An incredibly pretty pistachio and rosewater Pavlova dessert with the fragrant flavor of the Middle East. These beauties are crunchy and soft. Every bite of this deliciousness just melts in your mouth.
This dessert is a real magic. It’s made without eggs and dairy products, only a few secret ingredients were used.
Pavlova is a meringue-based dessert named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova. It is a meringue cake with a crisp crust and soft, light inside, usually topped with fruit and, optionally, whipped cream. The dessert is believed to have been created in honor of the dancer either during or after one of her tours to Australia and New Zealand in the 1920s.
Vegan Pavlova Cooking Secrets:
Aquafaba. What is aquafaba? This word is the common name for the cooking liquid of beans and other legumes like chickpeas. It turns into a foaming agent when whipped for long enough, making it an excellent foam such as egg white. That is perfect for a meringue. You can’t find out the taste of chickpeas. You never find a difference, because taste and texture of meringue are perfect crunchy outside and fluffy inside.
Choose canned chickpeas no salt added. I prefer organic chickpeas from Ceres brand, It always works great. After many experiments, I came to the conclusion that the chilled aquafaba forms a foam better than room temperature.
Cream of tartar. Tartaric acid, the powdered form of the white crystalline acid that forms on the insides of wine barrels—a natural byproduct of wine fermentation. It stabilizes the aquafaba foam and adds volume. The cream of tartar should be added to the aquafaba just as they begin to become frothy during the beating process.
Sugar. In this recipe, I reduced the amount of sugar. But added cornstarch to stabilize aquafaba foam.
Baking time and temperature. The low temperature and long baking make snow-white meringue. As well meringue will not rise and It`s not gonna be hollow inside.
Meringue Storage. Baking meringue during the rainy weather is particularly challenging. When it’s rainy or humid outside, make sure your meringues are completely dry before taking them out of the oven, pack up any meringues not being eaten right away, and keep in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Add whipped cream and toppings right before Pavlova being served.
The Green Seed Coconut Chips is a healthy snack that has a raspberry flavor and beetroot color. Made with real raspberries and beetroot. Yummy as it is or you can sprinkle them over your favorite sweet meals, e.g., pancakes, granola, acai bowl, smoothie. No added sugar.
In this recipe, I use light airy and delicious whipped coconut cream. The secret of whipped coconut cream is which brand you use. Some coconut milk brands add Carrageenan in their products. Carrageenan is an additive thickening emulsifier to improve the texture and consistency of foods often found in almond and coconut milk. Coconut milk with emulsifier is thick and creamy but not suitable for whipping. Choose organic coconut milk without an emulsifier. Chill it overnight in the fridge. Open the can of chilled coconut milk. Coconut milk is an emulsion of two fluids: coconut cream and coconut water. At cooler temperatures, coconut milk separates into its components, and the cream rises to the top. Scoop it out. My favorite brand of coconut milk is Trade Aid (Available in New Zealand).
I add xanthan gum to coconut whipped cream, that helps to stabilize it. Xanthan gum is a bacteria-derived product, commonly used as a thickening and stabilizing agent in both food and medicine.
Ingredients
Serves 6-8
- 1/2 Cup chilled Aquafaba
- 1/3 Cup Icing sugar
- Pinch of Cream of tartar (1/8 Teaspoon)
- 1 Teaspoon Corn Starch
- 1 Teaspoon Rose Water
For Coconut Whipped Cream:
- 1 Can of chilled coconut milk
- Pinch of Xanthan gum
- 1 Teaspoon of Icing sugar
- 1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla extract
For Serving:
1/3 Cup Chopped Pistachios
1/2 Cup The Green Seed Raspberry + Beets Coconut Chips
1/3 Cup Dried Rose Petals (I use Chinese Rose tea)
Directions
For Meringue.
- Preheat fan oven to 100C (210F). Using a pencil, mark out small circles of a small bowl around 10cm (4 inches) across on baking parchment. Place the paper on the tray or two trays pencil marks side down.
- Combine aquafaba and rose water. Start to whisk using a stand mixer with stainless steel bowl. The bowl and beaters should be completely clean and dry. The cream of tartar should be added to the aquafaba just as they begin to become frothy during the beating process. Starting with a low, gradually increase the speed and beat till soft peaks. Reduce the speed to slow, whisk in the sugar, 1 teaspoon at a time, until the meringue looks glossy. Whisk in the cornflour. Beat until firm peaks. When the beaters or whisk is lifted out of the aquafaba, the peak will stand erect and not bend over. Usually, all beating process takes about 8 minutes.
- Spread the meringue inside the circle, creating a crater by making the sides a little higher than the middle.
- Put meringues in the oven and bake for 2 – 2,5 hours, then turn off the heat and let them cool completely inside the oven.
- Store meringues in a cool dry place.
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Coconut whipped cream. Open the can of chilled coconut milk. Scoop coconut cream out and place in the chilled mixer bowl. Usually, it is about 1 cup of coconut cream. Add xanthan gum and beat for 1 minute using a mixer until creamy. Then add vanilla and icing sugar, mix until smooth. Keep coconut whipped cream chilled.
Serving. Place meringue on the serving plate just before serving. Spoon the coconut whipped cream into a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe it using a spiraling motion onto the meringue in a large swirl. Garnish the Pavlova dessert with chopped pistachios, The Green Seed Coconut Chips and dried rose petals. Serve immediately.
Enjoy!
