Pavlova perfection

Mum’s always been the maestro pavlova maker in the family. This year, she struggled to find the recipe and to remember how she made it. She eventually tracked down the old recipe book with the recipe written in careful capitals. There was no complete method however, but I remembered my sister saying that our brother, who makes an excellent pavlova, adds the sugar at one minute intervals. And so it fell to a rather nervous me to make the pavlova for a family early Christmas dinner today.

The secret of a good pavlova is to beat it for so long it has no choice but to stand up. It collapses a bit as it cools, but that is easily covered with whipped cream and strawberries. I forgot to take a photo of the end result, but it passed the test at the dinner, thankfully.