Carrot and Parsnip Mash- Don't knock it till you try it!

Another favorite dish of mine growing up was carrots and parsnip mash. Whenever possible, my mother would serve this side with our weekly Sunday roast lamb. (Oh how I miss our roast lamb with mint sauce and gravy served with roasted potatoes, pumpkin and sweet potatoes. Mmmmmm). My father and brothers didn't like this side or rather my father didn't like it and my brothers refused to try it so my mother and I were the only ones who would eat it. I really could eat this every day and actually prefer it to mashed potatoes. When my mother came over for dinner on Mothers Day I made this side to serve with our meal and as usual my brothers wouldn't touch it nor would my mother’s husband or my husband. That was fine by us - we thoroughly enjoyed it!

Carrot and Parsnip Mash


Ingredients
Roughly 5 medium sized carrots
Roughly 2 medium sized parsnips
1 tablespoon of butter
Salt and pepper for seasoning

Method
Cut the carrots and parsnips into fairly small pieces and either boil in a small amount of water or steam until soft. Drain off the water, add butter and salt and pepper. Using a potato masher, mash as you would potatoes.

Not Yo Mamma's Banana Pudding

I love to spoil my husband. He works hard and he deserves it. Though I can't always spoil him in the ways I want to, one way I can spoil him is by making him his favorite foods. A lady I worked with a while back was a Food Network nut and she would often print off recipes for me. This was one I had been holding on to for a while. I finally decided to give it a go and it was delicious!!!!!! I scaled it down a little because my husband, son and I have no business eating a 9x13 size pan of banana pudding. I also didn't have chess men cookies so I used a graham cracker crust. This was easy to put together, flavorful and just down right delicious.

Not Yo Mamma's Banana Pudding
Paula Dean

Ingredients
2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies (you could really use whatever kind of base you like for this recipe)
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) sweetened whipped cream

Directions
Line the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top.

In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

My baby loved this pudding too!



The sweetest kisses!

Super easy moist chocolate bundt cake

I found this recipe on http://mykitchencafe.blogspot.com/ quite a while ago and have made it more than once. I can't believe I hadn't posted it until now. This may not be the fanciest chocolate cake out there but when you have a hankering for a moist and fudgy chocolate cake and you are pinched for time or as this weekend had it energy in my case this is a great go to chocolate cake recipe. I put this together in a snap and it was nice to have when people dropped by to visit this past weekend. My little man had lots of fun helping me make it too. As you can see from the pictures below he also enjoyed helping me "clean" the beaters.

Super Moist Fudge Bundt Cake
from Erin W. and Melanie C.


1 devils food cake mix
1 4-serving instant chocolate pudding mix
4 large eggs
1 cup sour cream (not low-fat or fat-free)
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I use canola)
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Place all ingredients except chocolate chips in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer for 1 minute. Stir down sides. Continue to mix on medium speed for 2-3 minutes. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared (i.e. greased and floured) bundt pan. Bake 45-50 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool 20 minutes. Invert onto serving platter. I dusted mine with powdered sugar but my cake was still warm so it eventually melted into the cake.



MMMMMMMM


Look at those eyelashes!

Such a cheeser! I don't know what it is but pretty much anything that touches the hands always seems to end up rubbed on the face and in the hair.


I also have to give a shout out to the cutest, smartest, cleverist, kindest, sexiest birthday boy. Today my husband turned the big 28! I love you honey and hope you have a special day.

Tomato-Pesto Appetizers - Cute AND delicious

I love to bake and cook but there are just some things that I enjoy making more than others. I had SO much fun making these cute little appetizers on Monday for a Memorial Day family BBQ we attended. Every year on Memorial Day our Grandma or Great-Grandma Welch has a BBQ at her house and everyone brings food to share. We sit around and visit and enjoy watching the big and little kids play. I am hosting a baby shower this coming Saturday and needed one more savory appetizer for my menu and thought this would be a great time to test out this new recipe before I made it for my shower guests. Not only were these little babies cute but they were also very tasty. The smell of the fresh tomatoes and the basil pesto was simply divine.

For mothers day my hubby bought me a 5 piece Martha Stewart 5-Piece Cake and Cupcake Carrier. I was so thrilled because I had actually bought one of these for my mother in law a while back and wanted one ever since. I had been so excited to try out the mini muffin tin and this recipe gave me just one more reason to use it.


