A sweet meringue in honor of the famous dancer

Although Australia and New Zealand dispute the origin of this dessert called paulova or pavlova, the truth is that it was prepared for the first time to entertain the Russian dancer Ana Pavlova during her stay in a New Zealand hotel.

The chef of the house, Herbert Sachse, mounted some egg whites with sugar and then baked them, added whipped cream on top and finished it with an assortment of red fruits (raspberries, strawberries, currants, blueberries).

According to gastronomic documents, the creator of the meringue was the Italian pastry chef Gasparini, who lived in Meiringen (Switzerland). However, it was Sachse who got this recipe popularized in the world’s sweets recipe book.

Let’s make this creamy and crunchy dessert perfect to enjoy with a glass of sweet wine and a S.Pellegrino. Cheers!

Ingredients for a 6 portions cake

• 3 egg whites
• Twice the weight of egg whites in sugar
• A pinch of salt
• 10 g cornstarch
• ½ teaspoon lemon essence
• 200 ml of liquid cream to assemble
• 20 g icing sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla essence
• Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries and other red fruits
• Mint leaves
• Lemon zest

Step by step elaboration

1. Weigh the whites and sugar.
2. In a deep, clean and dry bowl, beat the egg whites and a pinch of salt with an electric mixer until they make soft peaks.
3. While stirring, add the sugar little by little, tablespoon to tablespoon, until finished. This can last approximately 10 minutes. Add the cornstarch and the lemon essence and stop beating when rubbing a little meringue between the thumb and the index, the sugar granule cannot be noticed.
4. Place the meringue on a baking sheet covered with sulfurized paper. Shape rounded and make a slight hole in the center, not very deep.
5. Place the tray in the oven, preheated to 100º C, and cook for 90 minutes.
6. Once the meringue is cooked, remove from the oven and let it cool completely before filling.
7. While the meringue is cooling, prepare the chantilly by whipping the cream (which should be very cold) with the icing sugar. When it is almost assembled, add the vanilla essence and finish it with care not to overdo it. Save in the fridge.
8. Wash and dry the fruits well. In the case of strawberries, chop to taste.

Pavlova cake assembly

1. Assemble at the time of serving so that the cream and fruits do not soften the meringue.
2. Fill the meringue with whipped cream and cover with the red fruits.
3. Grate a little lemon on the cake and decorate it with fresh mint leaves.
4. Serve immediately.

‘Harmonies in Flavors and Fragrances’ by Juan Muñoz Ramos.

It gives the impression that in this recipe the essence of the Mediterranean as a whole has been sought. Thus, we have the chantilly cream sweets that join with the citrus of the lemon and the charm of the strawberries of Huelva, that invite us to enjoy this season and give us a unique energy.

A dessert, a moment and a special company to create a magical atmosphere.

In these cases we look for charm in simplicity but always with elegance. For this, these are the companies that we have chosen: an ice cider, Valverán, of complex elaboration, but with an excellent flavor and creamy and magical texture; and also a unique companion whose fine and special bubble maintains flavors and exalts qualities, such as S.Pellegrino, the charming water, the most gastronomic water, the water that gives us that point that sometimes we lack at the end of a meal.

And, together with a great coffee, the last drink must be a clean, fresh and clear water, and so is S.Pellegrino.

Tips

• The amount of meringue’s sugar can be reduced a little, but you should never have less weight as the whites.
• For meringue, it is better to use fresh egg whites. If pasteurized egg whites are used, it will be necessary to add albumin.
• Chantilly cream can be enriched with 50 grams of mascarpone cheese, which also provides more body and consistency.
• As a complement when serving, we can prepare a coulis of red fruits or get a quick sauce by heating a little jam with water until it is homogeneous.

Pair this amazing dessert with a Pork stew with Port wine, click here to see the complete recipe.