And her sweet red lips on these lips of mine
Burned like the ruby fire set
In the swinging lamp of a crimson shrine,
Or the bleeding wounds of the pomegranate,
Or the heart of the lotus drenched and wet
With the spilt-out blood of the rose-red wine.
– Oscar Wilde, “In the Gold Room – A Harmony.”
Oh, happy happy Valentine’s Day!
I hope you all had a day that included love and, at the very least, a little sweet treat.
I will say, my enjoyment for this holiday is pretty much limited just to the desserts. I’m less keen on gifts and cards and flowers. It also signals that February is halfway over, so I can begin to imagine the end of our dreary trudge towards spring. I’m keen on that, for sure.
I’m on call for the whole weekend, and I wish I had portioned out this pavlova to last longer, but I ate it last week. Call will, I’m sure, be fueled by mediocre hospital coffee and not fluffy pavlova. Alas.
This is the first pavlova I’ve made in quite a while, and every time I do, I’m reminded why I love them so dearly.
Any amount of frilly piping makes the crisp meringue shell look immediately beautiful, and when paired with two more layers of fluffy, pink pitaya-tinted whipped cream, it really acquires a cloudlike grandeur.
Inside this one is a layer of unctuous pomegranate curd, silky smooth and with a fruity kick.
Thinly sliced berries make a crown, and the whole thing actually gets better when they’re allowed to marry together for a few hours (even overnight)!
The meringue turns marshmallowy and the strawberries macerate, intensifying their flavor… Just lovely.
Valentine’s Day, previously (this list is getting long):
2024:
Fudgy triple chocolate cake
2023:
Mini nutella Paris-Brest
2022:
Bite-sized beet and grapefruit tarts
2021:
Rose-covered white and dark chocolate ganache cake
2020:
Frilly and vintage chocolate, cherry, and cacao butter cake
2019:
Funfetti cake with marzipan and salted tahini frosting
2018:
Kawaii mini strawberry-strawberry cakes with olive oil and balsamic chocolate cake, strawberry jam, and marzipan
2017:
Fluffy, ruffled princess layer cake with a cascade of marzipan roses
Thick, soft M&M cookies
Mocha cupcakes topped with fluffy swirls of vanilla bean Italian meringue buttercream
2016:
Ginger, Malted Vanilla, and Hibiscus layer cake
Baby pink XO salty sugar cookies
Raspberry white chocolate and Nutella éclairs
Brown butter and vanilla bean teacakes
2015:
Fluffy, buttery copycat Lofthouse cookies
Chocolate covered strawberry cake with goat cheese frosting
Dolled-up red velvet cake
Mini pink princesstårta
2014:
Pink grapefruit possets with Ritz crunch and pistachios
Dark and white chocolate French mendiants
Strawberry pocky cake
Salty dark chocolate tarts
Pitaya Pomegranate Pavlova
makes 1 9″ pavlova
pavlova recipe from ZoeBakes
ingredients:
2 piped pavlova shells, fully baked and dried
for the pomegranate curd:
56 grams (4 tablespoons) butter
2 tablespoons dragonfruit/pitaya powder
100 grams (1/2 cup) sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
120 grams (1/2 cup) pomegranate juice
1 teaspoon cornstarch
40 grams (2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons) lemon juice
to assemble:
350 grams (1 1/2 cups) heavy cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
3 tablespoons dragonfruit/pitaya powder
7-8 strawberries or 1 pint raspberries
directions:
Make the meringue shell (I follow Zoe’s instructions to a T, except dividing the meringue up to make 2 layers).
Meanwhile, make the curd: blend all ingredients except the butter together using an immersion blender.
Pour the mixture into a saucepot on medium-low heat and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened (so that a line drawn on the back of the spoon stays put).
Remove from the heat and immediately blend in the butter until fully homogeneous.
Allow to cool completely with a piece of saran wrap pressed to the surface to prevent a skin from forming.
To assemble the pavlova, whip the cream, sugar, and pitaya powder together to stiff peaks.
Place the first meringue layer on your serving plate, then pipe a border of the whipped cream.
Into the center, spread a thick layer of pomegranate curd.
Top with second meringue layer, the remainder of the whipped cream, and thinly sliced strawberries or raspberries.
Dust with powdered sugar before serving.
Lasts for up to 3 days in the fridge, but best eaten within 12 hours of assembly for structural integrity.