5 of the Best Hand Mixers for Baking

by Alex on January 20, 2017

For all of you who love to bake, hand mixers are a remarkable appliance to keep in the kitchen. The market offers some advanced and easy to use options. We have reviewed some of the best available options that you might consider buying online. We recommend the Kitchenaid KHM926ER for those not constrained by budget or the Hamilton Beach (groovy name) for those a bit more budget conscious.

The below table offers a sneak-peek for the 5 selected hand mixers being reviewed in the article below. The basic elements that are the 1^st to consider when selecting a hand mixer have been chosen as the parameter to differentiate.

Like any other product, the hand mixers are classified under different budget segments. They are:

Budget or Affordable Hand Mixers – $15 to $30
Mid-budget Hand Mixers – $30 to $70
Premium Budget Hand Mixers – $70 to $130

Model	Wattage	Multiple Speeds & Slow Speed	Weight & Construction
KitchenAid KHM926ER Empire Red 9-Speed Hand Mixer	270 Watts	9 Speed Soft Start	2lbs Plastic
Bodum Bistro Electric 5 Speed Hand Mixer, Black	170 Watts	5 Speed No Slow Speed Start	4.1lbs Stainless Steel
Cuisinart HM-90BCS Power Advantage Plus 9-Speed Handheld Mixer with Storage Case, Brushed Chrome	220 Watts	9 Speed 3 Low-Speed Start	4.1lbs Chrome
Breville BHM800SIL Handy Mix Scraper Hand Mixer, Silver	240 Watts	9 Speed Slow Speed Start	4lbs Plastic
Hamilton Beach 62695V Power Deluxe Hand Mixer	275 Watts	6 Speed Special Low Speed	3.5lbs Stainless Steel

We love a good handmixer

If you are like us and love to bake, an essential appliance that can come to your rescue is a hand mixers. These are specially designed products that facilitate the need of whipping up the cream and creating fluffy meringues. These are not only among the most recommended products for the beginners but are a favorite among the most popular chefs too. Presently, the market has a stack of options when it comes to a hand mixer. They are meant to be used for the same purpose but each of them come with a distinct feature of their own. While some have been priced high owing to the advanced features they support, there are some basic hand mixers that do the job equally well. Before we try to evaluate the best available mixers in the market, it would be a wise idea to understand the specifics as well as important aspects to consider when buying a hand mixer.

Low-budget affordable options solve the purpose, but most of these are built with cheap materials. Hence, cheaper options have a shorter lifespan and if you use a hand mixer on a regular basis, then its worth opting for pricier options. In respect of usage, a mixer is often used for whipping up eggs, making mayonnaise or carrying out similar operations. A more strenuous operation like the mixing of bread dough is also something a mixer is capable of doing. Hence, before making a purchase it would be wise to shortlist the things you would be using it for.

Tips to select the best hand mixer for your need

The following guide is intended to offer you a guideline to select the perfect hand mixer that suits your requirements. Although each of them would do the same task, there are various things that separate each of these from the other.

Read Reviews: Going online and searching for the best hand mixers that are currently available in the market is the 1^st thing to do. With so many options, it is certainly impossible to understand the one to go for. Reputed and unbiased reviews by experts offer insights on the features, quality, usability, value for money, serviceability, and much more. The key things to consider while reading such reviews include:
- A comfortable Grip
- Study Parts that would last
- Variable Speed Control
- Watt Rating of the product

While it is really important to have a product that grips well to ensure you perform the task easily, variable speed control and sturdy parts contribute towards its functionality and the aspect of longevity. The other factor of considering is the wattage as it measures the power used by these machines. Choosing a machine with a high watt means that the machine would do most of the work as compared to your wrists and vice versa.

