Pavlova

All Spring we anticipate the first strawberries. The season is so short that we feel like we need to eat them daily. This year, we had our first taste the day before we left for Maine. That meant we missed a week of the very short season.
Once home I was determined to try all of the recipes I’ve gathered over the years. I’m a strawberry snob so I wouldn’t think of buying California or Florida berries. That means a race to see how many recipes I can make in three weeks. Not that we can eat them all. That’s where having lots of family nearby comes in handy.
A strawberry pie made with heavy cream, egg yolks, and gelatin was not bad but not great either (and strawberry pie should be great). Too much gelatin for the rest of the ingredients. A strawberry chiffon pie turned out much better.
Suddenly, while there are still some strawberries (smaller but sweeter) the raspberries and cherries are ripe. Eleven year old Hunton brought us Raspberry Mousse with the very first pint he picked. Since then, he’s made a raspberry pie, raspberry roll-up, and a cherry pie. I helped him with the pastry for the first pie, since then he’s gotten it down pat.
One pretty fail-safe recipe that is usually served with strawberries but is also delicious with raspberries, blueberries, or peaches is pavlova. I’ve always thought that it originated in Australia, Wikipedia says that it was named for the Russian dancer Anna Pavlova. Both Australia and New Zealand claim to have originated it after her performances there. The first time I had it was forty years or so ago in a small shop in Central Square, Cambridge where it was a specialty. Since then I’ve eaten it many times in England and Australia. Little wonder that it is common there, it is one of the easiest desserts ever.

PAVLOVA
3 egg whites
1 teaspoon vinegar
¾ cup sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch

1-1/4 cup heavy cream
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pint berries

1.On parchment paper draw a nine inch circle and place on baking sheet.
2.Place egg whites and vinegar in mixing bowl and beat until frothy and starting to hold shape. Beat in ½ cup sugar, one tablespoon at a time. Beat until glossy and holding shape.
3.Mix cornstarch with remaining ¼ cup sugar and gently fold into egg white mixture.
4.Spread the mixture on the parchment paper circle, making the edges higher to form a sort of hollow in the center.
5.Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour. Turn oven off and leave in oven for another thirty minutes.
6.Cool on rack.
7.Beat cream together with 1 teaspoon vanilla and ¼ cup sugar until it holds a soft shape. Spread over Pavlova shell.
8.Top with fruit and serve. Yummy!