Summer Pavlova with White Peaches, Raspberries + Figs
A Pavlova lives and dies by the fruit we choose to showcase in it. The better the fruit, the less sugar you'll need to add. This is not the time for bland berries from the supermarket 2 days from their sell-by date (though you should save them for a small-batch of jam). This is when you break out the prettiest, ripest fruit you can find. Doing so will make all tasks remaining a cinch.
My best friend’s birthday happens to fall at the end of the summer when NYC turns into a furnace and you can’t walk to the subway without your thighs sticking together. It’s not a time of year one races to the oven to bake her friend a birthday cake. In comes the prima-ballerina the Pavlova. It's an abundantly "fancy" looking dessert but its architecture is simple. The meringue serves as a great, airy marshmallow cloud, ideally embellished with cool whipped cream and fresh fruit piled on top. Variations are welcome: sometimes I might fold lemon curd into the whipped cream and serve it with blueberries. In June, there's nothing better than strawberries with a dash of rosewater added to the cream. The whole point of summer cooking is to take it easy. Keep the heat low and the creativity fast and loose. With this dessert there’s no stirring on the stovetop. You will have to turn on your oven, so take that time to escape to your hot stoop with a glass of rosé. It even has the added bonus of being friendly to the gluten-intolerant friends in your coterie, too. Win, win!
Here, I chose the most beautiful late-summer fruit they had at the market: white peaches, late-season raspberries, and tiger figs, with a little bit of lemon verbena from the garden. Yeah, it's totally extra, as any good birthday celebration should be. It’s such a showstopper no one will miss the cake.
Summer Pavlova with White Peaches, Raspberries + Figs
Ingredients:
4 Large Egg Whites, at room temperature
3/4 Cup white granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, divided
1 Tbs. Cornstarch, sifted
1 Cup Heavy Cream
3/4 tsp. white vinegar
2 Tbs. Maple Syrup
2 White Peaches, thickly sliced
6-8 Figs, halved
1/2 Cup Raspberries
2 Sprigs Lemon Verbena
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 200 Degrees F.
- Line a 26” by 18” sheet pan with parchment paper and trace onto it a circle using a 9” cake pan as your template.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment beat the egg whites on high speed for 1 minute until stiff. Slowly (I'm talking slow-motion-for-me slow) add the granulated sugar, continuing to whisk on high speed for 5 minutes until the egg whites are stiff and the sugar is fully incorporated. You can text it by pinching a little between your thumb and index finger to see if the sugar is still gritty. If so, keep whisking until it's dissolved.
- Sprinkle the cornstarch, 1/2. teaspoon the vanilla and white vinegar over the egg whites and carefully fold them together. Take care not to over mix!
- This is the fun part where you can personalize it to your liking. Turn the meringue out onto the parchment paper, using your spatula to spread the meringue out evenly to the perimeters of the circle. I like to make little peaks around the edges to create a pretty little crown to surround all that whipped cream and fruit in the middle. You do you!
- Bake meringue for 90 minutes, until the exterior is dry to the touch. Allow it to cool in the oven with the heat turned off, using a wooden spoon to prop the door oven open for ventilation.
- Meanwhile, make your whipped cream. In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the cream until softly thickened. We don’t want to overmix this! So softly thickened, pourable cream is what you want. Add the remaining 1/2 tsp. of vanilla and maple syrup, whisking just to incorporate.
- Transfer the disc of meringue to a plate or cake stand. Fill the center with the sweetened whipped cream. Arrange the fruit on top in any pattern you like and garnish with sprigs of lemon verbena. Serve immediately.
Serves 6-8.
