The pavlova is the ultimate Christmas/summer dessert in Australia and New Zealand. It is pretty much a large meringue with whipped cream and fresh fruit, including strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi fruit and passion-fruit. It is a light alternative for dessert after the usually heavy food consumed for lunch and dinner on Christmas day. I have even made my fair share of pavlovas before going vegan: creating a successful pavlova was virtually a statement that hey, you can cook! Pavlovas, even with egg, can be a tricky business. You have to use stone/glass/ceramic bowls and wooden spoons. You can't let plastic near it.

However, this is where vegan baking can be quite forgiving. Plastic doesn't bother vegan pavlovas. I made this recipe in a plastic bowl, and used a plastic spatula, with no adverse effects. Yay for vegan baking!

Naturally, as a dessert virtually made entirely out of egg, it was going to be difficult to veganize it. I altered a vegan meringue recipe from Orgran. In this instance, my previous experience making egg pavlovas came in handy. I know what the mix looks likes when it is ready, which is why I added a lot more icing sugar than the Orgran recipe used, because the mixture simply wasn't stiff enough. It is actually a pretty simple recipe to make when you have the ingredients. It only takes a long time to make because of the baking and cooling time. The mixing of the pavlova doesn't take too long, and to serve all you need to do is whip cream and cut up some fruit. Theoretically, you can make the pavlova the day before (storing in a dry environment), and assemble with cream and fruit the next if you don't have the time to fuss around with it.

Anyway, here is the recipe! It is a bit more fragile than your traditional pavlova, but I think it is a good alternative. I hope you enjoy it, and will consider making a cruelty-free vegan pavlova for Christmas!

Approx. 4 hours: 30 minutes prep + 2-3 hours baking + 30 minutes cooling. Makes one large pavlova, serves 6-8.

Recipe altered from Orgran.

You will need:

For the pavlova:

1/2 cup egg replacer, such as Orgran or Ener-G Egg Replacer
1 tsp citrus pectin (I actually used Jamsetta! It was like $1.50 and I found it near the gelatine/baking section at my local supermarket)
1 cup cold water
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 3/4 cup icing sugar

For the toppings:

1 cup vegan whipped cream (I used soyatoo, but coconut cream would be a nice alternative!).
1- 2 cups fresh fruit, including blueberries, strawberries, passionfruit, and whatever takes your fancy!

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 130 degrees Celsius.
2. In a bowl, mix the dry egg replacer with the pectin.
3. Add the cold water, and beat for 5 minutes.
4. Add the vanilla essence and brown sugar, 1 tbsp at a time, beating all the while.
5. Add the icing sugar 1 tbsp at a time until mixed. The foam should increase in volume.
6. When mixed, pipe onto a large tray, in the form of a circle. TIP: use a dinner plate to draw an even circle on the baking paper. This tray should have baking paper, greased in vegan margarine and topped with flour (I used gluten free flour).
7. OPTIONAL: Using a thin spatula, build up the sides of the pavlova.
8. Place in the oven for 2 hours, then check. I recommend squishing the middle in a little, and removing a section of the top to see if the centre is cooked (it is okay to do this, as you will serve it covered in cream!). If it isn't cooked, let bake for at least 30 minutes longer, but check it at 15 minute intervals. It might take longer to cook, depending on your oven and the depth of your pavlova. Once it is cooked, turn off oven, open door slightly, and leave pavlova inside the oven to let it dry out. Don't be concerned if there are cracks in the pavlova: that is what a pavlova does!
9. To assemble: top the pavlova with cream and fruit. Serve! You can press down the centre a little, causing cracks and a dent in the pavlova, so that the cream and fruit doesn't spill out. This is what you do in the traditional pavlova!