Christmas Pavlova
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Need a unique Christmas
Crispy chewy meringue shells form the wreath base. Then they’re filled with tangy lemon curd, you can use lime instead! Topped with whipped cream, fresh berries and a sprinkle of edible glitter and this Christmas
Dessert Week on the GBBO
Yes, it was
Our choices for
- Signature Bake: Pavlova
Dessert - Technical Bake: Sticky Toffee Pudding
- Showstopper Bake: Imprime
Dessert
Can you guess what we chose?? Obviously, the Pavlova because, PAVLOVA. I like to say I don’t care for meringue BUT this bake proved me wrong.
The trick to a good pavlova OR any
So I added a TANGY lemon curd. And I made a small amount of curd, no need to load the Christmas Pavlova down, just a spoonful in each portion. If you love and want more curd try this lemon curd recipe!
If you want you could make this apple curd to go inside the pavlova instead of citrus. Or make this easy smaller portion Pavlova instead! Petite and personal, they’re adorable.
And then I topped it with just whipped cream with only a hint of sweetness to it with a little lemon zest thrown in to amp up the tangy element. You can skip the zest too!
What Kitchen Tools I need to Make this Christmas Pavlova?
- a quarter sheetpan
- parchment paper, I love the sheets and linked them in the recipe card
- a KitchenAid mixer or other stand mixer
- whisk
- wooden spoon
- saucepan
- offset spatula
- edible glitter-I used edible glitter that came in my Fancy Sprinkles Subscription Box
FAQs about the meringue Pavlova shell
no, try to stay at medium to medium-high to avoid overbeating the egg whites
no, you must add the sugar one spoonful at a time so it can dissolve
in this recipe you whip them in two different stages before you add sugar you whip to soft peaks which means when you pull the whisk out it forms a soft point that slumps over, THEN while adding the sugar you will whip to glossy stiff peaks that stay up when you pull the whisk out
YES! This can help it keep from cracking while it cools
You can bake the meringue in the morning, cool it, set it somewhere to rest out of the way, and then fill it for an evening
Christmas Pavlova
Equipment
Ingredients
pavlova
- 6 egg whites
- 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vinegar
- 1 tsp corn starch
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Whipped Cream
- 1 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 TBSP sugar
- zest of one lemon optional
Toppings
- 1/2 cup pomegranate arils
- fresh raspberries
- edible glitter Optional
- mint leaves
citrus curd-can be lemon or lime
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 TBSP corn starch
- 1/2 cup lemon or lime juice
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 1/2 TBSP butter
Instructions
- preheat the oven to 250˚
- trace a 10 or 11-inch circle on a sheet of parchment paper, trace a 5-6 inch circle inside of it
- turn the paper over and place it on a large baking tray
- in the bowl of a stand mixer beat the egg whites on medium-high until they form soft peaks, don't overbeat them
- slowly add the sugar one Tablespoon at a time to the egg whites beating well between each addition
- when the sugar has been added sprinkle the corn starch over the egg whites and beat again, then add the vinegar and vanilla
- put in a large piping bag fitted with a one-inch nozzle OR with a one-inch hole cut in the end
- holding the bag vertically place the tip right close the pan and pipe out a plop of meringue between the two lines you drew on the paper, go around the circle making 10 even plops, the sides should touch
- then go back around and fill in each plop so it's nice and plump
- once it looks how you want it to look use a spoon to gently hollow out each plop[mv_schema_meta name="gently hollow out each plop"]
- place in the oven and bake for 60 minutes, when it's done turn the oven off and let it rest undisturbed for 60-90 minutes
- meanwhile, make the lemon curd whisk the sugar and corn starch together in a saucepan
- add the lemon juice and whisk to combine, then turn the heat on medium-low
- gently whisk in the egg yolks and the butter
- when the butter has melted switch to a wooden spoon
- stir constantly until the curd is thick, when it coats the back of a spoon and doesn't backfill that's when you know it's done
- take it off the heat and sieve it
- pour it into a jar put a lid on it and refrigerate it until cooled and you're ready to use it
- To Assemble: whip the cream and the sugar together adding lemon or lime zest if desired until the whipped cream is holding peaks, don't overbeat it
- place pavlova on a large serving platter, I used a pizza pan!
- [mv_schema_meta name="put a spoonful of curd in each hollowed out shell"]
[mv_schema_meta name="fill each hollow with lemon curd"] - pipe whipped cream over the top
[mv_schema_meta name="top with whipped cream"] - add arils and berries as desired
- garnish with edible glitter and mint leaves if desired[mv_schema_meta name="add edible glitter if desired"]
