Over the weekend, I made a recipe that required two egg yolks. I can’t remember what it was, but it left me with two egg whites.
Sunday was a dreary, chilly, rainy day, so I decided to make individual pavlovas with the two egg whites. I also had a pint of blueberries that were somewhat past their prime, so I made blueberry jam with them. Together, they made a lovely dessert that was a reminder of summer.
Here’s how I did it.
Blueberry Jam
A couple of years ago, I posted the long version of the blueberry jam recipe when I made lots of blueberry jam and boiled the jars to save them for wintertime use.
https://neversaydiebeauty.com/features/diy-non-beauty-gift-make-jam/
Lately, I’ve been too lazy to make all those jars. It’s just as easy to make blueberry jam one pint at a time! In fact, I don’t even use a recipe.
- Wash and clean a pint of blueberries. Place them in a 1-2 quart saucepan.
- Add about a tablespoon of water.
- Add sugar to taste. For one pint of blueberries, I add about 1/3 cup of sugar and a pinch of salt.
- Set the heat to medium and bring it to a simmer. Stir to dissolve the sugar and salt.
- Once the blueberries soften, use a masher to mash about 2/3-3/4 of the blueberries.
- Add a teaspoon of lemon juice.
- Continue to simmer the mixture till it thickens.
- Test by doneness, but putting a plate in the freezer. Place a spoonful of the jam on the plate, and run your finger or a spoon through the jam. If the jam stays separated rather than running back together, it’s gelled. Pour it into a bowl or jar. It will thicken a bit more as it refrigerates.
Pavlova
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
- Make sure there is no egg yolk in the egg whites. Let the egg whites come to room temperature.
- Two egg whites made 5 pavlovas that were 5 inches in diameter. Next time, I would make 4″ circles. If you make smaller circles, you’ll get even more. I traced plastic storage containers onto parchment paper to use as guides. Make sure you put the pavlova mixture on the opposite side of the paper, so the lead doesn’t mix in! Place on a baking sheet.
- In the bowl of a mixer, add the egg whites and a pinch of salt. Turn the speed to medium-high and mix till the egg whites form soft peaks.
- With the machine running, add a 1/2 cup of sugar plus 1 tablespoon sugar (you can use superfine sugar or buzz the granulated sugar in a food processor so it gets finer, if you like. I didn’t bother this time.) Add the sugar to the mixture one tablespoon at a time till it’s all added. Continue to mix till the egg whites form stiff, glossy peaks.
- Sprinkle in one teaspoon of white vinegar, a half teaspoon of vanilla extract and a half teaspoon of cornstarch. Mix till just combined. Shut off mixer.
- With a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon, place the meringue in the center of the circle and spread out to the sides. Pavlovas are not smooth, but fluffy looking and rustic, though you can pipe the meringue if you want a more uniform look. Take a spoon and make a well in the center of the finished pavlovas.
- Place the baking sheet with the pavlovas into the oven, and turn the temperature down to 200 degrees. Bake for 1 1/2 hours. Turn off the oven, and let the pavlovas stay in the oven for another 1 1/2-2 hours to finish drying out.
- Just before serving, add about a tablespoon of jam to the center of each pavlova. Enjoy!
Wow! I am impressed by your creativity.
Thank you, Denise! I love to cook. Do you cook or bake for fun? So much of cooking can be required, but it’s nice to do something fun or out of the ordinary!