Lemon Blueberry Pavlova

Hi guys! This week I decided to take a simple dessert and spruce it up with a burst of flavor! For those of you who have never had a pavlova before it's basically a meringue that's baked slowly and sweetly and topped with some sort of cream and fresh fruit! The outside is crispy while the inside is soft like a marshmallow, and the cream and fresh fruit keep the dessert light and refreshing. It's actually pretty fun to eat because of the different textures and flavors. Hope you guys get a chance to eat one even if you never get to make one :D

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INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE PAVLOVA MERINGUE:

  • 4 egg whites

  • 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar

  • 2 tsp white vinegar

FOR THE LEMON CURD CREAM:

  • 2 eggs

  • 2 egg yolks

  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar

  • 3 lemons (4 oz. lemon juice, 1 Tbsp lemon zest)

  • 2 Tbsp heavy cream

  • 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, cubes

FOR FINISHING TOUCHES:

  • blueberries

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Place your egg whites and sugar into a mixing bowl for at least 3 hours or overnight. This allows the sugar to dissolve in the egg whites. If you don't want to wait or don't have the time, you can use superfine sugar in place of the granulated sugar, and you're good to go!

2. Add vinegar to mixing bowl and place in stand mixer. Turn on low medium low speed. Once the egg whites look foamy, increase speed to medium high. Increase to high speed once soft peaks are visible. Beat until hard peaks (This means the egg whites don't drip or move when you turn the whisk attachment upsidedown).

3. Preheat the oven to 245 degrees Fahrenheit. Fill a piping bag with the meringue. I used the 1M tip, but you can use whatever you like. You can even just use a spoon if you want! If you're piping just make sure to leave a space in the middle for the filling. If you're using a spoon just use the back of the spoon to leave an indent for the filling. Pipe or spoon the meringue onto parchment paper. (If you want to make your life super easy, you can also just make one giant pavlova by tracing a dinner plate on the other side of the parchment paper and placing all the meringue in that circle. Just make sure to leave some type of indentation for the lemon curd filling!)

4. Bake the pavlovas in the oven for 1 hour and 5 minutes. Don't open the oven or take the pavlovas out when done. Just leave inside to gradually cool. This prevents cracking!

5. Meanwhile place the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and heavy cream in a metal or glass bowl. Whisk to combine.

6. Fill a sauce pan with a little water and bring to a simmer. Place the bowl with the mixture over the sauce pan with the simmering water and stir constantly. The heat from the steam should begin to cook the mixture. Cook until the mixture has thickened. It'll probably take about 10-15 minutes. 

7. Remove from heat and add in the butter slowly. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature and refrigerate.

8. After the pavlovas have fully cooled (probably 2-3 hours), remove from the oven and place in the fridge.

9. Once the filling and pavlovas have fully cooled, remove from the fridge and fill the pavlovas with the lemon curd cream. Top with blueberries and enjoy :) You may also have a lot of lemon curd filling left over if you make the mini pavlovas. You can use the filling on top of pancakes, waffles, or french toast!

homecooking, homemade, recipeCWClight, dessert, fruit dessert, fruit, pastry1 Comment