Mini Pavlova
I can't believe I haven't added this recipe onto my website sooner. I absolutely love these, and they are great fun to make with kids too- the best bit being the acid test of whether you can hold the bowl upside down over someone's head without it coming out! Make the nests in advance (ideally at night so you can leave them to cool in the oven whilst you sleep).
Makes: 12 Meringue Nests
Prep: 20 Minutes
Cooking Time: 2 Hours
Ready In: 2 hrs 20 + Cooling Time
- 6 egg whites
- 300g caster sugar
- 1tbsp Cornflour
- 1tsp Vanilla Essence or Vanilla Paste
- Lemon Curd (roughly 12 tbsp)
- 600ml Double Cream
- Fruit to decorate (I like strawberries, blueberries and raspberries)
- Preheat the oven to 120C/100C Fan/ Gas 0.5.
- Place the egg whites in a free standing mixer with whisk attachment and whisk until stiff. To test if they are done, hold the bowl upside down (ideally over someones head for comedic effect) and check the contents do not move!
- Start the mixer going again on a slow speed and add the caster sugar a spoonful at a time. Be careful not to rush this step as if you add too much too quickly your meringue will collapse. By the end your egg whites should look nice and glossy.
- Add the cornflour and vanilla and give a final whisk.
- Line 2 baking trays with greaseproof paper. Whilst this bit is not essential, I use a tiny amount of meringue mix and stick the four corners of the paper down to the tray to stop it from moving when I spoon on my meringues.
- Spoon 12 equal circles onto your trays (6 meringues on each). I shape them so that the outer edges are higher, and there is a small dip in the middle in which to put my lemon curd.
- Pop the meringues into the oven for 2 hours. After 2 hours turn the oven off, but do not open the door and allow them to cool completely (I leave them in the oven overnight). Allowing them to cool gradually reduces the risk of them cracking.
- When you are ready to serve, spoon lemon curd into the centre of the meringue, whisk your double cream until thick and then dollop ontop of the curd, and finally top with chopped fruit. Enjoy!
Method
- Preheat the oven to 120C/100C Fan/ Gas 0.5.
- Place the egg whites in a free standing mixer with whisk attachment and whisk until stiff. To test if they are done, hold the bowl upside down (ideally over someones head for comedic effect) and check the contents do not move!
- Start the mixer going again on a slow speed and add the caster sugar a spoonful at a time. Be careful not to rush this step as if you add too much too quickly your meringue will collapse. By the end your egg whites should look nice and glossy.
- Add the cornflour and vanilla and give a final whisk.
- Line 2 baking trays with greaseproof paper. Whilst this bit is not essential, I use a tiny amount of meringue mix and stick the four corners of the paper down to the tray to stop it from moving when I spoon on my meringues.
- Spoon 12 equal circles onto your trays (6 meringues on each). I shape them so that the outer edges are higher, and there is a small dip in the middle in which to put my lemon curd.
- Pop the meringues into the oven for 2 hours. After 2 hours turn the oven off, but do not open the door and allow them to cool completely (I leave them in the oven overnight). Allowing them to cool gradually reduces the risk of them cracking.
- When you are ready to serve, spoon lemon curd into the centre of the meringue, whisk your double cream until thick and then dollop ontop of the curd, and finally top with chopped fruit. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 6 egg whites
- 300g caster sugar
- 1tbsp Cornflour
- 1tsp Vanilla Essence or Vanilla Paste
- Lemon Curd (roughly 12 tbsp)
- 600ml Double Cream
- Fruit to decorate (I like strawberries, blueberries and raspberries)
Additional Information
Whilst smaller kids would have difficulty separating the eggs, the rest of the bake is relatively easy to do, and you can always get smaller kids helping with the scooping, and shaping of the nest, or simply decorating with the fruit at the end.
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