Nicoles Rhubarb Strawberry Pavlova Recipes

INDIVIDUAL RHUBARB RIPPLE PAVLOVAS

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 140C/120C fan/gas 1. Line two large baking sheets with non-stick baking parchment. Draw eight circles, 6-8cm in diameter, on the parchment, then flip over. In a large bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gradually whisk in the sugar until thick and glossy, then the cornflour. Pile the meringue in soft swirls onto the marked circles on the baking parchment, then bake on the lowest shelf for 1 hr until crisp on the outside and dry underneath. Cool, then gently peel off the paper. Can be made up to a day in advance, just store in airtight containers.
• Place the rhubarb batons in a large pan along with the sugar, vanilla and about 200ml water. Bring to a gentle simmer, then cook very gently until just soft. Discard the vanilla. Remove the rhubarb from the pan, reserving the cooking liquid. Purée half of the fruit with a hand blender or liquidiser, then strain into a bowl through a fine mesh sieve.
• Reduce the rhubarb cooking liquid until thick and syrupy. Leave the rhubarb and syrup to cool. Can be made up to two days ahead and chilled until needed.
• To serve, whip the cream until it just forms peaks. Carefully ripple the rhubarb purée through the cream. Plate each meringue and spoon on some of the rhubarb rippled cream. Top with the remaining batons and spoon some of the rhubarb syrup on top and around the plate.

MINI PAVLOVAS WITH STRAWBERRIES AND RHUBARB

Steps:

• Pre heat oven to 275 F
• Place egg whites and pinch of salt in the clean bowl of a stand mixer, and with whisk attachment, whip on medium high speed until soft peaks form, about 4 minutes.
• Gradually add sugar, whisking it in a tablespoon or two at a time, until sugar completely dissolves and sugar grains disappear. Whisk until smooth and stiff glossy peaks form.
• Whisk in vinegar, until just combined.
• Put into piping bag (optional) and line a large sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Either spoon out a 2 inch diameter round ( make a well in the center, like a litte "nest") or fill a piping bag with the egg white mixture and pipe out 26-30 2-3-inch rounds. (You can also make these bigger, but will need to bake them longer. ) They will rise and spread a bit, so leave room around them.
• Place in the oven for 50-60 minutes, until crisp on the outside.Rotate pan ½ way through. They may darken slightly or crack, all OK. Turn oven off and let cool in the oven with the door closed, until completely cooled, about 1-2 hours, or overnight.
• While pavlovas are baking, make the whipped cream: Place heavy cream and sugar in the stand mixer and whisk on medium high until cream forms med stiff peaks. Be careful not to over whip, but if you do, just a little more whipping cream and it should fix it. When the whip cream is at the perfect consistency, add fine lemon zest ( optional) to give it a lovely aroma. Place it in fridge until ready to serve. ( I recommend using the whipped cream on the same day.)
• In a medium bowl place finely sliced rhubarb, quartered strawberries, sugar and lemon zest. Mix well and let this stand for 15 minutes, Mix again, toss in lemon juice and zest ( both optional) and right before serving, add in the fresh mint.
• To assemble: Once pavlovas have completely cooled, top with a dollop of whipped cream and a hearty spoonful of Strawberry Rhubarb Mix. Serve immediately!
• Pavlovas can be made ahead and stored in an air tight container for 2 days.

NICOLE'S RHUBARB-STRAWBERRY PAVLOVA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line two baking pans with parchment paper. Set aside. In the bowl of a heavy-duty electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites, salt, vanilla extract, and cream of tartar on medium-high speed until medium peaks form. Slowly add sugar; continue beating until firm peaks form. Fold in cornstarch.
• Transfer mixture to a large pastry bag. Use scissors to cut 3 inches off of the tip. Pipe mixture into eight large mounds onto prepared baking pans. Bake until meringues are crisp on the outside but their consistency resembles marshmallow on the inside, about 1 hour. Serve with poached rhubarb with strawberries, yogurt cream, and strawberry sauce.

NICOLE'S STRAWBERRY SAUCE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, combine strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Cook over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium high, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until strawberries are soft and have released most of their juice, about 10 minutes.
• Strain mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl. Chill until ready to use.