Budgets: The next thing to consider before you finalize an option would be to select a budget. Yes, it is difficult to decide upon a budget, but it gives you a rough idea and helps to cut down the number of options that you might come across. There are both cheap and expensive options that are there on offer, but it is always advisable to select a standard mid-budget mixer to ensure that it does the job effectively and lasts for considerable number of years. Choosing the cheapest options would basically be good if you are whipping light food items like mayonnaise or cream. However, when it comes to fruit cakes and bread dough, it is advised to opt for a high wattage machine. It all comes down to the price you pay for the machine, hence if you can afford, always go for a machine that is made up of good quality materials and is of a high wattage.
Branded or Non–Branded Products: This is a common question that comes to the mind of virtually every customer. Although, it is important to consider a branded stand mixer, it is not that important in the case of a hand mixer. The market currently features hundreds of brands featuring high-performance hand mixers. When you are on a budget, it is the features and the period of warranty that would matter the most. On the contrary, if you are looking for something that comes with exceptional design and more than the basic features, it is better to choose one of the branded alternatives. In either case, it will always be a good idea to go through an in-depth review of the options you are about to purchase.
Hand Mixers with storage cases: This is certainly something you might want to consider. A hand mixer that comes with a storage case makes sure that you can keep all its accessories in a single place and in an organized manner. However, this is just an option that is available with some of the popular variants.
Hand Mixers with dough hook: Many of the average powered hand mixers come fitted with a dough hook. This means that it would not be able to handle bread dough despite trying. Hence, in case you are searching for something that is flexible, then it is better to opt for a hand mixer that is fitted with a powerful motor and comes with a whisk attachment.

5 Best Hand Mixers for Baking

KitchenAid KHM926ER Empire Red 9-Speed Hand Mixer

The KitchenAid KHM926ER 9-speed hand mixer comes with an exclusive accessory pack offering endless opportunities. The exclusive accessory pack offers 2 stainless steel turbo beaters, 2 stainless steel dough hooks, a storage bag, a blending rod, and a stainless steel pro whisk. The product can be used for kneading, mixing, blending, whipping, etc. It comes fitted with a lockable swivel cord that can be locked on either right or left side of this mixer. KitchenAid KHM926ER comes in different color options that include Empire Red, Candy Apple Red, Onyx Black, Contour Silver, and White.

Budget Segment: Premium

Pros

Can be easily operated using a single hand
Comes with a storage bag that helps you to keep all its accessories in an organized manner.
Portable and light weight i.e. only 2lbs
Vibrant LCD display offering a perfect view of the current settings
Soft Start facilitating slow start with virtually no noise at all
Exclusive accessory pack that includes highly useful stainless steel attachments
Soft Grip handle offers adequate comfort when mixing
Easy and quick removal of accessories by the press of a button
Powerful wattage facilitates minimal pressure from hand
Lockable swivel cord helps in approaching the ingredients from all angles

Cons

Expensive and priced around $100
Comes with only a 1-year warranty
High on Maintenance

Bodum Bistro Electric 5 Speed Hand Mixer, Black

The Bodum Bistro Electric hand mixer is powered by 170 Watts motor is built to handle anything from whipping cream to mashing potatoes. It is a 5-speed hand mixer and is made from a combination of stainless steel, rubber, silicone and plastics. There are 2 interchangeable attachments coupled with a built-in retractable cord compartment. Presently, the company offers them in 3 different colors i.e. orange, black, red, white and green. The finishing of the outer layers gives it a smooth and protected look that ensures there are reduced chances of it being damaged.

Budget Segment: Mid-budget

Pros

Rubberized grip-enhancing exteriors that make sure that it doesn’t slip out of the hands easily.
3 Multipurpose attachments facilitates easy mixing of both wet and dry ingredients
2-year warranty with an option to extend up to 4 years via 4-year protection
In-built hidden cord storage backed by a fold-out crank that keeps the mixer stored in a neat manner
Comes with a strong blender capable of beating the thickest of the dough with ease
Attractive design and available in 5 different color options
170 watts and 5-speed feature requires moderate efforts with your hands
Made of sturdy stainless steel that ensures long term usage

Cons

No slow speed option
Takes efforts to clean and maintain
A bit heavy in terms of weight

Cuisinart HM-90BCS

The Cuisinart HM-90BCS is a 9-speed hand mixer which comes fully loaded. There is a storage case that is offered with it and you can use the product it to batter, whip, mix or anything it’s built for is quite an easy task. This product also combines the aspect of functionality with a good style and ensures you do not need to sacrifice on either front. It has been given a chrome finish and made up of sturdy materials. There is a LED display that offers details about the current speed and other important settings in a single place.

