The cake, named after Anna Pavlova, is light and airy. The combination of crispy, melting in your mouth meringue and whipped cream with fruit will impress not only ballet lovers, but also ordinary sweet teeth.
History of the cake and cooking features
The dessert was created over 100 years ago by Australian pastry chefs. It got its name in honor of the great Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, who conquered the world during Dyagel's famous Russian Seasons. This delicious and unusual cake immediately fell in love with the public and entered the menu of many European pastry shops.
The name was given to the cake for a reason - outwardly it resembles an airy snow-white tutu of a ballerina. The taste is delicate and delicate, there are no high-calorie biscuits and heavy shortbread cakes. The basis of the classic dessert is air meringue. It is filled with the most delicate whipped cream, fruits are used as decorations. Pavlova can be portioned, mini-cakes look very impressive in photos and videos. Such a dessert is often served at buffets and banquets, but it is quite possible to prepare it at home.
The most difficult stage is baking the meringue base. It is important to take steps and take your time. For whipping the protein, professional pastry chefs use powdered sugar of the finest grinding, with which the fluffy mass keeps its shape better. You can experiment and add fine brown sugar to the mixture, it will give the merengue a beautiful light beige color and a subtle caramel flavor.
The variety of flavors is also achieved with the help of the filling. The traditional option is heavy whipped cream with no added sugar. You can add aromatic essences to them: vanilla, lemon, nut. A very important point is the choice of fruit. Some confectioners believe that the cake should be filled with an assortment of exotic fruits: kiwi, mango, pineapple, carambola, passion fruit. This set looks very impressive. Pavlova with strawberries is no less elegant. Large, sweet berries go well with whipped cream.
A very interesting option is to combine fruit cooked in syrup with fresh fruit. You can cook halves of medium-sized pears, peaches, apricots. Black grapes, raspberries, blackberries will add brightness. Decorate the cake and fresh mint. An important condition is to choose fruits with a rich taste and pronounced sourness, which contrasts well with the sweetness of the meringue.
Pavlova: a classic recipe at home
It will take about 2 hours to prepare the cake. You need to collect the product just before serving so that the meringue remains crispy and does not get wet.
Ingredients:
- 3 egg whites;
- 150 g caster sugar or powdered sugar;
- 1, 5 tsp starch;
- 1, 5 tsp vanilla essence or a pinch of vanillin;
- 1 tsp vinegar.
For filling:
- 300 g heavy cream;
- 225 g seedless black grapes;
- 3 tangerines;
- 2 pears;
- 100 g sugar;
- lemon zest;
- fresh mint leaves for decoration.
It is better to beat the whites in a deep bowl, the walls of which are lightly greased with lemon juice. First, the whites are whipped separately, then half of the sugar is added to them. When the mass becomes lush and glossy, add the remaining sugar, starch, vanillin and vinegar into it. Continue beating, the mixture should become very dense. The proportions of vanilla can be changed to taste.
It is better to bake the meringue on a baking sheet covered with foil or parchment paper. Grease the coating with butter and lightly sprinkle with flour. Lay out the meringue in the shape of a circle or oval, similar to a basket. Squeeze 2 semicircles from the pastry bag onto the second baking sheet - these are the handles of the future basket.
Preheat the oven to 150 degrees, place the trays in a cent. Bake for 60-75 minutes until creamy brown. If the bottom of the basket remains soft, the baking time will have to be increased. Turn off the oven, leaving the blanks in it for another quarter of an hour. The finished meringue can be easily removed from the baking sheet, does not break or change shape. Place basket and handles on a wooden board to cool.
Ready-made meringues can be used immediately or stored. The workpieces can be left in the refrigerator for 1-2 days, but they will lose their crunch. It is best to place the meringues in an airtight box and store at room temperature, away from sources of moisture. After filling with cream, the cake retains its qualities for no more than 4 hours, so it is served on the table immediately after assembly and decoration.
Assembling and decorating the cake: a step-by-step approach
Prepare the filling. Remove the zest from the lemon with a special knife. Ripe, but not too soft pears, peel and cut in half. Pour 300 ml of water into a saucepan, add sugar and thin strips of lemon zest. Put the saucepan on the fire and, stirring occasionally, bring the mixture to a boil. When sugar dissolves, reduce heat and put pear halves in syrup. Cook them for 2 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon on a plate, cool.
Peel the tangerines, remove the films without taking the fruit into slices. Whip the cream into a thick, strong foam, add no sugar. If desired, you can drip a little vanilla essence or add a pinch of vanillin.
Place the whipped cream in the center of the meringue basket, arrange the fruits beautifully: pears cooked in syrup, whole tangerines, washed and dried grapes. Attach handles on the sides. Boil the syrup left over from cooking the pears, gently pour over the fruit. Decorate the dessert with fresh mint leaves and serve. Frozen sweet champagne will be an excellent accompaniment.