Tomato-Pesto Appetizers


Pillsbury.com

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons basil pesto
3/4 cup diced seeded tomato
2 tablespoons finely shredded mozzarella cheese
1 can (7.5 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated tender layer or buttermilk biscuits
2 tablespoons finely shredded Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 20 mini muffin cups with cooking spray. In medium bowl, mix pesto, tomato and mozzarella cheese.
2. Separate dough into 10 biscuits. Separate each biscuit into 2 rounds. Press 1 round in bottom and up side of each mini muffin cup. Spoon about 2 teaspoons tomato-pesto filling into each cup; press in lightly. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.



3. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until biscuit edges are golden brown. I found that I had to bake mine for at least 15 minutes so just be mindful of that.

Oh boy- What a week and weekend!

Starting out this short work week we are pretty exhausted at our house. We had quite the end to our week last week and after a busy long weekend with not much sleep we are feeling anything but rested. Is it too early to say "Bring on the weekend?"

Last Wednesday began like any other - Up way too early in the morning to get ready for the work day, my husband and I dropped our little sunshine off to Nana's house and then we headed off to work. Later that morning I started to get text messages from Nana stating that Gabe didn't seem well and had quite the fever. When I picked Gabe up in the afternoon however, he seemed to be doing much better. I took him home and we went for a walk in the push chair/stroller around the neighborhood, went to a couple of stores and then Gabe played golf while I cooked dinner. He seemed much much better. Then like lightening the fever was back and my little man became limp and lifeless and oddly enough started to have difficulty walking. I gave him more medicine and tried giving him a bath to help reduce the fever but no such luck - he could barely sit up in the bath tub (now I'm getting scared). By this time it was 7:30pm ish and daddy was almost home from his late class at school. As soon as Daddy got home we headed to the kids Insta-care. The doctor examined Gabe and ordered a blood test and after getting the results sent us up to Primary Children’s Hospital with suspected Bacterial Synovitis or septic hip joint.

What is it? Transient synovitis of the hip joint is a condition that occurs in childhood causing hip pain. The cause of transient synovitis is not well understood, but it may be related to a viral illness of the child. Transient synovitis tends to occur in young children, between the ages of 2 and 9 years old. Transient synovitis causes inflammation and pain around the hip joint. The symptoms tend to begin quickly over 1 to 3 days, and usually resolve over the next several days. The following symptoms are common in children with transient synovitis of the hip:
Pain with movement of the hip
Hip and knee pain
Difficulty walking or a limp
Holding the hip flexed and rotated
Fever
The concerning aspect is that these symptoms are very similar to a septic, or infected, hip joint. Bacterial infections of the hip joint are more serious, and may require surgery to treat the infection.

We arrived at the hospital at 10:00 pm to a waiting room full of sick kids and were told there was a 3 hour wait. FABULOUS! Oh and don't let him eat or drink anything incase he needs surgery. WONDERFUL! Bed time was 7:30 pm so we were already way past that and how do you tell a 21 month old that they can't eat or drink anything till who knows when? 3 long hours later it was our turn. Gabe was given his second blood test for the night and then an IV was inserted in my little guy’s hand. Then it was off to be poked and prodded for the next 4 or so hours. An x-ray and a ultrasound revealed that there was fluid in Gabe's hip and he needed a procedure called an aspiration (insert needle into hip and draw out fluid for testing) in the morning to see if the fluid was bacterial or viral. Bacterial = surgery and 5 to 6 weeks of IV anti-biotics and viral = a few days with a fever and sore hip. The aspiration was performed that morning at about 8:30 am and thankfully Gabe was out for the next few hours due to the drugs he was given. Our poor little guy was worn out and hurting and we were strung out, worn out and worried.

Thankfully by late morning the fever had broken and after a few hours of drug induced sleep our little man woke up feeling much better and wanting to move. Though he was still sore and hobbling around, hobbling around was a great sign that the infection was indeed viral. They released us from the hospital at about 3:30 pm on Thursday and we were so relieved to be able to go home. When we got home Brad took Gabe into his room to put him down and Gabe just smiled and pointed to all the pictures on his wall and sighed when Brad put him into his own bed. He knew he was home and it was over.