Budget Segment- Mid Budget

Pros

Powered by a 220 Watt Motor and 9-speed feature that lets you put less pressure with your hands
LED display offers a single place ease to read screen with all important options like the speed and other settings
Thin yet strong beaters that are not placed close to each other facilitates easy mixing of thicker batters
Comes with a storage case that helps in keeping the product and accessory in an organized manner
Comes with a long cord with swivels around
At all speeds, it makes a vibrating noise and hardly any noise

Cons

Weighs 4.1lbs making it heavier than some close alternatives in the same budget
Lack of resting place
Slow start feature is average as it starts with 3 speed and then comes down to 1 speed
Dough hooks might be below expectations for some users

Breville BHM800SIL

Another premium segment hand mixer, the Breville BHM800SIL comes with the ability to maximize the speed output for whisking as well as the power for kneading in a single piece. It is an intuitive ergonomic control mixer that adjusts the power to meet the requirements of the things you are mixing. There is the 9-speed selector as well as a boost feature. The boost feature is quite effective as it offers the extra power if needed while performing any of the operations at any preferred level. Among the accessories, it comes with 2 scrapper beaters, 2 balloon whisks, and 2 dough hooks.

Budget Segment: Premium

Pros

9-speed selector and boost feature is easy to use with the scroll wheel that is electronically controlled
Spin from the scroll wheel is very effective at any speed irrespective of the load on the machine
Comes with a well-built storage case that can easily store all the accessories along with the mixer in a single place
Unique pause feature helps in holding the setting while you add or prepare other ingredients
Comes with a quick release trigger and a swivel cord
Powered by a 240 Watt Motor which is more than enough for easy whipping, mixing, and performing all the other tasks
Easy to clean and store
LCD readouts offers all the details about speed and setting at a single place
Pretty sturdy and made of high-quality plastics that give it a very attractive look
Fitted with a count-up timer offering accurate control on recipes requiring precise mixing time

Cons

Pretty expensive compared to any of the options available
Weight of the product is on the higher side too

Hamilton Beach 62695V Power Deluxe Hand Mixer

Powered by a 275 watts motor, the Hamilton Beach 62695V is a powerhouse for sure. It comes with a special low-speed feature that reduces the possibility of spatter while operation. It can withstand tough jobs and has the required power as well as versatility. The set comes with the traditional beaters, whisk, mixer, etc. The product has been made using coated materials which are both scratch resistant and durable in nature. The company offers this product in only one color option i.e. White.

Budget Segment: Starter or low budget price segment

Pros

Installed with a bowl rest feature that minimizes all kinds of messes while ensuring you to place the mixer on the edge of a bowl
Easily the best cost effective product for preserving your mixing bowls
Additional button under the speed control button to offer the extra power for any speed. This comes in very handy while performing tough tasks.
A well-designed compact case that keeps all the accessories and the product in a single place
Slow 1^st speed helps in reducing messy splatters
Powerful 275-watt motor supported by 6 speeds
Made from stainless steel and is pretty light weight of only 2.5lbs
Priced in the starting segment which is affordable

Cons

Beaters have been placed too close making a thick batter which is hard to dislodge from the beaters until it is removed from the mixer
Takes efforts to clean and maintain
A few complaints have stated that it comes with metal flakes that could mix with the food in the initial bursts

How to use Hand Mixers effectively?

