Pavlova

Pavlova, The National Dessert - Bruce Trinque
Australia Responds
             Kerry Webb
             Ian Watkins
             Jacquie Milner
             Helen Connor
The US Replies
             Lois
             Gerry Strey
             Jan Hatwell's Nureyev
A Recipe

Pavlova, The National Dessert - Bruce Trinque
There was an article in today's newspaper about what was referred to as the "national dessert" of both Australia and New Zealand: the pavlova, a concoction with a meringue base upon which is piled whipped cream and fruit (apparently, roasted fruit, although it was not clear to me whether this was an actual requirement). It sounded very good and not terribly hard to make. I wonder how a pavlova made with stewed rhubarb would be ...

Australia Responds
Kerry Webb
I haven't heard of using roasted fruit, but if that makes you happy, go for it.
Over this way, kiwi fruit and strawberries are the usual fruits that you'd find in a classic pav, with possibly passionfruit.

Ian Watkins
I agree with Kerry's take on the 'Pav'. Should be quite tall 2 to 3 inches and the meringue soft with just a nice thin brittle crust. My favourite is just cream Napoleon [you know the one with sugar and cognac whipped through it] and strawberries, a little passion fruit pulp ... and plenty of shaved milk chocolate! Then sit back and watch the waistline grow before your eyes.

Jacquie Milner
Yes! This would be my take on it as well - the tallness, the thin brittle crust, the soft but firm mousse-like inside that should melt in the mouth, topped with generous cream and in my family it was often strawberries and/or grated chocolate (because I wasn't fond of strawberries). If it was made right it was sweet but not sickly sweet. Rhubarb would be a heavy travesty next to it's lightness of being. I find that people who dismiss pavlova as too sweet have never had a proper one. As for those mini-merengue concoctions you may see on tv or in magazines passed off as pavlovas, well, they remain mere meringues in my opinion.
My maternal grandmother was the chief pavlova maker in my family until her passing last year. My mother and I have sadly not been passed the perfect pavlova-making gene but my brother seems to have mastered the art, so I'm told. We blame our oven at home but it must be something else as well. I shall keep trying, nonetheless. It's something worth fighting for.

Helen Connor
The proper Aussie pavlova has the meringue base tall enough so that it isn't actually hard all the way through. You heap the meringue tall and deep, bake it, and when it's finished the inside, while not raw, is slightly gooey and incredibly good.
Then, cream (and only cream) is spread on top, and finally the passionfruit pulp, strawberries and/or kiwi fruit slices.
The sign of a counterfeit pavlova is a base that is hard all the way through. Rather like the ones provided by the hotel doing the catering at our Australia Day function some months ago. Buy the meringues, dump the cream on top, et voila! A poor attempt, a mere shadow, a whited sepulchre.

Pavlova Recipe & Photo - Joyofbaking.com
Pavlova recipe - Best Recipes
Pavlova recipe, traditional Australian dessert - Aussie-Info.com

The US Replies
Lois
It's an old American recipe, too......Angel Pie.
Sometimes made with a hard meringue base, on top of which is a thin lemony layer, on top of which is whipped cream. You can also make it with strawberries.
Not that hard to make, either. And usually gets rave reviews.

Gerry Strey
Very similar to a schaum torte--a meringue base topped with ice cream, fresh fruit, and whipped cream. Very simple, but as Lois says, it looks like the cook went to a lot of trouble. I seem to recall the pavlova featured kiwi fruit, fairly new as a supermarket staple in the US.

Jan Hatwell's Nureyev
Once when marooned with no fresh fruit available and desperate for a dinner party dessert, I made what started out to be a pavlova, but ended up being a meringue base (the tall and gooey school has the right of it) with a layer of pulped tinned prunes dressed out with cognac and cinnamon, and topped with whipped cream. When asked what it was and for the recipe please, I called it a Nureyev.

A Recipe
Ingredients:
3 egg whites (4 if small eggs)
1 pinch salt
3/4 cup berry sugar (castor sugar in New Zealand)
1/4 cup ordinary sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch (cornflour in New Zealand)
1 teaspoon lemon juice or vinegar
Method:
Beat egg whites and salt until stiff peaks form. Add the berry sugar gradually, beating all the time. It's most important that their be no undissolved sugar. By this stage you should have a reasonably thick white (almost shiny) gloop. Mix the sugar and cornstarch together and gently fold into the mix with the vinegar. Scoop mixture onto a baking tray (try to keep it reasonably circular and don't let it spread out too much), and bake for 30-40 mins at 250-275 F. Let cool in the oven.