DECONSTRUCTED PAVLOVA BOARD
Linger by Hetty Lui McKinnon

Photography, food and prop styling by Hetty Lui McKinnon

This is a choose-your-own-adventure pavlova, deconstructed to allow every guest to choose their own flavourings and toppings. This way of serving is also practical – it takes away the stress of adding the whipped cream right before serving, lest we end up with soggy meringue. The entire board can be put together ahead of time and brought out to guests whenever you’re ready. It is also completely adaptable – serve with whatever fruit is in season, and if you’re time poor, skip the compote and serve with store-bought jam. The macerated strawberries, perfumed with thyme, are made with either fresh or frozen strawberries, so they are a year-round possibility. Customise this board with ingredients from your pantry – possibilities include granola or candied nuts, spun tahini (sometimes called Persian fairy floss), pomegranate seeds, sliced figs, date syrup and Nutella.

SERVES 6 OR MORE
VEGAN AND GLUTEN FREE

INGREDIENTS
about 16 vegan meringues or store-bought meringues
500 g (2 cups) coconut or Greek yoghurt
fruit of your choice, such as berries, passionfruit, mangoes

Earl grey blueberry compote
340 g (2 cups) frozen blueberries
2 earl grey tea bags
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Macerated thyme strawberries
2 sprigs of thyme, leaves picked
1 tablespoon white sugar
225 g frozen strawberries, thawed and halved (or fresh)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

RECIPE
To make the blueberry compote, combine 170 g (1 cup) of the blueberries with the tea bags, sugar, lemon juice and 3 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook for about 10 minutes, then remove the tea bags. Add the remaining blueberries and cook for a further 4–5 minutes until the mixture has thickened. Pour the compote into a small bowl.

For the macerated strawberries, combine the thyme and sugar in a bowl and rub them together to release the thyme essence into the sugar. Add the strawberries and vanilla and toss together well. Leave for 30 minutes or overnight in the fridge.

Place the blueberry compote, macerated strawberries and yoghurt in separate small bowls.

To serve, arrange the meringues on a large platter or board and place the bowls of blueberry compote, macerated strawberries and yoghurt around them. Add your choice of fruit and serve.