In order to ensure that these hand mixers last for a considerable period of time and offer you the best value for the investment you made, there are a few things that you should be taking care of. They include:

In all circumstances to avoid any kind of mess make sure you use a deep narrow bowl.
Start operating at lower speeds whenever adding ingredients and follow it with a slow increase as it starts to mix.
Go around the edges while keeping the mixer in motion to attain the best efficiency
Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the bowl at frequent intervals to ensure things are mixed in the right manner.
Lift the beaters to clean after mixing such that it remains a bit out of the batter but does not come out of the bowl. Follow this up by switching the mixer on and then scraping along the edges using a rubber spatula.

Conclusion

When it comes to hand mixers the market offers innumerable options. The above 5 are among the popular selling products online and we have tried to evaluate them with respect to important features. While a bunch of the customers would be happy to go for a budget friendly product, there is a considerable market for both mid-priced and even premium segment products.

If you are among those who prioritize in having an affordable yet powerful product then we recommend going for Hamilton Beach 62695V Power Deluxe Hand Mixer. This product has been priced around $30 and comes with a powerful 275 watt motor. However, if you are looking for something that comes with premium features besides the basic ones, looks attractive, and makes baking a delight, then either of the two options i.e. KitchenAid KHM926ER or Breville BHM800SIL is the one to go for. While both come with a 9-speed option, the soft start feature is a treat to use with the KitchenAid KHM926ER. On the contrary, Breville BHM800SIL comes with a dedicated boost feature which is an easy to use scroll wheel which is electronically controlled. It offers the extra boost at every speed at all levels.

Lastly, if you are one of those who wish to have a good looking product that comes with additional features but comes below the price of $60, then you can opt for either Cuisinart HM-90BCS or Bodum Bistro Electric. It does the all the task pretty well and is capable of handling both simple and strenuous tasks.

We hope this article has been useful for you!

Alex & Rani.

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Red Velvet Candycane Cupcakes

by Alex on November 26, 2013

We have always wanted to make red velvet cupcakes. The name its self sounds so alluring and appetising and the actual cakes are strikingly red, topped with delicious cream cheese icing (who doesn’t love cream cheese icing either on a cake or straight out of the bowl). Despite the name sounding so elusive, there are hundreds of red velvet cupcakes recipes out there.Finding a good one is a different story.

You will see that they all contain similar ingredients, cocoa, red food colouring, buttermilk (responsible for the moist and tender crumb) and your usual flour, sugar and rising agent (usually baking soda). The difference between recipes we researched is that some called for oil and some called for butter. We tried recipes with both butter and oil and, I found that the recipe that included the oil gave me a softer textured cake and better crumb. While some people may argue that butter will make the cake taste better, if it’s dry and crumbling, a buttery taste won’t save it.

As much as we love a red velvet cupcake, we have to say that regardless of what fat you use, they can often end up tasting like a mild chocolate cupcake (that happens to be red). We didn’t really see much a difference between the cupcakes made with butter and those made with oil. That said, we would rather use oil and have a light and fluffy cupcake over a dry one. plus the use of oil means no creaming sugar and butter (Win – if you are short of time, don’t have a fancy mixer or just cant bothered with the laborious task of creaming!)

This brings me to our next point. It’s all about the icing. While i’m not a fan of the cake by itself, add cream cheese and you’ll have people frosting over these cakes like there’s no tomorrow. The cream cheese icing transforms what is really is a chocolate cupcake into a red velvet cupcake. Make sure you have your cream cheese icing nice and thick and fluffy to really taste the red velvet experience. To achieve this, don’t over beat the cream cheese as it will start to go liquidly. Instead you may want to use our trick which is to beat the butter and icing sugar first (just until it is stiff) and then add the cream cheese at the end.

Given it is nearly Christmas, Alex and I decided to make a red velvet cup cake with a Christmas twist. We added crushed candy canes on top and if you are a fan of choc mint, add a small dash of peppermint essence to the icing.

We would love to hear how you go with these cupcakes or if you use a recipe that contains butter that you think might be better, let us know as we would love to give it a try.

