Summer Berry Pavlova with a Raspberry Coulis Sauce

Pavlova is a meringue cake that has a light and delicate crisp crust and a soft sweet marshmallow center. This lovely dessert is typically served with softly whipped cream and fresh fruit. This dessert is so impressive and very simple to make. The raspberry coulis sauce takes a bit more work, but I think it’s a big ta-da when I serve this dessert.

A few years ago, Ina Garten aired Barefoot Contessa episode that included a Triple Berry Pavlova.  I made a mental note to make it, but I never got around to it.  The time to bake my own Pavlova was perfect, because I’ve been on an Ice Cream Custard kick, which means that I end up with extra egg whites. If you’ve never had a Pavlova, or have even heard of it, here’s a little history (from the Joyofbaking.com):

Pavlova (Pav) is a meringue cake that has a light and delicate crisp crust and a soft sweet marshmallow center. This lovely dessert is typically served with softly whipped cream and fresh fruit. There is a long standing debate about whether New Zealand or Australia invented this dessert, which has yet to be resolved. What we do know is that the name, Pavlova, was chosen in honor of the Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova, who toured both New Zealand and Australia in 1926.

I have always loved baked meringue, so the urge to make this finally hit home. Would you believe I’ve never made it before? This was my very first attempt. I carefully read the reviews on Ina Garten’s version, and people were quite harsh.  Many complained that the temperature was wrong, and that the meringue never baked.  I read the directions a few times and decided to dive in and give this a go.  As always, let me show you:

In the bowl of your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks. Start adding the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue holds very stiff peaks.  TIP: You want your bowl and whisk beater to be very clean. I wipe the bowl with a paper towel and a little white wine vinegar.  That way, I’m pretty much guaranteed that my egg whites will turn out just right.

Test to see if the sugar is fully dissolved by rubbing a little of the meringue between your thumb and index finger. The meringue should feel smooth, not gritty. If it feels gritty the sugar has not fully dissolved so keep beating until it feels smooth between your fingers…

  Sprinkle the vinegar and cornstarch over the top of the meringue and, with a rubber spatula, fold in…

Gently spread the meringue inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges.
Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the outside is dry and takes on a very pale cream color. Turn the oven off, leave the door slightly ajar, and let the meringue cool completely in the oven. This step is very important! The parchment paper easily removes from the meringue– don’t forget to do that, too.

(The outside of the meringue will feel firm to the touch, if gently pressed, but as it cools you will get a little cracking and you will see that the inside is soft and “marshmallowy”.)  At this point, the cooled meringue can be made and stored in a cool dry place, in an airtight container, for a few days.  That’s exactly what I did!
NOTE: This was my first attempt.  I thought it was a little challenging to form “edges”.  The second time I made this, I ended up piping the meringue, which I found a bit easier.

Because there are gorgeous raspberries, in season, I made a raspberry coulis sauce.  If you’d like to see a tutorial on how I make a coulis sauce, please click here.

Just before serving gently place the meringue onto a serving plate. Whip the cream in your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, until soft peaks form. Sweeten with the sugar and vanilla (I add a Dr. Oetker product that helps the whipped cream to hold longer).  I used olallieberries, raspberries and fresh blueberries.

…and then mound the softly whipped cream into the center of the meringue.I don’t know about you, but I’m drooling again. Whipped cream is one of my greatest weaknesses.  Help me!

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Pavlova with Fresh Summer Berries and a Raspberry Coulis Sauce

Pavlova (Pav) is a meringue cake that has a light and delicate crisp crust and a soft sweet marshmallow center. This lovely dessert is typically served with softly whipped cream and fresh fruit. This dessert is so impressive and very simple to make. The raspberry coulis sauce takes a bit more work, but I think it's a big ta-da when I serve this dessert.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Cooling Time2 hours hrs

Total Time3 hours hrs 25 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 6

Author: Debby – www.AFeastfortheEyes.net

Ingredients

MERINGUE CAKE:

• 4 large egg whites
• 1 cup superfine or castor sugar
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch corn flour

TOPPING:

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 1/2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Fresh fruit Any combination of: kiwi,strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, passion fruit, peaches, pineapple, or other fruit of your choice. I like to use fresh blueberries, raspberries and either blackberries or olallieberries

RASPBERRY COULIS SAUCE:

• 2 8 ounce containers fresh or frozen raspberries
• 1 teaspoon lemon rind
• 1 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tablespoon Chambord Raspberry Liquor; optional

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 250°F. and place rack in center of oven.

  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and draw a 7-inch (18-cm) circle on the paper.
• In the bowl of your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks.

  Start adding the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue holds very stiff peaks. (Test to see if the sugar is fully dissolved by rubbing a little of the meringue between your thumb and index finger. The meringue should feel smooth, not gritty. If it feels gritty the sugar has not fully dissolved so keep beating until it feels smooth between your fingers).

  Sprinkle the vinegar and cornstarch over the top of the meringue and, with a rubber spatula, fold in.
• Gently spread the meringue inside the circle drawn on the parchment paper, smoothing the edges.
• Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until the outside is dry and takes on a very pale cream color.

  Turn the oven off, leave the door slightly ajar, and let the meringue cool completely in the oven. (The outside of the meringue will feel firm to the touch, if gently pressed, but as it cools you will get a little cracking and you will see that the inside is soft and marshmallowy.)
• The cooled meringue can be made and stored in a cool dry place, in an airtight container, for a few days.

For the raspberry coulis sauce (optional):

• If you are using frozen raspberries, there is no need to thaw them. Simply rinse and put into a saucepan.
• Add the water, sugar, lemon rind and juice.

  Bring to a boil and allow the fruit to cook– 5 to10 minutes. Ideally, using an immersion blender makes it very easily to puree the fruit. Otherwise, you can use a potato masher.
• It is important that you stain the pureed fruit with a fine mesh strainer. Push the juice through, by stirring the cooked fruit. You will end up with a lot of seeds! Toss the seeds.
• I prefer to have my coulis sauce a little thicker. I use about 1-2 teaspoons of Clear Jel (or cornstarch), with enough water to dissolve it (about 1 tablespoon); whisk completely before adding back to the strained fruit puree. Add this to the strained fruit puree and cook until it thickens.
• If desired, add the Chambord to the coulis sauce.
• I like to strain the sauce, again, to remove any potential lumps from the cornstarch (or Clearjel).
• Refrigerate until cold. I have stored this for up to 2 weeks, without any problems.
• Drizzle the coulis sauce over ice cream, custards, fruit or panna cota. I’ve even added this to warm maple syrup for a different flavor with pancakes.

To serve:

• Just before serving gently place the meringue onto a serving plate.

  Whip the cream in your electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, until soft peaks form. Sweeten with the sugar and vanilla and then mound the softly whipped cream into the center of the meringue. Arrange the fruit randomly, or in a decorative pattern, on top of the cream.
• If desired, drizzle a raspberry coulis sauce over each serving.
• Serve immediately as this dessert does not hold for more than a few hours.

Tried this recipe?Mention @afeastfortheeyes or tag #afeastfortheeyesblog!

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