If trifle is the ultimate stoic make-ahead dessert of Christmas, then pavlova is its billowy, needy, time-sensitive opposite. The former can be hacked with store-bought sponges and packet jelly and live quite happily in the fridge until serving time. The latter requires a deep working knowledge of egg-white alchemy and your kitchen’s microclimate to achieve the delicate marshmallow core and crisp exterior.
“Anything that has just a few ingredients is nightmarishly hard – because it’s technique only,” says pastry chef Alistair Wise. “You can’t put micro herbs on it and hope it’s OK.”
While pavlova is delicate and fragile, your approach should be robust. We asked three experts – including Wise, chef and recipe developer Ismat Awan, and food stylist and photographer Nidhi Sampat – for their tips on baking and decorating a flawless, fluffy pavlova for Christmas and beyond.
Before: clean bowls, clean sugar and a dry day
“Never do it on a rainy day. Just forget about it,” says Wise, who founded Hobart patisserie Sweet Envy. Pavlovas are best made the day before eating, so if it’s a wet or humid Christmas Eve, have a back-up dessert.
You’ll need bowls. Many bowls. And they need to be very dry, and very clean. “I know this may sound very frustrating to some people, but you know, we’ve got dishwashers in the modern age, and if not then just extra time with your loved ones over the sink and washing,” Awan says.
You’ll need three bowls to separate the egg whites from the yolks: one for the whites, a second for the yolks and the third as a safety net as you crack each fresh egg. That way, if any yolk falls into the bowl, you can just discard one egg, rather than the entire batch of whites. “If there’s a yolk in there, leave that for an omelette later on and just start again,” Awan says.
Recipes vary, but the sugar-to-egg ratio is around 55g for every egg white. For a pavlova that serves six people, you’ll need about four egg whites and about 220g of sugar.
To whisk the egg whites, a large stainless steel or glass bowl is best, as plastic can harbour moisture and grease – sworn enemies of the pavlova. “Egg whites are water-based and when you have any presence of egg yolk, grease or oil, it’s a heavy fat that just weighs it down,” Awan says. “It won’t fluff, it won’t puff.”
Make sure your sugar is clean too. Wise says a common pavlova pitfall for home cooks, particularly at this time of the year, is contaminated sugar. “[They’ve] been making Christmas cookies or gingerbread and they [need] a big cup of sugar, and they’ve had the flour scoop in there as well, so the sugar ends up being dirty.” He advises opening up a fresh bag of caster sugar, just to be safe.
Granule size matters. “Use fine caster sugar because it dissolves better and just creates a finer, more glossy texture to the pavlova,” Awan says. She says home-brand caster sugar from major supermarkets is more finely milled than brand-name products.
The during: take your time
Don’t: add your sugar at the beginning of the egg whipping process. “A lot of people add all the sugar at once and this … causes deflating. The eggs just liquefy and then you’re like: oh my god, I have sweet egg whites,” Awan says.
Rushing the sugar process can also cause “weeping”.
“That’s when sugar leaks out of the pavlova after the baking, and you’re like, why does it look like my pavlova’s crying? It’s not because of your emotional state, it’s because of the way we put in the sugar.”
Do: whip the whites until they’re foamy like a “bubble bath”, Awan says. Then gradually add the sugar, one tablespoon at a time, allowing the whites to whisk three or four times before adding the next spoonful. (For this reason, it’s best to use a stand mixer rather than a handheld mixer.) This process can take between eight and 10 minutes – Awan queues up three songs to measure the passing time.
The whites should have stiff, glossy peaks, and the sugar should fully dissolve. To check, Wise says to rub some of the mixture between your fingers – if it’s gritty, whisk a little longer. At this point, many recipes call for a touch of cornflour and vinegar, which provide stability and structure.
To build your pavlova, take a piece of baking paper, draw a 20cm circle with a marker as a guide, and place the paper, ink side down, on a baking tray. Transfer the egg white mixture to the circle and then using a palette knife, “swish upwards … like you’re creating ridges around the edges” before smoothing the top, Awan says.
“You’re basically trapping the air that you’ve incorporated in the eggs and you’re giving it enough structure so that it just doesn’t go flat in the oven.”
Bake your pavlova in a low-temperature oven. Wise bakes his at 130C for the first 15 minutes then lowers the temperature to 80C for the remaining 45 minutes, while Awan advocates for 120C with the fan setting turned off – this prevents the oven from “pumping heat” and increases your chances of having a shiny, white pavlova.
When the baking time has lapsed, let the pavlova cool slowly in situ overnight, with the oven door closed, or at most, open just a crack. Whatever you do, “don’t rip [the pavlova] out of the oven,” Wise says. “The temperature difference between in the oven and outside will make it collapse.”
The after: keep your decorations simple and seasonal
Decorate your pavlova just before serving. Do it too far in advance and you risk a soggy pavlova, Sampat says.
The decorations, however, can be prepped ahead of time: whip the cream up to a day ahead, cut your fruit the morning of, and store components in separate airtight containers. Sliced strawberries should be placed atop paper towel; for mangoes, use a firm variety such as Kensington or Calypso, cut into cubes rather than slices, and place on top of baking paper or a Chux cloth. Just don’t get slice-happy with raspberries, Sampat says: “They will go completely mushy, so leave the raspberries whole.”
For a pavlova decoration that’s simple and seasonal, Sampat likes a summery blue-and-yellow palette with blueberries, mangoes and passionfruit. “It’s really striking against a white pavlova.”
Tumble the blueberries across the surface (for textural variation, she uses a mix of whole and halved berries), arrange the mango cubes, drizzle the passionfruit pulp around the edges and allow it to drip down the sides of the pavlova for dramatic effect.
If for some reason your pavlova-making has gone awry, Sampat suggests making a pavlova wreath with store-bought meringue nests. Arrange the meringues in a circle, and decorate with your chosen fruit.
For a more traditional green-and-red Christmas decoration, she says strawberries, raspberries, cherries and basil and mint leaves work well for pavlova wreaths.
And if all else fails, she has one final piece of styling advice: “Just stick gingerbread on it.”
