Pavlova

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This meringue-based delicacy, named after the renowned Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, is a true masterpiece that will enchant your palate with every bite. Imagine a dessert with a crisp and delicate meringue crust, giving way to a soft interior, perfectly complemented by a lavish yuzu crémeux, red fruit marmalade, jus de fraise jelly, and luscious vanilla mascarpone Chantilly cream and strawberries. The Pavlova is a celebration of textures and flavors, a harmonious blend of sweetness and lightness that is simply irresistible.

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Named After Ballerina Anna Pavlova

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French Meringue

Draw 4 disks or other shapes on parchment (2 per cake) 7-inch/18 cm. Flip parchment onto oiled baking tray. Grease parchment as well using oil or cooking spray. Wipe off excess fat with paper towels. Make some fairy fingers with remaining meringue.
Baked meringue disks shall be brushed with melted cocoa butter or coconut butter (do it over warm meringue). The fat in cocoa butter forms a protective barrier over skin to hold in moisture.

Strawberry Jelly

Soak gelatin sheets in cold water to soften, and drain. Place strawberries and sugar over a bain-marie, cover with plastic wrap tight and let sweat for a couple of hours. Turn heat off and leave it to sit overnight.
Drain and save the rendered juice. Save solids for snacks. Use 200g strawberry juice ''jus de fraise'' for the recipe. Heat up to 140ºF/60ºC and add gelatin. Pour juice into a small tray lined with plastic wrap or freezer bag and freeze to set.
Flip over a freezer bag and cut into desired shapes. Keep jelly frozen until ready to use.

Red Fruit Marmalade Insert

Soak gelatin sheets in cold water to soften, and drain. In a saucepan, heat up raspberry puree with water. Mix sugar and pectin, and add it to the hot fruit puree.
Add chopped strawberries, and bring to a boil. Add lemon juice and zest. Remove from the heat, and stir in gelatin.
For the inserts, prepare 2 cake rings. Seal each bottom cake ring with a stretched sheet of plastic wrap and make two 0.8 inch/2cm thick red fruit marmalade insert and freeze.

Yuzu Crémeux

Yuzu is a very aromatic citrus fruit of East Asian origin. In a saucepan, mix sugar with egg yolks, eggs, and starch. Add the Yuzu and lemon juice and bring to a boil whisking constantly.
Remove from the heat and transfer mixture to a narrow container – let cool for 10 minutes, add butter and smooth out with an immersion blender.
Top the frozen strawberry marmalade inserts with the Yuzu crémeux and freeze. De-mold and keep frozen.

Vanilla Mascarpone Chantilly

Whip all ingredients together on medium-high speed until medium firm peaks form.

Montage

Make up 2 cake boards slightly larger than the cake with a piece of carton board. Add a dollop of Chantilly and place the first meringue disk onto it. Pipe out a layer of Chantilly.
Top with the frozen red fruit marmalade-yuzu insert.
Add more Chantilly and cover with some chopped strawberries. Spread a thin layer of Chantilly on the second meringue and flip (flat surface up).
Cover the sides of the cake with Chantilly, and even out with an offset spatula and give a neat finish to the top as well.
Decorate cake with Chantilly rosettes and arrange fairy fingers on cake sides.
Arrange strawberries harmoniously on cake (brush fruits with mirror neutral glaze if desired). Add jelly and edible flowers such as lemon thyme flowers.

Storage

Refrigerate pavlova 2 hours before serving. Pavlova should be eaten within 24 hours. Avoid freezing temperature.

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