We are so grateful that Gabe's condition was only viral and not bacterial and that we sought medical attention quickly. When I took Gabe to see his doctor on Friday to get the final result from the aspiration he told me that we were lucky we had acted so quickly. He told me that had we let it go, Gabe could have ended up permanently crippled or worse lost his leg. I am so thankful for the gift of mother’s intuition and for wonderful family who stayed with us at the hospital, brought dinners, gifts and visited us during this tough time. We couldn't have made it through without the love, support, prayers, Gabe's blankie (Thanks Aunty Cerena) and bunny. Most of all I am so grateful to be the mother of such a wonderful little boy who was such an incredible trooper the whole time he was in the hospital. He really is our sunshine.

In his room sleeping after a long night and the aspiration

My poor little man

He did not like having his hand all strapped up. Thankfully he left it alone for the most part. He poked at it a few times when he woke up and was groggy.

The red toe- He didn't like the nurses touching his feet either.

I love my Daddy! Notice what Brad is sitting on- That was our bed for the hour we slept that morning. Cozy!


Brad took this photo the night we got home from the hospital. Notice how happy he was to be home! Thanks Nana Sandy for the cute Jammies!

Red Velvet Cake Balls and a new Bambino

This past week has been full of ups and downs. First there was the news that a sweet, young friend had passed away on Saturday and then my best friend Kami had her third child on Monday. The loss of one life, and the commencement of another all in such a short amount of time has left me to reflect on how fragile and precious every moment in life really is.

I had printed this recipe off last year sometime before the holiday season in the hopes that I would have time to make and deliver them to neighbors for my holiday treat. It didn't happen. I didn't have a chance to make them and none of our neighbors got holiday treats from us. Heck I even wrote a family newsletter and didn't even mail one! Ah well you win some you lose some right? Water under the bridge now. Hopefully this year will be better.

I had so much fun making these cake balls for my friend in celebration of her newest angel. As you can see from the pictures, my friend Kami is gorgeous and her and her husband Joel have the making gorgeous babies thing down too.

I stole this picture from Kami's Facebook page. Like most new mummy's I didn't think she would appreciate me taking snaps of her after just recovering from having her baby.


These are Kami's other two bambinos. Big sister Siena and big brother Braxton.



Welcome little Nash! When I stopped over yesterday to drop my treat of to Kami (unannoucned) little Nash was sleeping in his room. He looked SO tiny in his big crib. Scroll down further to see the cute pics of the nursery. Kami did such an awesome job. It isn't quite finished yet.



OH and the thing I am most excited about right now? My new camera. It is a brand spanking new Nikon D60 (spoiled!). My sweet husband surprised me with this baby on Tuesday. I have had so much fun playing with it and can't believe how incredible the picture quality is. It came with a bunch of accessories including some neat lenses. I can't wait until I can really figure out all that it can do. No more crappy food pics. YAY! Thanks honey!


My bambino! He loves to smell flowers. He has to stop and smell every flower he sees. Then he says "mmmmmmm delicious."

Check out that smile!




Red Velvet Cake Balls




1 Box of red velvet cake mix
1 can of cream cheese frosting
candy melts or melted chocolate for coating

Make the red velvet cake mix according to the package directions for a 9X13 pan. Once the cake has cooled completely break it up into small pieces and place in a large mixing bowl. Next combine the cake with the can of cream cheese frosting. This is best done with your hands. WARNING- This gets VERY messy.

Once the mixture is combined roll into small balls and place on a baking sheet. Place balls in the refridergator until they are well chilled. I froze mine overnight because for me this was a two day endeavor.

Remove the chilled balls from the refridgerator and cover in chocolate. For mine I dipped them in milk chocolate first and then topped them with a coating (just on the top) of white chocolate I had colored blue for the new baby boy.

I thought these turned out so cute. They reminded me of papa smurf. I loved the Smurfs as a kid.

The nursery

Pumpkin Streusel Muffins

Don't you hate it when you are all excited to try a new recipe and after tasting it the results are not a Wahoo but more of a wa wa waaaaa? That was the case with these muffins. Don't get me wrong, they were fine, but for me they were just a little bland. I kept thinking after eating one, these need some chocolate chips. But I didn't want Pumpkin Streusel Chocolate Chip Muffins! I wanted moist and tasty Pumpkin Streusel Muffins. Back to the drawing board.

These tasted like something out of a fat-free, diet, cooking light (but not flavorful) cookbook. I hate to say it but I don't think I will bother making these again. If anyone has a good, tasty recipe for these PLEASE let me know.

