Lemon Cream Mini Pavlovas
- 4 large egg whites at room temperature
- 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
- 3/4 cup castor or superfine sugar see note
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 large whole egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter cut into chunks
- 1 cup heavy cream
- as needed fresh blueberries
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking tray with parchment and mark out 8-3" circles. Flip parchment over.
- Combine egg whites and cream of tartar. Whip until soft peaks are starting to form. Gradually add sugar, about a tablespoon at a time. Scrape the sides of the bowl and continue to whip on high speed until stiff and glossy, about 6-7 minutes using a stand mixer.
- Add vanilla and whip to combine.
- Sift cornstarch over the meringue and fold to combine.
- Fit a large piping bag with your desired tip, I used a Wilton 1M.
- Fill the piping bag with meringue and squeeze a dab of meringue onto the corners of the parchment to stick it to the baking tray. This will help keep the parchment from moving while you pipe. Place the baking tray on a slightly damp kitchen towel to prevent the tray from moving. Fill in the traced circle, creating a base. Continue to pipe along the edge of the base for two turns, creating a basket.
- Place the tray in the oven on the middle rack and immediately turn oven temperature to 225°F. Bake for 80 minutes, turn off the oven and allow meringues to remain undisturbed in the oven until completely cool. Meringues will be firm and hollow sounding with a slight bit of tackiness and chew in the bottom layer.
- Combine all ingredients except butter in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium-low heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens, about 7-8 minutes. Whisk in butter until smooth.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly before covering with plastic wrap directly on the surface. Allow to cool completely and chill until ready to use.
- When ready to assemble pavlovas, which should be no more than 2 hours in advance, whip heavy cream until stiff. Fold whipped cream into lemon curd and fill meringues generously. Top with fresh blueberries and serve.
-Using egg whites at room temperature will result in more volume.
-If unable to use castor or superfine sugar, simply grind regular granulated sugar in a mini coffee grinder for about 10 seconds. Even this is not true castor sugar, it breaks down the sugar enough for better absorption into the meringue.
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