Nothing like a Pav.....

 

     Actually, this is a Pavlova and for me at least, it is heaven on earth. Both New Zealand and Australia claim that it is "their invention" and I tend to side with New Zealand, primarily because that is where I first tasted it and after having lived in NZ for a year, I must admit I am biased. The dessert is named after the Russian Ballerina Anna Pavlova and was created for her visit to  New Zealand and Australia.

     A "Pav" is basically a huge meringue that is topped with whipped cream and fresh fruit. It is surprisingly light despite the fact that it looks so rich. Any holiday meal or celebration in New Zealand in considered incomplete without a pav, so maybe you would like to try one for your next gathering. The idea of a meringue may be intimidating, but once you get the feel for it, they are easy to prepare and look fabulous with the fresh fruit arranged on top. Below is my recipe which is an adaptation of a recipe from the "Edmonds Cookery Book" I purchased on a visit to NZ. I wanted my Pavlova to be really high, which is reminiscent of an amazing Pavlova I once had at Christmastime during the year my daughter and I lived in the Nelson area on the South Island of NZ. So, while the proportions are the same as in Edmonds, the amounts are different in order to make the larger meringue.

PAVLOVA

Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit

Get out a cookie sheet(preferrably not an Airbake sheet) and cover the sheet with parchment paper.

5 egg whites

1 1/2 cups caster sugar*

1 1/2 tsp. cider vinegar

5 TBS. cold water 

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla essence #

4 1/2 TBS. cornflour+

* (superfine sugar), you can get away with regular white granulated sugar

# pure vanilla extract

+ cornstarch

Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites until stiff, add water and beat again. Add sugar very gradually while still beating. Slow beater and add vinegar, vanilla and cornflour. Spread the pavlova into a 9 inch cylinder on the parchment paper. IT WILL DEFINITELY SPREAD IN THE OVEN! Try to keep the top as even as possible. Bake pavlova for about an hour until the top is slightly G, B and D(golden, brown and delicious) and clearly crispy.(See the photo above.) Turn off the oven and let the pavlova cool in the oven.

Carefully transfer the pavlova to a large plate.

Whip 2 cups whipping cream with 2 TBS. sugar until firm peaks form.

Spread cream evenly over the pavlova and arrange sliced fruit of your choice on top. In NZ and Australia, they often drizzle passionfruit pulp which is delicious but very difficult to come by here in the US. I typically use sliced strawberries and kiwfruit, raspberries and blueberries or blackberries.

Some of my family here for Easter dinner! :)

Enjoy your pav...and I bet you can't stop at just one slice!            

yours in baking-

p                                                                  

Foothill House Sweet Dream Cookies

     

     I realized that I hadn't baked cookies in a while and I considered some recipes I do not bake very often. I found this recipe in the back of my recipe box on a small piece of faded newsprint. I am not even sure how I came to have it in the first place. What I do know is that they are a surprisingly different kind of chocolate chip cookie. Whether it is the addition of the spices or rolling the chilled dough in powdered sugar before baking, I am not sure. But they are delicious! 

Sweet Dreams

1 cups (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

1 egg, room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups unbleached flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. salt

1 12-ounce package semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup powdered sugar

Cream butter using electric mixer. Beat in brown sugar, egg and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, spices and salt in bowl. Blend into butter mixture. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts. Refrigerate until firm.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Break off tablespoon sized pieces of dough; roll between palms into 1 inch balls. Dredge in powdered sugar and arrange on cookie sheet. Bake ~10 minutes until edges are golden brown. Remove cookies from sheet and place on cooling racks. Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

I hope you enjoy these crispy little gems.
yours in baking-
p

A Woman's Home Companion: Banana Bread

Many years ago I asked my mother for a copy of an old cookbook that she had. It was the Woman's Home Companion Cookbook, and I received a well-loved copy of the book as a Christmas gift in 1986. The book was first published in 1942 and this was an original copy. If you ever have a chance to pick up a copy of your own, it is worth having on hand. It has very few photos and those that are there, seem so outdated, they are actually quite humorous. But these recipes are tried and true and there are so many of them that are still delicious today, whether made as they were originally printed or slightly updated as I have done with this recipe for banana bread.

Here is a version I made with chocolate chips and walnuts. I used the unbleached white flour/wheat germ combination for the flour.

Banana Bread (Woman's Home Companion Cookbook)

(1 standard sized loaf)

** Flour, 1 3/4 cups

Baking powder, 1 1/4 teaspoons

Baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon

Salt,  3/4 teaspoon

Shortening, 1/3 cup ( I use butter)

Sugar, 2/3 cup  white or brown or a combination

2 eggs

1 cup mashed bananas

Optional add-ins: 

3/4 cup chocolate chips

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

~ 1 tsp. grated orange zest or lime zest 

3/4 cup coconut, sweetened or unsweetened

~ 2/3 cup dried fruit, such as dried blueberries or cranberries

**You can use all unbleached white or a combination of white and wheat. I often use 1 1/3 cups of unbleached white mixed with 1/2 cup wheat germ...which adds a nice nutty flavor.

1) Sift flour; add baking powder, soda and salt. Set aside.

2) Cream butter with sugar; add eggs and mix until smooth.

3) Add dry ingredients alternately with the mashed bananas until combined. 

4) Stir in your add-ins.

5) Spread in greased loaf pan and bake in 350 degree oven for ~50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle has very few moist crumbs on it when you pull it out.

I typically remove it from the pan about 5 minutes after I take it out of the oven, mostly because I am ready for a taste test!

Here is another version I made with large flaked organic coconut and dried blueberries.

This bread is really good for breakfast the next day. I lightly toast it either in my toaster or in a toaster oven.

enjoy!

your in baking-

p

Coconut Bundt Cake

     As I have said before, I am a big fan of almost anything coconut. I came across this recipe for a coconut bundt cake the other day in the Bon Appetit Desserts cookbook so I though I would give it a whirl, It is actually quite easy to mix up; especially if you have a Kitchen Aid mixer which I am lucky enough to own. Thank you, Caroline! :) I was worried that there was not enough coconut extract, but the coconut milk does the trick and the added sweetened flaked coconut is really delicious. As with many pound cakes, the outside gets pretty G, B and D ( golden brown and delicious), so a dusting of confection's sugar is a nice topping as well if you do not want to go all out with the icing. I thought of using a chocolate ganache icing(sort of like creating an Almond Joy cake), but did not have any heavy cream on hand. Perhaps I will try that next time. As you can see, there is a piece missing in one of the photos...I couldn't resist although the remainder of the cake made it to the faculty lounge at my school.

Coconut Bundt Cake

350 degree oven 55-65 minutes


3 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs
2 tsp. pure vailla extract
1/2 tsp. cocount extract
1 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk
2 cups(packed) sweetened, flaked coconut

Generously butter and flour a large bundt pan.

Stir flour and salt in bowl and set aside.

Cream butter and then add sugar gradually until the mixture is fluffy. Add eggs one at a time( mixing after each) and then add the two extracts.  Add flour mixture(in four parts) alternately with one cup of the coconut milk, ending with the flour. Stir in the flaked coconut and spread evenly in prepared pan.

Bake ~55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean(except for a few moist crumbs).

Let cool slightly on wire rack, carefully loosen cake with a small knife and then remove cake from pan to cool completely.

Icing
Whisk 1/4 cup coconut milk with ~1 3/4 cups powdered sugar until you reach desired consistency. Spoon glaze over cake and enjoy!

your in baking-
p