De's Fool's Guide To Pavlova!

Her favourite dessert ever!

1. 1

   1. Prepare your baking tray by greasing the tray first and then placing a piece of greaseproof paper on it. Then grease the paper and run it lightly under the cold water tap and shake of surplus water.
   
   2. Preheat oven to 160-180 degrees celcius.
   
   3. Add salt to whites and whisk until it forms stiff peaks.
   (Now most recipes tell you to use a steel spoon to stir in the rest of the ingredients, but I have found the following method much more successful in my attempts!)
   
   4. Add 1/3 of the sugar and cornflour. Whisk in between.
   
   5. Add vinegar and vanilla essence and whisk one more time. Turn out the meringue mixture onto the centre of the prepared tray, and try to keep it as tall as possible and using the wooden spoon smooth into a round shape. Do not be tempted to spread the mixture over the tray as it will naturally spread a little in the oven.
   
   6. Place in a preheated oven for 45 mins. Do NOT open the oven door as this is what causes the meringue to fall!
   
   7. After the 45 mins leave the meringue in the oven for at least another half hour or for as long as possible. This will again ensure the meringue does not fall.
   
   8. Remove from tray and place on flat plate and decorate with whipped cream and fruit.