Pam's Pavlova

Pam's Pavlova

18 fresh egg whites

4 1/2 cups sugar

whipping cream

fresh fruit of your choice

chocolate shavings

For a girl who's seen a whole lot of desserts, this one just takes the cake! I mean it's a show stopper that you about can't believe is baking in your oven.  The kids just went nuts thinking the worlds biggest marshmallow was cooking in their kitchen.  Then, when you taste it.... well, it just like nothing you've ever put into your mouth!  It's light, fresh & simply delightful!  The outside crack, the inside is soft & airy... amazing to say the least!

This Pavlova was cooked at our home by Pam Douglas, who learned to make it while serving as a missionary in Australia.  She topped it with fresh berries, mixed with passion fruit pulp straight from Australia, but any fruit will do just fine.

Are you ready to have fun in the kitchen?  Here we go!  Let me say that a Kitchen Aid or stand up mixer will sure make the following process painless, but a hand-held will also do just fine (I'd however recruit some hands!)

Beat all 18 egg whites until they begin to peak, like pictured in photo #1. Now, this is no quick process, as ours took at least 20 minutes to get to this place. Just let that mixer roll on!  Then, once you have peaks, start adding the sugar, 1/4 cup at a time.  Add it very slowly!  Then, once it's all in, let it beat another 10 minutes & taste to see if all the sugar is dissolved.  If it's grainy at all, let it keep on going another 5 minutes & try again.  There is no way to say exactly how long, but just keep going until it tastes nice & smooth.  Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl.

Next, lightly grease a standard cookie sheet.  Now, it's time to spread the meringue out onto the pan.  It should be 1 1/2 - 2 inches high at this point, like pictured in photo #2,  but will even rise a little more while baking.

Bake for approximately 1 hour at 250 degrees, until it starts to brown & crack like pictured in photo #3. Then, turn off the oven and leave the door open & cool it in the oven.

Once it's all the way cool, top with homemade whipping cream without any sugar added.  Just put your whipping cream in a bowl & beat until nice & creamy.  (You could always use store-bought, but it will be very sweet).  Finally, top the whipping cream with fresh fruit & chocolate shavings.

Pavlova is something you simply have to try!  It would be great for a holiday, a rainy day, a special day... any day!!!