Pavlova

Pavlova is one of the ultimate Kiwiana icons. But we're not talking about one of those oversweet, fluffy store-bought meringue thingies with no decent crust, oh no! With the summer bbq season in full-swing, I've had to suffer my way through far too many of these in recent times, so decided to end 2007 with my ultimate home-made pavlova.

Pavlova

Ingredients

• 4 large egg whites (preferably at room temperature)
• pinch of cream of tartar
• 200g of caster sugar, split into two quantities
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 tsp vinegar
• 1 tsp water
  
• 1 heaped dessertspoon of cornflour

Method

1. Beat egg whites with pinch of cream of tartar until very stiff.
2. Gradually stir in 100g of caster sugar.
   
3. Gently fold in second 100g of caster sugar. Mix well.
4. Stir vanilla essence, vinegar and water. Add to mixture.
5. Fold in cornflour.
6. Pour mixture onto a plate or flat dish and shape into a circle.
   
7. Cook in a preheated oven at at 140 degrees Celsius for 10 mins.
8. Cook at 100 degrees Celsius for 45 mins.
9. Cook at 80 degrees Celsius for 15 mins.
10. When finished cooking, turn off heat and leave in oven until cool. This will dry up the meringue mixture and prevent it from going all runny and sticky on the bottom.
    
11. Cover with unsweetened cream and fresh fruit when cool.
    

Make sure the oven door is firmly closed throughout the whole cooking process, including the temperature changes. Opening the door even a tiny crack will result in a flat pavlova! Enjoy. :-)