– Alex and Rani

red velvet cu pcakes

Red Velvet Candycane Cupcakes Recipe

Red Velvet Candycane Cupcakes

Author: taste.com.au

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 18 or more

Vibrant and delicious red velvet cupckes with a minty twist

Ingredients

For the cupcakes

350g (2⅓ cups) plain flour
2 tbs cocoa powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
315g (1½ cups) caster sugar
250ml (1 cup) buttermilk
185ml (3/4 cup) vegetable oil
2 eggs
3 tsp red food colouring
2 tsp white vinegar
1 packet candycanes crushed

For the icing

250g pkt cream cheese, at room temperature
100g butter, at room temperature
195g (1¼ cups) pure icing sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line eighteen 80ml (1/3-cup) capacity muffin pans with paper cases.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar.
Whisk the buttermilk, oil, eggs, food colouring and vinegar in a jug until combined.
Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture. Add the buttermilk mixture and stir until just combined.
Divide the mixture among the prepared pans. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centres comes out clean. Transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the cream cheese frosting, use an electric beater to beat the cream cheese, butter, icing sugar and vanilla in a bowl until smooth.
Pipe or spoon the cream cheese over the cooled cupcakes. Sprinkle with crushed candy canes.

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Winter Warmers – Jam Filled Doughnuts

by Rani on July 31, 2013

Doughnuts, bombolini, churros What ever you call them, these deep fried ball of sweet doughy goodness are something that Art of Baking have been wanting to try for a while now. They really are one of the most guilty pleasures and all though they are a calorie bomb, t it well worth it. Unfortunately, this recipe is so easy to make, that you might find homemade donuts are no longer a once off treat.

Last Monday when Alex and I were coming home from catching up with a friend from Hobart, Alex reminded me how much he would love to eat a hot jam doughnut and we shivered at the train station waiting for what felt like an eternity for our train to take us home.

The next day when flicking through my new Gourmet Traveller magazine, I stumbled across a recipe for jam doughnuts. It was a sign. The recipe was not too complicate either and I had most of the ingredients at home. I made the dough in the kitchen aid and it was a breeze. We out in a simple store bought raspberry jam and rolled them in a cinnamon sugar. Eaten warm they are delicious treat.

The recipe said to let the dough prove for one hour until doubled in size. I found that my dough needed a bit longer, about 2 and a bit hour. However once the dough has been cut into the doughnut shapes it does continue to rise so don’t be disheartened if after two hours you feel the dough has not risen as much as you would have expected.

The recipe also says to roll the dough out to 1cm thickness and again this does not sound very think but when cut into the doughnut shapes, it will rise. The doughnut also puff up a lot when they hit the oil, so the guide of 1cm thickness is probably accurate. The first time I made these I rolled them out to about 5 cm thick and I found that the middle did not cook as they were a bit too thick.

The fun thing with these doughnuts is that once you have the dough ready, you can make them into all different shapes. Keep them in round ball to fill with hot jam ( or nutella!) or even a vanilla custard or crème patisserie. Or cut them in rounds and cut a hole in the middle to make good old fashioned cinnamon donuts that I remember eating with my dad as a kid from Fantasy Doughnuts at our local shopping centre. The bits of dough you cut out can also be deep fired for one popping mouthful of goodness.

Which ever way you make them, the main thing is that they are delicious. We think this dough is a great solid base and I’m looking forward to trying them with nutella and perhaps a sugary pink icing!

We hope you enjoy making them too and let us know your favourite way to eat them!

