Let It Grow
By Tammy Thornton
With the holidays upon us, many of us find ourselves either hosting or attending parties. Of course, for the “Most wonderful time of the year,” the party food must be extra special. Not only should everything taste delicious, but presentation is key. Three cheers for festive desserts! For a delicious and stunning idea, try Pavlova, named after the famous prima ballerina, Anna Pavlova. Take this dessert to the next level by forming the meringue into a Christmas wreath garnished with red berries, and you’ll have a show-stopping dessert.
Pavlova, popular in both Australia and New Zealand, is often topped with cream and then fruit such as kiwi, berries, and passion fruit. But for Christmas, using red fruits like strawberries, raspberries, and pomegranate arils, really makes it stand out against the white “cake”. This meringue-based dessert has a crunch on the outside and soft interior due to cooking it low and slow in the oven. While this dessert looks amazing, it’s not very difficult to make. However, it does take an hour to cook in the oven and another hour to cool. Fortunately, you can make it the day before your event, and make-ahead meals are the best when it comes to the hectic holidays.
Set your oven to 250 degrees and trace the outline of a dinner plate on one side of parchment paper. Now trace a smaller salad plate for the inner circle to form your wreath. Then flip the parchment over onto a cookie sheet and set aside. You can find many variations on how to make Pavlova, but my tried and true method uses six egg whites at room temperature mixed in a standing blender with 1 ½ cups sugar. Often you will see a recipe calling for castor sugar, which is finer than normal granulated sugar. Instead of looking for special ingredients, simply measure the sugar, pour into your food processor, and whiz it up for 30 seconds. This will give it a finer texture, allowing the sugar to dissolve into the egg whites more easily. (Feel free to skip this step.) Whisk the egg whites for five minutes, and you will see the magic of the egg whites turning into a white fluffy cream. Slowly add the sugar while mixing for another five minutes. Next, add one teaspoon of lemon juice, one teaspoon of vanilla, plus ½ teaspoon of cream of tartar. Blend well. If you have mixed it long enough, peaks will form when you lift the mixer. Dollop large spoonfuls of this wonderful marshmallowy cream on your wreath outline. Make a second row of dollops inside the first, until you have used up the meringue. (This recipe is very forgiving.) Try to keep the wreath even, using your spoon to make dips all around the wreath for the cream. The meringue will expand while baking. Once you have formed your wreath, bake in the oven at 250 degrees for one hour. Shut the oven off and allow it to cool for an additional hour or overnight.
For the topping, mix red berries such as raspberries and cut strawberries with pomegranate arils. Sprinkle with a little sugar and set aside while you mix up the cream. Using a separate bowl, whisk one cup of heavy cream with a fourth of a cup of sugar. Some optional additions to the cream mixture are lemon juice, vanilla, or almond extract. Both the cream and berries can be made ahead of time and kept in a separate bowl and refrigerated until serving time. When ready to serve, spread the cream over the meringue, then top with berries, drizzling some of the red juice around. Garnish with mint leaves that will look like holly. For a snow effect, dust with powdered sugar. Stand back, admire your work, and try not to dig in until your guests arrive.
Now for a second dessert that uses the same eggs. After you separated the eggs for the meringue, you were left with six egg yolks. At this point, you can look both ways to make sure no one is looking and wastefully dump them down the sink. You can also make yourself an omelet. However, for very little effort, you can make a second dessert for your soiree, while the Pavlova is baking. Whisk the six egg yolks with ¼ cup sugar and two tablespoons of cornstarch, and set aside. Meanwhile, heat two cups of milk with one teaspoon of vanilla and a splash of brewed coffee. Heat to a simmer, but not boiling. Next, slowly whisk in egg mixture, stirring constantly until the custard thickens and begins to coat the back of a spoon (about five minutes). Add a fourth of a cup of chocolate chips, and stir like mad until the chips melt and the custard is smooth. Pour into a bowl and, once cooled, cover with plastic wrap, allowing the wrap to touch the custard so that it does not form a “skin”. Refrigerate for at least one hour or overnight. When ready to serve, spoon into small serving containers, top with a dollop of whipped cream and garnish with berries and mint. This dessert is rich, so serving it in small portions is best. Topping it with the whipped cream will counter the richness of the chocolate custard.
So there you have it, using the same six eggs, gives you two very different show-stopping desserts. Make both desserts the day before your event for a stress-free party. Assemble right before serving. Hope you enjoy making (and eating) these desserts. We would love to hear from our readers. Please send your comments and questions to shorelocalgardener@gmail.com. Until then, from our home to yours, wishing you a very Merry Christmas!
Tammy Thornton is a mom of four, a substitute teacher, and a Sunday school teacher. She is passionate about gardening and cooking, and loves the beach.