Pumpkin Streusel Muffins

1/4 c. margarine or butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
2/3 c. pumpkin
1/2 c. buttermilk
2 eggs
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Streusel Topping:
1/3 c. flour
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. cold butter or margarine
For muffins: cream together margarine and sugars. Add all remaining ingredients and mix together. In a separate bowl, cut together streusel ingredients and sprinkle over muffin batter.
I learnt a cool trick watching America's Test Kitchen on how to successfully add the streusel onto the top of the muffins without making a big mess. The photo is terrible, but what you do is using a round cookie cutter the size of your muffin or cupcake tin place it over the top of the uncooked batter and hold it there while you sprinkle the streusel on top. Once you have placed the desired amount of streusel on top carefully lift the cookie cutter off. This ensures that the streusel stays on top of the muffin where you want it. I love this trick!

Bake in prepared muffin tin at 375 for 20-25 minutes. Makes one dozen muffins.

Tribute to a sweet friend- Lariann Bredthauer 1982-2009

On Saturday at 5:30 pm a dear friend of both Brad and I passed away. Lariann (26) will be greatly missed. Lariann was too young to die and she leaves behind her husband Scott and her cute baby girl Lucy (2). Her battle with brain cancer was a courageous one and she wasn't afraid. Lariann was quoted as saying "I know where I am going. I know that I will see my husband and my daughter again. I have faith." I am so grateful for the knowledge I have that families can be together forever. Lariann was funny. She was always cracking jokes and poking fun. Brad and I went to visit her in the hospital after she had her first brain tumor removed. Though she was just about 20 weeks pregnant and had just had major brain surgery she was still smiling, cracking jokes and teasing her husband. We were next door neighbors when we lived in our apartment, team taught the Sunbeam primary class together (those poor kids) and always had fun teasing and laughing at each other. Lariann had the most amazing blue eyes you have ever seen and an equally bright smile. She was a tiny person with a big heart. Love you and miss you Lariann. We will take care of Scott and Lucy till you can be with them again!

Lariann Evans Bredthauer



Lariann Evans Bredthauer 1982 ~ 2009 KAYSVILLE - Our "miracle" Lariann Evans Bredthauer, 26, valiantly fought a brain tumor, giving us almost three more years of happiness, passed away May 9, 2009 in Salt Lake City. Born in Bountiful, Utah, December 7, 1982 to Jerry L. and Lorraine Evans. Married Scott Nelson Bredthauer, May 16, 2003 in the Salt Lake Temple. A devoted and faithful member of the LDS church. Her testimony and love of the Savior was always evident in her daily life. Sunshine describes her positive attitude, humor and fun loving personality. A truly virtuous woman. Graduated from Davis High school and received an Associate Degree from Weber State University. She loved being part of the color guard in both high school and the university marching bands. Giving birth to her "miracle" daughter, Lucy, while receiving radiation treatments was a sign of her great strength and courage. A talented wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend. She loved being Lucy's mom, Scott's companion, family, family activities, watching sports-especially football and baseball, the outdoors, crocheting, cooking, good movies, music and cultural events. Lariann is survived by: her husband, Scott, her daughter, Lucy, her parents, Jerry and Lorraine Evans, her grandmothers, Barbara Nelson and Marian W. Page, her siblings, Scot (Heidi) Evans, Kristin (Scott) Christensen, Jared (Julaine) Evans, John (Elizabeth) Evans, Rachel (Devin) Razee, her in-laws, Paul and Debra Bredthauer, her brothers-in-law, Tyler (Brooke) Bredthauer, Greg (Stacey) Bredthauer, sister-in-law, Alison Bredthauer and many beloved extended family members and friends. Funeral services will be held Saturday, May 16, 2009, 1l:00 a.m. at the Kaysville Tabernacle 198 West Center St. Viewings will be held Friday, May 15, 2009 from 6-8 p.m. at the Russon Brothers Mortuary 1941 North Main, Farmington (across from Cherry Hill); and 9:30-10:30 a.m. prior to the services at the Tabernacle. Interment, Kaysville City Cemetery. Our sincere thanks to the Huntsman Cancer Institute, Dr. Jensen, Dr. Duhan and Lariann's entire team as well as the staff of the Neurological Critical Care unit of the U of U. A fund has been setup for the family at Zion's Bank. FAMILIES CAN BE TOGETHER FOREVER Online guest book at www.russonmortuary.com

Chocolate Ripple Cake/Log aka Chocolate Icebox Cake

Growing up this was one of my most favorite desserts. I remember eating this as a kid and begging my mother to make it. Last week when I was planning my Mothers Day dinner menu I remembered this dessert and wondered if there was any way I could make it here in the states (you will see why). Once I had in my head that I wanted to have this dessert for Mothers Day there was no stopping me.

