Mixed Summer Fruit Pavlova
You’ve all been there. Admit it. You know, when you get a little too excited about all the summer fruit and berries and the farmer’s market and buy waaaaayyyyyy more that you and a family of 45.762 can possibly eat before it turns to a slimy mess in your fridge? Yep. I wouldn’t know anything about that.
I jest. Seriously, we went a little crazy between the Costco and the farmer’s market with our ambitions of smoothie making as part of our dreams of weight loss and my pants fitting again. As a side note to that, I can’t quite recall if I updated you on that front and told you I wore a suit to work last week I hadn’t been able to wear since last year. That, my friends, is what we call hopeful progress around these parts. Woot!
Any-hoo, I had an abundance of fruit and some leftover egg whites from a different recipe, so I decided a Mixed Summer Fruit Pavlova was on the agenda. And it has to be healthy and good for me because it has fruit, right? Thanks for humoring me. At least it’s high in fiber.
I’ve seen some summer fruit dessert pictures floating around the interwebs that look all pretty and fancy pants with fruit I imagine was painstakingly and perfectly arranged in organized patterns of beauty. Well, y’all know that just isn’t the way I roll. I do not have the time or the patience for such shenanigans. Don’t judge me. I just made the meringue, whipped up some heavy cream to slap on top, and piled it high with the surplus of fruit hanging out in my fridge. I put it in a deep dish pie plate in a rare moment of clarity, knowing that some of the fruit would roll off and would be better captured in the crevice around the edge than landing in an explosion on my hard tile floor.
I called that one right. It happens every now and again.
Mixed Summer Fruit Pavlova
Ingredients
For the Meringue
- 4 egg whites
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
For the Topping
- 2 peaches sliced
- 2 kiwi peeled and sliced
- 1 1/2 or so cups mixed berries
- 1/2 cup fresh cherries pitted
For the Whipped Cream
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 tablespoon sugar
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 180
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Add egg whites to bowl of stand mixer with whisk attachment and whip on high for about 1 minute or until firm
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While mixer is still running on high, slowly add sugar and continue whipping for another 2 minutes or until you see shiny peaks
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Turn off mixer, sift in cornstarch, and fold in vanilla bean paste and vinegar
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Line baking sheet with parchment paper
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Turn out mixture onto parchment and spread into an even circular layer 9 - 10 inches wide
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Bake for 1 hour 45 minutes, then turn off oven and leave in there for another 1.5 hours, turn over to cool completely on a wire rack
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Chill bowl and whisk attachment in freezer for 20 - 30 minutes
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Transfer heavy whipping cream, whisk on high, add sugar and vanilla bean paste
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Whip until stiff peaks form, 3 minutes or so - careful not to over whip or you will have butter!
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Transfer meringue to a platter
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Spread whipped cream over the top
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Arrange fruit and berries on top
I do that more than I care to admit. Ugh… and I hate wasting food – I always feel terrible when I haven’t used something quickly enough. So when I go crazy in the fruit department, I usually start throwing everything into a smoothie. But let’s face it, a girl can only take so many smoothies. Now this on the other hand is a fantastic use of all of those lovely summer berries! And I LOVE pavlova! Win, win!
Haha! You mean you don’t like ‘burst fruit’? I hear it’s all the rage these days! I love the idea of making a pavlova using all of this great summer fruit. And I definitely overbuy summer fruit…I know exactly what you’re talking about! In fact, I think I do it every.single.week. Oops. Hope you had an awesome weekend…and grats on discovering the new pant suit again! 🙂
I have been going absolutely crazy with the berry buying at the moment too, but luckily I have been eating them all before they go bad. But, if I did find myself with too much fruit, I would totally be making this as it looks beautiful.
Lol, ummm guilty as charged with the surplus of fruit buying. I just can’t help myself.. in the moment I NEED it ALL! I know you feel me on that. But now I have an excuse to buy all the fruit the land has to offer- hello Mixed Summer Fruit Pavlova! Get in my belly! Goegeous, Rachelle! And I prefer a “rustic” look with the arrangement of fruit, so this is toe-ts winning! 😉 Oh, congrats on the suit! Get it girl! Or should I call you skinny minny? Pinned! Cheers, sweetness! Xo
Congrats on the weight loss Rachelle! Always a great day when something that didn’t quite fit fits again! And no better way to celebrate than with this gorgeous dessert! I just love it! It’s summer dessert perfection my friend! Enjoy your week!
I deal with that surplus of fruit problem every single week. You’d think I’d learn, but nope! I usually end up making chia jam, but this looks way more fun! I love this pavlova. And I personally think it’s drop dead gorgeous.
Happens to me more times than I care to admit….buying, like, 20 lbs of fruit and wondering what the heck I’m going to do with it all. I can’t help myself…I just get so excited!! Well, you certainly made good use of it all with this dessert 🙂 Such a great combination of ingredients, Rachelle! Pinned! And congrats on the weight loss, girl! That’s awesome. High five 🙂
Love your resourcefulness here Rach. Quite impressive indeed! Your pics are so beautiful too 🙂 Yesterday, my father-in-law gave me a ton of fresh picked Maine blueberries so I know exactly what I’m going to do with some of them. Keep up your overzealous fruit buying ways, my friend, so we can enjoy more yummy recipes like this ????
Yes! My eyes are often bigger than my stomach and I always buy way too much fruit and veggies over the summer! But if it means that I can make this beautiful pavlova, then it’s all worth it. What a fun idea, Rachelle! Sounds delicious and so perfect for the season!
Oh my god yes, problem of my life! Always buy so much fruits and veggies and then I have to throw them..:( and I don’t like wasting food but what to do, the temptation to buy everything is hard to resist! love this pavlova Rachelle, perfect summer dessert!
Haha yes!! I am such a berry and fruit hoarder and always tend to buy so much! This pavlova is the perfect way to use some up! It’s gorgeous, Rachelle! And yay, congrats on the weight loss too!! 🙂
omgggg that fruit – that is some serious fruit porn right there. I wish I had the motivation to cut all that up (those cherries!) but i’m prettyyyy lazy. I had pavlova for the first time last week and it was such a shock to my taste buds! Absolutely delicious.
You can never have too much fruit – as long as you use it all 😉 this pavlova is the perfect use for Summer’s bounty!
Pavlova is summer fruit! I’ve been buying WAYYYY too much fruit (intending to cook or bake with it) and then I just eat it all. Oh well, such is life 🙂
Looks like the perfect summer dessert! Costco and the Farmer’s Market are the places, where I’ve been shopping lately! Need to make this Pavlova very soon!
Yep! Fruit is good for you, so keep on eating it! The proof is in the suit 🙂 I love all this fresh, delicious fruit piled on top of this pavlova!
Yep! I have to admit…I love my CSA but I am struggling to keep up with the abundance of goodies I receive each week. Yikes! I am loving this pavlova! So beautiful…almost too beautiful to eat – looks like a painting!
Guilty on overbuying with the fruit! Literally just happened to me last weekend at the Farmer’s Market — which is why I seriously should never go food shopping hungry! But this is the BEST way to use up everything – I’m in love with this recipe, and those photos are seriously stunning. I’m basically drooling through my computer staring at them.
haha yup, definitely been there (pretty much every week during summer!!). I just can’t help myself this time of the year! This pavlova is sooo pretty! And what a great way to use up some fruit!
I have been wanting to try pavlova for years and I think I just might make it happen this summer!
I am such a big fan of berry pavlova, and this summer fruit pavlova is making me drool, Rachelle. One the most beautiful looking summer desserts! I want this beauty in my life, so I will have to make it ASAP. Have a wonderful weekend! 🙂