Jam Doughnuts

Author: Adapated from Gourmet Travller

Cuisine: Sweets

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 50 mins

Serves: 14

Ingredients

400g (2⅓ cups) plain flour
10g dried yeast
50g caster sugar with extra for dusting
150ml warmed milk
80ml (1/3 cup) pouring cream
50g grated butter
1 beaten egg
Pinch of ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
Vegetable oil

Instructions

Start by mixing your flour yeast and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook to combine. Slowly add warm milk, butter, cream, egg, pinch of salt and cinnamon until a smooth dough begins to form.
Let dough sit in warm area with a damp tea towel over the top until the dough has doubled in size. This should be around 60-90 minutes.
Once dough has risen turn dough out onto a floured beach and begin knocking it back and flattening it to a 1cm thickness then cutting into 6cm rounds with a cutter. At this stage put the cut rounds onto a tray to prove further for around 5-10 minutes.
Heat oil in a deep saucepan for 175C. We recommend deep frying the doughnuts in batches, turning them occasionally until they are golden and puffed (around 3-4 minutes on each side taking care of spitting oil). Once they've finished cooking place them on paper towel to drain.
Roll cooked doughnuts in caster sugar with cinnamon. If you have some jam around the house we recommend piercing a hole in one end of the doughnut then piping raspberry jam into the centre. Best enjoyed warm.

Notes

To knock back dough, gather it in a ball and pound it down on your bench with your wrist. Gather the dough back up and repeat this a few times

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– Alex and Rani

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Lamingtons

by Alex on February 23, 2013

Alex and I have always wanted to attempt to make lamingtons. An Australian icon and a delicious treat that we use to eat as kids from the local bakery. The Lamington consists of a delicate sponge cake, covered in chocolate icing and rolled in desiccated coconut. While most of the recipes we researched did not add jam and cream, we decided to dress our lamingtons up by slicing them in half and adding fresh whipped cream and raspberry jam. We found the addition of jam and cream took the lamingtons to another level and made them slightly more moist and moreish.

As I kid, I never appreciated that the lamington is actually quite a complex little cake – something that Alex and I discovered when attempting to make a batch. I have also never made a sponge cake before and having heard many tales about how difficult a sponge cake is to make, I was hesitant but excited to try and make a sponge for the first time.

Our first attempt involved a lamington recipe that called for a cake that required 250g butter and 4 eggs. While this recipe was not your typical recipe for a sponge cake (using so much butter and only 4 eggs, it resembled more of a butter cake) it was taken from a good source so I was quite confident it would be a good lamington recipe to try. Well it turn out this cake was a disaster; it sunk in the middle and was very heavy and dense. After some tears on my behalf, Alex suggested we use a recipe in which the sponge cake was made using only eggs and a tiny amount of butter. Our second attempt involved whipping 6 eggs and triple sifting the flour but it was worth the effort as it resulted in a feather light sponge cake. With the sponge mastered we then had to cut the cake into even sized pieces, dip each piece in chocolate icing and then coat each cake in coconut. This process resulted in a kitchen covered in the above ingredients but the results were better than we had hoped for. Having seen the mess I had made making the lamingtons, I was relieved that they ended up resembling the lamingtons I remember seeing in the bakery.

There are many variations you could use for the sponge cake to make the lamingtons. So if you have your own sponge cake recipe you could use this. Give this recipe a try, its well worth the effort and we hope you enjoy making this recipe as much as we did.

Lamingtons

Author: Taste

Recipe type: Baking

Prep time: 45 mins

Cook time: 35 mins

Total time: 1 hour 20 mins

Serves: 24

Ingredients

Base

6 eggs
¾ cup caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup cornflour
½ cup self-raising flour
½ cup plain flour
20g butter, melted
3 cups desiccated coconut

Chocolate icing

5 cups icing sugar mixture
¾ cup cocoa powder, sifted
¾ cup milk
20g butter, chopped
200g dark chocolate

Instructions

Base

Start by preheating your oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced and greasing a 4.5cm deep, 23cm x 33cm (base) roasting pan. Line base and sides with baking paper, spreading paper 3cm above edges of pan.
Using an electric mixer, beat eggs, sugar and vanilla together for 8 minutes or until mixture becomes thick and creamy.
Meanwhile, triple-sift cornflour, self-raising flour and plain flour together. Sift over egg mixture. Using a spatula or whisk, fold in flours until just combined. Fold in butter. Pour mixture into ready pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until sponge is golden and just firm to touch.
Turn onto a wire rack lined with baking paper. Cool fully. Trim edges of sponge.
Cut sponge into 24 squares.

