haaaaappy monday, everybody!!

how were all of your weekends? mine was as relaxing as can be, right down to the socks with birkenstocks that i wore outside not once but twice (!!!) for warmth (low was in the 30s!), comfort, and to imitate my style icons the olsen twins. i did all the fall things: hosted an apple picking party, made caramel apples, made chicken with apples, made a (sadly flopped) honey cake with apples... and then wrapped things up by watching miss america at the town pizza parlor and it was magnificent.

today a thing called beet harvest pre-haul starts! it's basically the amuse-bouche of beet harvest: you get all of your equipment ready, start picking from your fields, and take in a sampling of beets to the plant so you're ready to get your harvest on come october first. there is a big truck filled with beets in our yard right now! i am tempted to yoink one and do recipe experiments but i'm afraid to climb up onto the truck. actually mostly i'm afraid to go outside right now because of the cold.

ok now let me tell you about these pavlovas. first, the person behind these pavlovas, who is also one of my favorite bloggers ever, stephanie! i feel like she doesn't need an introduction because if you read my blog then you've seen the zillion times i've linked to her blog and if you've seen her blog even just once you know she is the tops. she is also the tops in real life, we were each other's dates to the saveur awards when our men couldn't make it, and if we lived in the same town, i could see some major kimmy gibbler/d.j. tanner action happening. her joyful and fun personality oozes from her work the way the hollandaise oozes from this grilled cheese. i've made so many of her recipes and they are all delicious while managing to be shockingly simple... which is why it is about time that her book comes out! i can't sing enough praise about it. it's inspiring, it's approachable, it's creative, it's flavorful, it's nothing you don't want, it's fit for pretty much anyone. i see these pictures and think, shit, i cannot make that. and then i read the recipes and i'm like, wait a second, i think i can. i think i can. i think i can. and so pictured here is the first ever pavlova i ever did make. and despite me planning on having people over to help us finish them, eggboy and i demolished them and didn't even look back.

they're fluffy, airy little creatures with a perfect amount of sweetness, sourness from the raspberries, and savoriness from the pistachios. they also look cute, like a cartoon version of a dessert. but they're real! and real good.

raspberry pistachio mini pavlovas

from stephanie le's book, easy gourmet

makes 14 mini pavlovas

ingredient

2 large egg whites

1/8 tsp salt

1/2 c sugar

1 tsp cornstarch

1/4 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp white wine vinegar

1/4 c pistachios, roughly chopped

1/2 c whipping cream, whipped into soft peaks

1 c raspberries

chopped pistachios, to serve

clues

preheat oven to 350ºf.

with an electric mixer, whip the egg whites with the salt until peaks start to form. add the sugar in a slow stream. continue to whip until the eggs are shiny and stiff. sprinkle in the cornstarch, vanilla, vinegar, and pistachios. gently fold to combine.

scoop the meringue into equal mounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet. place in the oven and immediately turn down to 300ºf and bake for 25 minutes. turn the oven off and leave in for another 25 minutes and then remove from the oven. cool completely.

to serve, top with softly whipped cream, raspberries, and an extra sprinkle of chopped pistachios.

note: if you want super-green pistachios, blanch them in boiling water for 10-15 seconds. strain, then rub with a clean towel to remove their skins. if the skins are still clinging, keep the pistachios in cold water as you rub.

annnnd.... i'm giving away a copy of easy gourmet! to enter this giveaway, leave a comment with the best dessert you've ever had! this giveaway is open to u.s. residents only.

update 9/22: this giveaway is now closed and the winner has been notified. thanks so much everyone!

-yeh!!