Note: I made the yummy Cream Cheese Crescent Rolls I posted the recipe for last week. Easy and delicious!
Today let’s plan to make a treat for our Mom’s for Mother’s Day. Here is a recipe for a Sunday afternoon tea with your mother.
Strawberry Pavlovas
Ingredients:
- 2 large egg whites, at room temp.
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/8 tsp orange extract (can substitute lemon)
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- 2 1/2 cups (1/8 inch) sliced strawberries
- Garnish: orange or lemon zest)
Preheat oven to 250°.Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a 3-inch round cutter and a pencil, trace 10 circles, 2 inches apart, onto parchment. Flip parchment over so pencil marks are facing down on baking sheet. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine egg whites, cream of tartar, orange (or lemon) extract, and salt. Beat at high speed with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add sugar gradually while beating until stiff peaks form. (Meringue mixture will look glossy.) Place mixture in a piping bag fitted with a medium open-star tip (Wilton #21). Starting in the middle of each traced circle, pipe concentric circles of meringue mixture outward until circle is filled. Pipe 1 to 2 extra layers on perimeters of rounds to form a rim around the edge of each circle.
Bake for 1 hour. Turn oven off, and let sit inside for at least 2 hours or overnight. (This will help meringues to continue to dry and form a crispy shell.)
In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, sour cream, and brown sugar, beating at medium speed with an electric mixer until mixture is smooth and creamy. Cover, and refrigerate until ready to use.
Divide cream cheese mixture evenly among meringue shells. Arrange strawberries, pointed tip up, in concentric circles in cream cheese mixture to form a flower shape. Garnish center of each pavlova with orange or lemon zest, if desired. Serve immediately.
Makes 10 pavlovas. Prep time: 45 minutes. Bake: 1 hour. Cool: 2 hours.
Leanne Tyler 