Chocolate Icing

Place icing sugar, cocoa, milk and butter in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Mixing over heat until combined and smooth. Place coconut in a bowl.
Using a fork, toss one piece of sponge in icing to coat. Drain off additional icing.
Mix in coconut to coat all over the lamington.
Once done transfer to a baking paper-lined tray.
Repeat process with your remaining sponge, icing and coconut.
Set aside for 1 hour to set and then enjoy!

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– Alex & Rani

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Berry Christmas – A Summer Berry Layered Pavlova

by Rani on December 24, 2012

When the month of December finally arrives, our thoughts start to turn to holidays, how many days of work we have left, how many christmas presents we need to buy at the last minute and the menu for christmas lunch. Christmas time is that time of year when its not weird to begin planning what to eat for one day at least a month in advance!

The one thing we love about Christmas being during summer in Australia, is that you can still enjoy traditional christmas food such as turkeys and ham, but the stress factor can be minimised by cooking these easily in a BBQ in the back yard and then serving it with roast vegetables and fresh clean salads. I always love planning the dessert for Christmas day as summer time means there is so much beautiful fruit available that can be used in nearly any dish to give a delicious finish to a meal.

Pavlova is one of my favourite desserts (Sorry NZ but I’m going to have to say it is a traditional Australian dessert!) but really I don’t care who invented it, i’m just glad someone did because it is divine! I love the crunchy outside, the soft marshmallow meringue and the simple finish of cool cream on top. Paired with summer fruits it makes my mouth water. We decided to wish you all a merry christmas and created this summer berry layered pavlova. Not only does it make a sensational centre piece for the christmas table, it uses cherries and raspberries which are just delicious at this time of year and always look very festive. One of the other things about this recipe is that it is quite easy but looks impressive – an easy recipe at Christmas is a winner.

We created 3 meringue bases, layered them with whipped cream and added cherries and raspberries in between. The final meringue went on to and a mountain of cherries, raspberries and few blueberries topped with icing sugar finihsed it off.

We did learn along the way that you might want to make this recipe in a very well air conditioned kitchen or on a day in December when it is NOT over 30 degrees. Raspberries love to weep and dribble their beautiful juice and meringue can be very fiddle to handle on a hot day. I pretty much created an eton mess on Alex’s kitchen bench.

However, the finished product tastes like summer, a very delicious summer. We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and holiday season. We look forward to bringing you more yummy recipes in 2013.

– Alex and Rani

Berry Christmas - A Summer Berry Layered Pavlova

Author: Rani

Recipe type: Dessert

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 1 hour

Total time: 1 hour 30 mins

Serves: 8

A sweet, tangy and lucious cherry berry layered pavlova

Ingredients

oil spray
5 eggwhites
1 cup caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
600ml cream, whipped
400g cherries, 200g of which are pitted and quartered
200g raspberries
100g blueberries
icing sugar to dust

Instructions

Preheat oven to degrees celcius or 110 degrees celcius fanforded
Using a pencil, draw 3 18 cm circle on 3 pieces of baking paper.
Spray oven trays lightly with oil and place the paper on them pencil side down
Beat eggwhites until soft peaks form
Add sugar gradually beating well after egg addition until thick and glossy.
Beat in vanilla
Spread the meringue onto the trays within the pencil lines
Bake for 1 hour, swapping the trays from top to bottom shelf half way through
After 1 hour, turn off the oven and leave the meringues in the oven with the door ajar to cool completely.
To serve, place on disc of meringue onto a serving plate.
Spread with one third of the whipped cream and top with half the quartered cherries and half of the raspberries and blueberries.
Top with another disc of meringue, half the reaming cream and all the remaining quartered cherries, raspberries and blueberries.
Place the final meringue on top and spread with the remaining cream. Pile the wholes cherries on top and dust with icing sugar.

Notes

Your egg whites are at the soft peak stage when you lift the beaters or whisk and the peaks just fold over.

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