Rhubarb & Custard Pavlovas With Crystallised Pistachios
We're making marshmallowy mini pavlovas & serving them with vanilla pastry cream, roasted rhubarb, vanilla whipped cream & crunchy crystallised pistachios.
Servings: 5 People
Equipment
- Stand Mixer
- Large Baking Tray
- Digital Food Probe
- Large Saucepan
- Heatproof Dish
- Piping Bags
Ingredients
Individual Pavlovas
- 160 g Egg Whites (Room Temperature- See Notes)
- 270 g Caster Sugar
- 2 tsp Cornflour
- 1 tsp White Wine Vinegar
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
Vanilla Pastry Cream
- 500 g Whole Milk
- Half A Vanilla Pod (Or 2 Teaspoons Of Vanilla Paste)
- A Pinch Of Sea Salt
- 80 g Caster Sugar
- 70 g Egg Yolks (4 Yolks)
- 35 g Cornflour
- 35 g Unsalted Butter
Roasted Rhubarb
- 400 g Rhubarb
- 80 g Caster Sugar
- 2 tbsp Orange Juice
- Half A Vanilla Pod (Or 2 Teaspoons Of Vanilla Paste)
Crystallised Pistachios
- 50 g Pistachios (Shelled)
- 30 g Caster Sugar
- 1 tbsp Cold Water
Whipped Cream
- 300 g Double Cream
- 1 tsp Vanilla Paste
Instructions
Individual Pavlovas
- Line a large baking tray with baking parchment then draw five 10 cm circles onto the parchment with a pen. Flip the parchment over so that the circles are underneath.Use a circular cutter or plate as a guide!
- Add the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer then whisk on a medium speed to soft peaks. This will take 2-3 minutes.
- Next, turn the mixer speed down slightly then add in the caster sugar a tablespoon at a time, making sure to let the sugar mix in fully before adding in more. I find that adding a spoonful of sugar in every 20 seconds or so is best.
- Once all the sugar has been added, turn the mixer back up to medium then continue whisking for 15-20 minutes, until the meringue has reached stiff peaks and is thick & glossy. Whilst your meringue is whisking to stiff peaks, preheat an oven to 160°c/140°c fan (320°f/284°f). If you're using a KitchenAid, speed 4-5 is best when whisking the meringue to stiff peaks. To check if the meringue is ready, rub it between your thumb & index finger. If it feels smooth, it's ready but if it feels grainy, more whisking is needed.
- Add the cornflour, vinegar & vanilla to the meringue then whisk for another minute or so (on medium), until combined.
- Transfer the meringue into a piping bag, then pipe 5 domes of meringue onto the tray, using the circles that you drew earlier as guides. I find that cutting the end of the piping bag off 2 inches from the tip is best as this allows us to pipe a large dome of meringue in one go. If you dab a small amount of meringue on each corner of the tray, underneath the parchment then it won't move!
- Next, use a palette knife or spoon to shape each meringue so that they're roughly 5 cm tall, with a shallow crater on top (to hold the custard, fruit & cream!). I like to use a palette knife to make some decorative swoops on the sides of the meringues.
- Once shaped, place the tray into the preheated oven then immediately turn the temperature down to 110°c/90°c fan (230°f/194°f). Bake for 1 hour then turn the oven off & leave to cool for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.
- The next day, transfer the pavlovas to an airtight container & store in a cool, dry place until ready to serve.
Vanilla Pastry Cream
- Add the milk, vanilla, salt & half of the caster sugar to a large saucepan then set over a low heat. Warm gently, stirring occasionally until steaming hot.If you're using a vanilla pod, scrape the seeds out then add both the pod & seeds to the milk.
- Whilst your milk is warming up, place the yolks, cornflour & remaining sugar into a mixing bowl & whisk by hand until pale, smooth & combined. This will take a minute or so.
- Once the milk is steaming hot, pour half of it into the yolks, whisking as you do so. Pour the now tempered yolks into the pan of milk.
- Cook over a medium heat, whisking constantly until the custard is thick & starting to boil. If you take the temperature of the custard with a food probe, it should be around 85°c/185°f once cooked.To check if the custard is ready, stop whisking every 20-30 seconds once it has thickened. If a few bubbles appear & pop, the custard is ready. Be careful not to overcook it though!
- Once the custard is cooked, take the pan off the heat, whisk in the butter then pass through a sieve, into a bowl. Place a piece of baking parchment onto the custard's surface, leave to cool slightly then refrigerate until completely cold. This will take at least 2 hours.
Roasted Rhubarb
- Preheat an oven to 180°c/160°c fan (356°f/320°f).
- Lightly trim the ends off the rhubarb then cut each stalk into 1" pieces. Place into a heatproof dish with the sugar, orange juice & vanilla then stir to combine.If you're using a vanilla pod, scrape out the seeds then add both the seeds & pod into the dish.
- Cover the dish with foil then bake in the preheated oven until tender but the pieces still hold their shape. This will take roughly 25-30 minutes but check the rhubarb periodically after around 15 minutes.
- Once cooked, remove the foil, let the rhubarb cool then transfer the rhubarb & syrup into a container & refrigerate until needed.If using forced rhubarb, it will turn a more vivid pink after a few hours in the syrup! Don't turn your oven off yet, we'll need it to toast the pistachios.
Crystallised Pistachios
- Place the pistachios onto a small baking tray then cook in the oven for 4-5 minutes, until toasted & fragrant. Set to one side for now.
- Line another small tray with baking parchment then set to one side.
- Next, place the sugar into a small frying pan then drizzle over the water. Set the pan over a medium heat, cook until the sugar has dissolved then add in the toasted pistachios.
- Keep cooking the pistachios, stirring constantly until the sugar has crystallised. This will take around 3-4 minutes & the nuts will have a snowy white coating when ready.
- Tip the nuts onto the lined tray, leave to cool then roughly chop before serving.
Whipped Cream
- Add the double cream & vanilla into a mixing bowl then whisk to soft peaks. You can do this by hand or with an electric hand mixer.It's best to whip the cream just before serving the pavlovas.
Plating Up
- Take the pastry cream out of the fridge, whisk until smooth then transfer to a piping bag.You can whisk the pastry cream by hand or with an electric hand mixer. Be careful not to over whisk it though!
- Place the pavlovas onto plates then give the tops a firm tap with a spoon, to hollow out the craters slightly, making room to pipe in the custard.
- Next, pipe a generous amount of pastry cream into each pavlova. Make sure not to overfill them though, we'll need some room for the cream & fruit.
- Top each pavlova with a spoonful of whipped cream then make a small crater in the top of the cream with the back of a spoon. This will hold the rhubarb!
- Spoon the rhubarb on top of the cream, with plenty of the syrup then sprinkle over the pistachios & serve.
Notes
1. Egg Whites - This pavlova recipe uses 160 grams of egg whites which is roughly equivalent to the whites from 5 large eggs. Egg whites will whisk up better when they're at room temperature, so make sure to let them warm up slightly if they've been in the fridge.
2. Vanilla - Using a good quality vanilla makes all the difference in the custard & rhubarb. You can either use a vanilla pod or a good vanilla paste.
3. Making In Advance & Storage - This dessert is designed to be made in advance & comes together last minute. The pavlovas will keep for up to 2 days but are best eaten as soon as possible. The rhubarb & pastry cream will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge. The whipped cream will keep for up to 2 days in the fridge although it's best served fresh and the pistachios will keep for several weeks when stored in an airtight container.