4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar, castor
1 tsp cornflour
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp vanilla flavour
Directions
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. With an electric mixer beat the egg
whites until soft peaks form, then gradually add the sugar. Beat
until firm.
Add the cornflour, vinegar and vanilla. When combined, turn out onto
a flat tray that has been greased and dusted with cornflour. Try a
circular shape with slightly more mixture at the edges so that it may
be served by placing goodies in its centre depression.
Cook in a pre-heated, cool (250 degrees F.) oven for one hour. When
cooked, turn the oven off, leave the oven door slightly ajar, and
allow to cool slowly in the oven. This slow cooling works to prevent
the loss of too much height. Serve cold, with whipped cream and fresh
fruit pieces, strawberries and kiwi fruit for example.
NOTES:
* Australian meringue dessert.
* Cornflour is known in North America as cornstarch. Castor sugar is
known there as granulated sugar.
* Make sure that you start off with a clean bowl and beat the egg
whites well. A bowl with smooth sides (glass, metal) will help the
eggs to whip up. A plastic bowl with scratches prevents the eggs from
attaining a very light texture. Also ensure that the sugar is fully
dissolved before going on to the next step. I have never had troubles
from over-whipping. The final texture should be meringue on the
inside with a thin crust on the outside.
: Difficulty: moderate.
: Time: 30 minutes preparation, 1 hour cooking, 1 hour cooling.
: Precision: Measure the ingredients.
: Alex Patison UUCP: {pyrcorp,sun}!pta!alex
: Pyramid Technology Australia ACSNET: alex@pta.oz
: Copyright (C) 1986 USENET Community Trust
Servings: 6 servings
Pavlova Ii Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Australian
The History of Recipes
Academics have traced the existance of recipes way back into ancient history, at least as far back into history as the early Egyptians, and quite possibly further than that. Interesting though that is, mostly, these old cook books were just basic hieroglyphic or cunieform instructions for preparing food.
Interestingly, the oldest recipe in existence, according to food historians are a few stone tablets in the Sumerian language which show the making of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making drinkers feel wonderful and blissful. During Roman times around 25BC a man called Apicius created a collection of scripts describing recipes prepared by wealthy Romans. In his scrolls, Apicius recounts how the meals of wealthy Romans were split into hors d`oeuvre, entrees and dessert, something that is very familiar to us today. He also recounts how the ancient Romans were skilled in the use of a wide range of spices and herbs, including a few that are still present in modern kitchens such as thyme, rue and asafoetida. In the fifteenth century, knights returning from the crusades brought us many foods, spices and herbs from Arab countries, including spices like rosemary and coriander. These new foods and tastes prompted a surge in recipe manuscripts, some of which are kept safe in private libraries. During the succeeding few hundred years, the rich families of Europe competed with each other to offer the most exotic banquets, and as a consequence, the best chefs and their recipe collections were at a premium. However, it wasn`t until the 1800s that fine cookery and recipe publications reached a high level of popularity. The Famous Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Farmer in the USA, devoted much of their lives to assembling, testing, and recording the recipes that were being prepared for the better households. Like it or not, the introduction of television brought us TV cookery programs and the accompanying recipe books. And that neatly brings us to the present day and the internet revolution, permitting everyone to access massive numbers of recipes just like those on this recipe site. |
We hope you enjoy this Pavlova Ii recipe.
