Christmas Pavlova
I'm starting with something that's mostly store-bought, and leaning into the fear of what I am not. I'm not a chef, food blogger, recipe developer, or food stylist, and it's not my goal to become one. Yet there are memories connected to food that can move us to tears, give us goosebumps, and take us back to our childhood in one bite. A smell, a taste, and whisper of a moment that's long gone. Food is a way to tell our story wrapped up with a bow of nostalgia.
As a Mum, I love to bake and feed my big family. It's my way to connect with my children, spend time together, and make a delicious cake or muffins. It started when they were little, and I still enjoy it today with teenagers. It's my love language.
Many friends have suggested I write a book, a collection of photos and stories. It's been a dream, one deeply buried, and over the last few years, it's bubbled up. I can no longer let my fear of not being a chef get in the way. Instead, I will use my many other skills to guide me and create a storybook over a recipe book. It will include recipes we love, homemade and store-bought, plus the stories that go with them.
A Christmas pavlova always graces our dessert table, and I've never made one from scratch. We always use a store-bought base, add whipped cream, and berries to decorate the top. It's one less thing to cook, and it's ready in about 10 minutes. Along with the pavlova, we also share a trifle, and they are old-fashioned desserts that that don’t require hours in the kitchen. It’s simple yet the cream and meringue are refreshing on a usually hot day. The berries are a mix of cherries, blueberries, raspberries, and this year I found red currants. They add a tartness to balance out sweetness, but honestly, it's because they look like jewels on a crown. This year, I tried a stacked pavlova but it just collapsed in on itself. The raspberry cream in the middle was delicious, and I think we will go back to a single meringue with the raspberry cream on the top.
I'm more of a pavlova fan than a trifle lover, and I don't like to mix them together. I enjoy that moment of sitting down after a long day of festivities and letting the fork slide through the soft cream and meringue. I remember my Mum doing the same thing as a child, and I always think of her as I take that first bite. She would, and still does, save her dessert until very late in the day, find a quiet moment to sit and savour the taste, and the day spent with her family. I never understood how she could wait and keep it for later; now, I do.
