I made a pavlova this weekend!

I know, it might not sound THAT amazing, but I haven't made a pavlova since I was about 15 years old with my mum standing there giving me instructions on how to do it.

It was surprisingly quick and easy to make the meringue mixture.  One of the things I remember from being a child is my mum making pavlova and then passing the egg beaters to me so that I could sit there and eat the raw meringue, most of which then ended up all over my face.

I used a trusted recipe from the Edmonds Cookery Book - a book that is in every household of NZ!  It makes me think of summer time in New Zealand...so it was fitting for this past lovely weekend we've had in London.

Pavlova

3 egg whites
1 teaspoon vinegar
3 tablespoons cold water
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 cup caster sugar
3 teaspoons cornflour

Preheat oven to 150℃.  Using an electric mixer, beat eggs whites until stiff.  Add water and beat again.  Add sugar very gradually while still beating.  Slow beater and add vinegar, vanilla and cornflour.

Line an over tray with baking paper.  Draw a 22cm circle on the baking paper.  Spread the pavlova to within 2cm of the edge of the circle, keeping the shape as round and even as possible.  Smooth top surface over.

Bake pavlova for 45 minutes, then leave to cool in the oven.  Do not open the door during the cooking time.  Carefully lift pavlova onto a serving place.  Decorate with whipped cream and fresh fruit.

Enjoy!

Are the British obessed with the weather?

View from my bedroom window

To quote my friend Emma on Twitter this morning:  #happyfriday can we have sunshine all weekend please? Also does the UK tweet more about the weather than anywhere else?

After reading this, I scrolled through my twitter updates and there were no less than six different people talking about the weather, all within the first hour of their working day.

So what did I do, even before I got out of bed?  I grabbed my trusty iPhone and looked at the BBC weather page.  Phew, now I know what everyone is talking about and I can join in the weather banter!

I'm slightly obsessed with it after living here in the UK for the past 9 years.  I also check first thing in the morning and then also before I go to sleep - just to mentally prepare myself!

There seems to be three things linked to the weather that people are updating us about this week.  Those interested in the tennis at Wimbledon and don't want to get soggy strawberries. The others going to Glastonbury and trying to decide if wellies or a small dingy is needed to keep dry.  

But most importantly there are those that are lucky enough to be going on holiday within the next week.  Yes, those great people that post up a link to a weather report stating 35 degree plus sunshine and blue skies at some Spanish beach, while the rest of us sit here in the UK, looking out our window and watch as four seasons in one day, flash before our eyes...