No bigger than a small donut, these mini pavlovas are perfect for individual desserts. Sweet lemon meringue base, lemon curd hidden under whipped cream and topped with strawberries and kiwi puree.
Jump to RecipeDual Citizenship Dessert
Pavlovas are named after the famous Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, who toured Australia and New Zealand in 1926. The story is a chef created the dessert in her honor – the nationality of the chef varies based on which country you are in. Both Australia and New Zealand claim the pavlova as their national dessert. So this was a fun topic to add to my Southern Hemisphere wine party.
Two other elements make pavlovas perfect addition to the menu. They are gluten-free (as many meringue desserts are) and they have a strong visual impact.
Wine Pairing
Original Pairing: Jason’s Creek Moscato 2020 (Australia)
General Pairing: Moscato, Sweet sparkling wine – sweeter side of wine to hold up to with the sugariness of the meringue.
Full Party Menu
Special Ingredients
Meringue Powder
Most pavlova recipes note to use fresh egg whites. and then in a slow painful process, add sugar. There is a tricky balance to getting the sugar to dissolve but not over whipping the eggs. I use Meringue Powder to avoid all that. Instead, you will completely dissolve sugar into boiling water and then add meringue powder and whip it up. There’s no issue with undissolved sugar causing graininess or weeping. Just a smooth, shiny meringue.
Fresh Lemon
I’m not a fan of plain meringue. It can taste eggy. Too much vanilla makes it brown. So I use lemon juice for the acid and a lot of lemon zest (microplaned for fine bits). You need to make sure the zest is dry (no water). I zest on a paper towel and let it sit for a bit just to be sure. Please use fresh lemons…not the kind in a bottle or package.
Equipment
Stand Mixer
You will want the powder of a stand mixer with a whip attachment to make the meringue. Even then it can take a while. If desperate, I suppose a hand mixer and a lot of time to kill would suffice.
Piping Bag/ Food Storage Bag
Technically, you could make these pavlovas and filling with a spoon if you like the very rustic, messy look. I use a large sturdy piping bag with large star tip for the meringue. And smaller disposable ones for the lemon curd and whip cream filling. It gives you quicker, more controlled piping.
Pairing knife
I find a sharp, pointy pairing knife works best for prepping strawberries. It lets you carve off any bad spots and then clean slice into the desired shapes.
Food Processor/Blender
It takes a quick minute to puree the kiwi in a food processor or even a blender (upright or handstick). If you try to just mash it up by hand, it will be very lumpy. You want it more sauces so it can drip down the sides a bit.
Silicone Baking Mat with Cookie Patterns
These were the perfect patterns to help trace out the right size and shape meringues. It’s not a necessity (you could make you own patter or freestyle), but saves time and trouble to have them. And useful for other baking projects.
Planning the dish
Pavlova bases take some time to bake, dry and cool down completely. So you want to bake them in advance. If more than a day, you should freeze them. Store them airtight. Humidity is the enemy of meringues. The topping part tends to start to melt them – so do that just at the last moment prior to serving.
Timing the Elements
- Make the meringue base the day before or earlier.
- You can make the kiwi puree the day before, but best the day of
- Prep the strawberries the day of the event – keep refridgerated.
- You can prep the whip cream ahead if in a canister. Or wait until preparing to serve. Use a stabilizer to help keep the Pavlova intact.
- Don’t fully assemble until your are close to serving as the fruit juices start to melt the meringue.
Plating Tips
Most of the work of pavlovas is assembly. It is easier and less risky to assemble on the tray or plate they are being served on.
As these are small, not much fits. I thinly slice strawberries and place them on top standing upright. Then drizzle the kiwi puree a bit around any opening, letting it drip a bit down the sides.
Because this is already so colorful, I don’t use any garnish.
(see Wares section for plating supplies & ideas)
Pairing Alterations
Fruit Toppings
The possibilities are endless. Soft berries would be wonderful (raspberry, blackberry, blueberries). My advice is to find fruit that is tart or tangy enough to deal with how sweet the meringue is. You need some acid. Though stay away from crunchy (raw apples). This is an airy dessert.