In Australia this dessert is made with a cookie/biscuit called a chocolate ripple biscuit (hence the name). You can't get chocolate ripple biscuits here in the US and I had had no luck finding a substitute that would work at any of my local grocery stores. I couldn't even find a recipe to make the cookie from scratch to use in this dessert. I spent a good part of Thursday and Friday last week online trying to find a substitute for the cookie I needed. At last I had found it. Now if only I could find this cookie in the stores. I read countless stories from people online who could not find this particular cookie as Nabisco doesn't widely sell them anymore and MOST grocery stores don't keep them on the shelf. I thought this was an Australian/New Zealand dessert until I started my online research. It turns out that this cake actually originated in America. I was lucky enough to find this pricey cookie at an Albertsons in downtown Salt Lake City. When I did find them I almost cried. I was so excited to make this childhood favorite. It was everything we remembered it to be and my Mothers Day dessert was a success!

A little history: An icebox cake (American), zebra cake (British), or chocolate ripple log (Australian) is a dessert consisting of whipped cream and chocolate wafers. The back-of-the-box recipe on Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers indicates that the wafers are stacked to form a log with whipped cream cementing them together, and then the log is laid on its side. A second log is formed and the two are set side-by-side and more whipped cream covers the exterior. The cake is then left overnight in the refrigerator (or "icebox)." The wafers absorb moisture from the whipped cream and the whole can be served in slices. The dessert is usually served by cutting it into slices at a 45 degree angle, so bands of chocolate and cream are visible across each slice. The traditional wafers are the Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers, but they can be hard to find so other cookies are often substituted.

Chocolate Ripple Cake/Log aka Chocolate Icebox Cake


1 box of Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers - pictured below
2 Cups of heavy whipping cream - whipped
1 teaspoon of vanilla essence

Method:
Add vanilla to cream and whip. Once cream is whipped use a knife or spatula and spread each wafer with a generous amount of cream. Stand the biscuits on edge on a tray, pressing them together to form a log.



Cover the whole lot with cream. I also crushed some oreos and sprinkled them on top.





Place in the fridge for a few hours, or overnight (overnight is best). You have to allow enough time for the cream to soften the cookies for a cake like consistency.
Cut on an angle to serve. This dessert is VERY rich so I chose to serve mine with some fresh strawberries.

This is the cookie that is used in this dessert in the US.


An image of the US version of the dessert- Chocolate Ice Box Cake. I love the shape and design of this cake. Though I think visually it is more appealing, I wonder about the consistency of the cake. I would think that if the cookie isn't completely covered in cream it wouldn't soften.

30 minute rolls- Start to finish!

When it comes to baking and cooking one thing I still need lots of practice making is rolls. I don't feel confident when I embark on a bread or roll venture and I haven't always had success. There seems to be a fine line between under and over flouring the dough and I'm not sure I have it down pat yet. I am so motivated to master making rolls though, that I am not giving up just yet. I'm no quitter!

I LOVE bread and I LOVE rolls. On Sunday I had some of my family over for a Mothers Day dinner and I made these to serve with our meal. Ever since I saw this recipe on the blog of Real Mom Kitchen I had been dying to try it. I love the idea of being able to have homemade rolls in 30 minutes warm out of the oven. These were delicious. I loved the sweetness these rolls had. I will definitely be making these again...maybe even tonight.

One thing to note is that the dough is extremely sticky and moist. These are not the kind of roll you could really shape. To make my rolls I simply grabbed a blob of dough rolled it in my hand and then plopped it in my muffin tin. I made sure to spray my hands with cooking spray frequently so that they dough didn't stick to my hands.

I borrowed this picture from the Real Mom Kitchen blog as Sunday was something of a rush with church and preparing for my guests etc. I just didn't have a chance to snap a picture.

