Ingredients
For the pavlova
300g / 10 ⅔ oz soft light brown sugar
150g / 5 ⅓ oz egg whites (approx. 5 eggs)
For the greek yoghurt
500g / 10 ½ oz greek yoghurt
30g / scant 2 oz honey
For the roasted apricots
10 apricots, stoned and halved
60g / 2 oz honey
Seeds of 8 cardamom pods, crushed
1 tsp orange blossom water (optional)
To serve
Handful pistachios, roughly chopped
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / gas mark 4. Toss the apricot halves with the honey, cardamom and 50ml water. Arrange them cut side up into a baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, until softened and slightly jammy but still holding their shape. Remove, set aside, and stir through the orange blossom water if using.
- Reduce the oven to 140°C / 120°C fan / gas mark 1 and line a large, flat baking tray with greaseproof paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or using a hand-held electric whisk, start beating the egg whites at a low speed to form stabilising bubbles, gradually increasing the speed and whisking until stiff peaks form.
- With the mixer still running, add the sugar one tablespoon at a time, ensuring that the mixture comes back up to stiff peaks each time. Once all the sugar has been added, beat the meringue for a further 5-10 minutes or until the mixture is thick, stiff and glossy.
- Spoon the meringue into a pile in the centre of your prepared baking tray and carefully spread it out into a circle with the back of a spoon. Make a little well in the center for the filling, but don’t go too wide as you want to keep some height on the base.
- Bake in the preheated oven for around 1 hour 45 minutes or until the base of the pavlova peels away easily from the greaseproof paper. Turn the oven off and allow it to cool completely in there for at least an hour, or even overnight.
- When you are ready to serve, mix the greek yoghurt with the honey and spread thickly on top of the pavlova base. Top with the roasted apricot halves and some of their syrup, and finish with a sprinkling of chopped pistachios.
