Wednesday, January 20, 2010

A NEW FLUFF BINGE

A year ago, I went on a meringue cookie-making binge.  I made plain ones and chocolate chip ones and peppermint ones.  The chocolate chip meringues are now the ones we make the most often.

This past holiday season I went on a meringue binge again--but this time with DESSERTS.  I've been branching out to try meringue desserts I've found here and there.  They have such a mixture of sweet and not-sweet and of fluff and crisp, it causes every bite to be ecstasy. 

On Christmas Eve, we tried Baked Alaska again.  We've tried this over the years, but it's so bulky in the freezer, and I prefer to have my cake not frozen, so I don't think we will be doing it again.  It's basically cake with ice cream covered by a meringue.

Then we made Pavlova.  It is the BEST.  "Pavlova" is the Australian/New Zealand name for a meringue shell topped by unsweetened whipped cream with fruit on top.

After making a square one, we decided to cut it in half, so it's not very attractive.  Our Fruit Designers had some strange ideas too, but does that affect the taste?  No way!

The meringue shell is crisp on the outside, but soft and rather marshmellowy inside.  It is sweet.  The whipped cream is smooth and not sweet.  The fruit is a mix of sweet and sour.  What a combination!

There are so many slight differences between recipes for meringue (especially the cooking temps & times), but I've found this one to be superb, so I'm stickin' with it--with the recipe cut in half for a serving of 6 (I've heard that leftovers tend to get soggy, but we at our house wouldn't know).

If you want a short short version of this, here's what you could do:  Buy a container of ready-made meringue cookies and put some in each single-serving bowl.  Squirt ready-made whipping cream on top.  Add cut-up fruit.  Blueberries and strawberries and grapes are highly recommended, but ya do with what ya got.

YOU MUST TRY THIS AT LEAST ONCE IN YOUR LIFETIME!

8 comments:

  1. Gaye, do you think I could make this with Truvia (which is a stevia type sweetner?).  Or to get the fluff do you need real sugar?  I love meringue!  Kathy Ayers

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  2. @kbayers - The only info I could find is that Sucralosedoesn't work as well as sugar--"it won't be as smooth, silky, or astasty."  But I see that some people do use it.  As for Truvia, you willjust have to try it and see, I reckon--and post about it on theinternet so that others can find out!

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  3. Interesting. Reminds me of fruit pizza...only different. :)

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  4. I have made pavlova with strawberries and love it. I shall have to try your recipe. Miss Language's roommate loves meringues but needs to learn how to bake them. I think we can have a fun visit baking next time they are here for a weekend.  

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  5. Pavlova is very popular here in Australia. Some people make their own but for those with no time you can always buy them ready made in the shops. You're right in saying that they are different to the usual meringue in that they are marshmallowy on the inside. I can't eat them due to egg allergy but my family always ask for Pavlova for Christmas dinner, especially as the temps are usually in the high 30s celcius.

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  6. I made Swedish meatballs for Sunday dinner today, and they call for egg yolks, so as I saved those whites to the side I thought of your posts this week, and I made the Pavlova shell very nicely in a 9x13 dish with just four medium egg whites.  For filling I made cherry Jell-O with our own tart cherries cooked down a bit and stirred in, plus softened cream cheese.  It would have been prettier if I'd used the cherries for a topping, but everybody liked it.  They're not used to Jell-O anything from me!   Thanks for the inspiration.

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  7. @RenascenceC - Well, that sounds like an interesting take on things.  My next recipe I'm going to try IS a cherry one, but more of a pie-filling venue.  I imagine yours was GREAT!

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  8. Pavlova must be my all-time favorite dessert.  My husband's aunt makes one of the best I've ever had with strawberries and blueberries.I thought it was a Scottish dessert.  I didn't know about the Australian link.

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