30-Minute Roll (1 dozen version)


1 1/8 cups plus 2 tsp. warm water
1/3 cup oil
2 T yeast
1/4 cup sugar or honey - I used honey
½ tsp. Salt
1 eggs
3 ½ cups flour

Mix 1st 4 ingredients and let rest for 15 minutes. Add salt and eggs - gradually add flour. Shape into dinner rolls, or use in your favorite recipe that calls for dough. After shaped, let rest for 10 minutes. For rolls, Bake 10 minutes @400 degrees ‘till golden brown.

30-Minute Rolls (3 dozen version)

3 ½ cup warm water
1 cup oil
6 T yeast
¾ cup sugar or honey
1 ½ tsp. Salt
3 eggs
10 ½ cups flour

Mix 1st 4 ingredients and let rest for 15 minutes. Add salt and eggs - gradually add flour. Shape into dinner rolls, or use in your favorite recipe that calls for dough. After shaped, let rest for 10 minutes. For rolls, Bake 10 minutes @400 degrees till golden brown.

Australian/New Zealand Pavlova or "Pav"

Ok so I'm not going to get into who the whole Australian/New Zealand Pavlova debate. My father is an Australian, My mother is a New Zealander, two of my brothers were born in New Zealand, I have lived in both Australia and New Zealand and grew up eating pavlova. I feel like I am linked significantly enough to both countries. Hence I feel no need to weigh in on or even discuss where this delicious dessert originated. Bottom line- there is nothing like a good pav.

Like I said, I grew up on these things. My mother was known for her amazing pavlova’s and boy did she know how to make them. They were always perfect. This past Monday I received a request from my dad to make a pavolva for him to take to his school (he is a vice principal at a high school) for the kids to try. I had wanted to try my hand at making a pav for a while but just hadn't done it yet. So when my dad asked me to make one I was nervous. What if it didn't work out? I had never made one in Utah and where I am from in Australia we don't have to contend with altitude issues and it is much much more humid than Utah. I thought both of these factors would definitely come into play. I employed the help of my mother in law who has made a few pav’s in her time (in Utah). She got her recipe from a lady in Australia while she was on a trip there a few years back. This lady had also lived in Utah at some point in time and perfected this recipe while she lived here in Utah.

I didn't have much notice to make this pav so it wasn't perfect, at least it didn't look perfect. My dad however assured me that it tasted awesome, had all the right textures of a regular pav and the kids all flipped out over it. You will notice in my pictures that my pav has a golden color to it. I'm not sure why that is. My mothers pavlova’s were always pearly white but my mother in law said that he pav’s have always been this color. Another thing that wasn't quite right about this pav was that it was a little more crumbly around the edges. My mother’s pav’s always looked like a soft billowy cloud with smooth edges. I think the reason my edges were more crackly was because my eggs were still too cold (they HAVE TO be room temperature!). Anyway, other than some time constraints and my eggs being a little too cold I can now say I have made my first Utah pav. More than ever I am excited now to mess with this recipe in order to try and perfect it. I may just try again this weekend. I'm on a mission.

You will notice my pav is covered with strawberries and kiwi fruit. This is how we ate them growing up. A pav just wouldn't be a pav to me if it wasn't covered in fresh whipped cream (none of that fake crap) and covered with strawberries and kiwi fruit!

Australian/New Zealand Pavlova or "Pav"


5 egg whites (must must must be at room temperature. Ideally get them out in the morning and make the pavlova later on that day)
pinch of salt
1 cup of white castor sugar (to make castor sugar put sugar in a blender and blend until fine)- see note below
1 tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 teaspoon white vinegar

Preheat oven to 300 degrees

Beat egg whites and pinch of salt until stiff. You want to beat them until they look like they couldn't get any stiffer and then beat them some more after that. This is key!

Once the eggs whites are stiff stiff stiff, slowly begin to add the sugar.

Once all the sugar is added, fold in cornstarch, vanilla and vinegar.

Place on a baking sheet covered in foil and place in the oven. My mother in law has found that she has had better success if she places the pavlova mixture in a tall pile as opposed to spreading it out. It will naturally spread out as it bakes and cools in the oven.

Bake the pavlova at 300 degrees for 25 minutes, then turn the oven down to 275 degrees (leave pav in the oven during this process). Bake at 275 for 50-60 minutes. Turn the oven off and let the pavlova cool in the oven. Both my mother and mother in law leave it in the oven over night to cool.