Recipe
Mini Lemon Pavlovas with Strawberries and Kiwi Puree
Ingredients
Meringue Base
- 1/2 cup water
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup meringue powder
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon zest fresh
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp corn starch lightly packed
Toppings
- 1/4 cup Topping1/4 cup lemon curd12 strawberries, hulled and sliced2 kiwi, peeled, roughly chopped2 cups whipped cream1/2 cup powder sugar1 Tbs whipping stabilizer, Foam magic, whip it
- 12 strawberries, sliced
- 2 kiwis, peeled and chopped
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup powder sugar
- 1 tbsp foam stabilizer: foam magic, whip it optional, to help keep shape over time
Instructions
Meringue Base
- Create or use a pre-made circle pattern for your baking sheet. You can trace 2 1/2-inch diameter circles on parchment paper or use a silicon mat. Place parchment over you pattern, so that you can see through enough to trace when piping. (Or you can try doing it freestyle).
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Heat up water in a pot to boiling. Add sugar to boiling water stirring to dissolve. Once dissolved, turn off heat and allow to cool to room temp.
- Once cool, place sugar water in a stand mixer. Using whisk attachment, add in meringue powder and whisk to help dissolved for a few minutes
- Then turn mixer to medium speed for about 10 min to get well mixed and start to see some volume.
- Then turn to high speed and allow it to become very stiff and holding shape (not blobbing loose). This can take several minutes
- Once the meringue is holding shape, add lemon zest and mix on medium speed for 30 seconds. You may need to scrape edges to make sure it is evenly incorporated.
- Next add lemon juice and cornstarch. Mix at medium speed for 30 seconds. Scrape edges and fold in to make sure all is mixed in.
- Spoon meringue into a large piping bag (with or without a large tip). If not piping, but using a spoon to dispense, you can skip step.
- If piping: starting at middle of circle pattern, pipe from center and move outward to trace a circle. Wind up along the edges to make a nest shape, leaving the middle hollow. Only do about two rotations to get the right height. As needed, use the back of a teaspoon to shape out the hollow part more.
- If using a spoon and not piping, place about a half cup of meringue in the center of the circle. Starting from the center, use the spoon half way in to push out toward the circle edges in a circular motion. As needed, use the back of a teaspoon to shape out the hollow part more.
- Turn oven down to 225 degrees and let bake undisturbed for 30 minutes.
- Turn oven off and let sit in oven to begin cooling for 30 minutes.
- Bring out of oven and continue to cool to room temperature in protected area (keep away from moisture. Do not do dishes or other steamy things around them.) Once cool, store in airtight container or bag.
Toppings Preparation
- Lemon Curd: Prepare by stirring it to make it spreadable. If piping, put in piping bag.
- Strawberries: Wash, dehull and slice strawberries. If they are underipe and a bit bitter, you can sprinkle a tablespoon of sugar and gentle toss. This will make them develop a juice. Which isn’t bad, just messy
- Kiwi Puree: Peel or scoop out kiwi fruit. You are going to mash them up, so this doesn’t have to be precise. Just get the hairy bits off. Pulse in processor or blender until a fairly smooth puree. If a bit under ripe, mix in a teaspoon of sugar.
- Whipped Cream: When close to serving, take cold whipping cream and whip in stand mixer on high. As it starts to form, sift in about 1/4 cup powdered sugar and 1 Tablespoon of stabilizer. When stiff peaks that can hold shape, place in piping bag. (If using a whipping cream dispenser, just mix together these ingredients and place in canister. Usually takes about 2 charges to fully set up)
Assembly
- When within 30 minutes of serving you can begin to assemble
- Place meringues on serving tray or plates – so you do not have to transfer them later.
- Spoon or dispense about a teaspoon of lemon curd in center of meringue.
- Pipe whipped cream over lemon curd and mound over the top of the meringue base.
- Place strawberries in the center of the whipped cream Push the in a bit so they can stand up.
- Drizzled kiwi puree overs edges of strawberries, allowing some to spill down sides a bit.Serve immediately.