Recipe by Rachel Zammit Cutajar
Photo by Rachel Zammit Cutajar
Pavlova is a wonderful summer recipe, however, the traditional recipe using strawberries doesn’t really work in Malta for very long as it gets too hot for strawberries pretty quickly. Luckily this recipe is pretty versatile and goes well with a variety of fruit. Local peaches are wonderful at the moment so why not top your meringue with what’s in season.
SUMMER PAVLOVA WITH PEACHES AND CREAM
Serves 10-12
Ingredients
Meringue
- 6 egg whites
- 375g sugar
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Topping
- 350ml fresh cream
- 30g sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3-4 large peaches
- 100g hazelnuts
- Handful fresh mint
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200°C.
- Line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Whisk the eggs in a clean bowl until removing the whisk from the bowl leaves soft peaks.
- Gradually add the sugar, whisking constantly.
- Continue to whisk until the mixture becomes thick and glossy. You can test to see if the mixture is ready by rubbing a little bit in between your fingers. If you can feel the grain of the sugar then you need to keep whisking until it feels smooth.
- Add the vanilla extract, vinegar and cornflour and whisk until combined.
- Transfer the mixture onto the baking tray in a neat rectangle and place in the oven.
- Lower the temperature to 180°C and bake for 35 mins until pale beige and crusty on top. (You can make the meringue the day before but don’t add toppings until you are ready to serve.)
- To make the topping, whip the fresh cream with the sugar and vanilla extract until soft peaks form.
- Peel the peaches by blanching in boiling water for 30 seconds until the skin splits. The skin should come off easily after that.
- Toast the hazelnuts in the oven at 200°C for 15 mins. Check on them at regular intervals as they burn easily.
- When ready to serve, spread the cream over the top of the meringue, top with a layer of peaches, followed by the toasted hazelnuts and some fresh mint.
- Serve immediately.
