlova. The history is complicated.
The dessert is not. After testing three different palova recipes — all with good results — I can now say without equivocation that the pavlova is solidly in my dessert repertoire. And given summer’s bounty of fresh fruit and berries, a perfect seasonal sweet.
I turned to two local accomplished bakers, who also sing pavlova praises, for validation.
Cathi Walsh, a retired Houston psychiatrist, is a pavlova enthusiast who said she’s probably made five over the past five months. “It’s always for someone’s birthday or some special occasion,” she said. “They look spectacular, and they’re very easy to make. You can put whatever you want on top of them.”
Walsh recently topped a pavlova with cherry ice cream and cherries in syrup. Her next one, she said, will be a banana split pavlova. All I could say was wow — why didn’t I think of that?
Dragana Harris, a skilled self-taught baker, said she loves making pavlovas because they are her father’s favorite dessert. She enjoys topping her meringue with lemon curd and fruit.
“It’s pretty no matter what you do,” she said. “You can make it as thin or thick as you like. In any shape. And then build it up with custard, curd, whipped cream and lots of fresh fruit.”
Once you learn the meringue technique, the world of pavlovas is your oyster, Harris said. “It’s a lot easier than people think. Go ahead and try it. It’ll be stunning. Put it on a pedestal.”
While talking to Harris, I got knocked off mine. My basking in pavlova triumph was shortlived after Harris directed me to the Instagram photos of Zoe
Francois, of zoebakes.com, whose meringue desserts are the Fabergés of pavlovas. Beyond gorgeous and terribly accomplished.
I grit my teeth and licked my lips and realized my pavlova journey was only just beginning.