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British Strawberries were particularly good in the summer of 2006 when this recipe was published in my Sunday Mercury column. This well-known dessert gets its name a Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, who toured New Zealand and Australia in 1926 as part of her world tour. As is often the case in defining a recipe’s history you find claim and counter claim about where and who invented this dessert……..some say Australia and some say New Zealand, but I’m persuaded by the fact that the first know recipe for this dessert was published in a rural magazine called The New Zealand Dairy Annual in 1929. Historically, the name has been used to describe three distinct desserts: a four-layered jelly cake (the first to bear the name which did come from Australia and which is no longer baked); a coffee flavoured meringue; and the pavlova as understood today, a fluffy meringue that is crisp on the outside and soft in the middle.

Ingrediants
100g (4oz) Caster sugar
2 large egg whites
Pinch of salt
1tsp cornflour
½ tsp White wine vinegar
125g (5oz) Mascarpone cheese
Juice and zest of 2 lemons
1 tsp Caster sugar
300g (12oz) Strawberries

Method

1. Preheat oven to gas mark 2 (300 F/150 C).
2. Lightly grease a large baking tray.
3. In a clean bowl whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form then add the salt.
4. Gradually whisk in the sugar a little at a time and keep whisking the meringue until it is stiff and glossy.
5. Now mix in the cornflour and the vinegar and whisk for a further 2-3 minutes.
6. Tear a piece of baking parchment the same size as the baking tray.
7. Use a pencil and draw four three-inch circles onto the parchment.
8. Lay the parchment pencil side down onto the greased baking tray and smooth it down.
9. With a large kitchen spoon fill the four circles with the whiped meringue using the circles as a guideline.
10. Once your happy with the shape of the meringues make a slight dent in the centre of each one.
11. Bake on the middle shelf for 45 minutes then turn down the oven to gas mark 1 (275 F/135C)and bake for a further 15 minutes then remove from the oven.
12. In a small stainless steel saucepan combine the lemon zest and juice with the teaspoon of sugar.
13. Bring to a simmer, allow the volume to reduce by half and then cool in the fridge.
14. When the lemon mix is cool stir the mascarpone in gradually.

To Serve
Put a few cut strawberries into each meringue, then top with a good dollop of mascarpone cheese then more strawberries and enjoy.

Chef’s Tip
Don’t fill the meringues up until the last minute or they will get too soggy.

When cooked in a dessert, pears can sometimes end up too sweet and disappointing. Combining fruit and cheese means the pears don't become too cloying and the other ingredients create a balance. Physalis is a wonderful, yet undervalued, fruit that seems to be used only as a decoration which is a shame. It's related to the tomato, so its acidity balances the pear and cheese wonderfully.

INGREDIENTS
200g(8oz)Cream cheese
2 medium eggs
1tbsp caster sugar
500g (1lb 4oz) block puff pastry
3-4 ripe William pears
100g (4oz)physalis, washed and cut in half
1tbsp clear honey
Juice and zest of 1 lime
10Og (4oz)raspberries (optional)
1 egg, beaten

METHOD

1.Roll out pastry into a rectangle measuring approximately 38 x 26cm. It should be nomore than 5mm thick. Trim off any excess and keep the trimmings.
2.Roll pastry on your rolling pin and transfer
to a baking sheet lined with baking parchment.
3.Brush the beaten egg around the edges of the rectangle, then use the pastry trimmings,re-rolling if necessary, to make long, 10mm wide strips.
4.Brush the strips lightly with beaten egg
then twist gently as if making cheese straws as you lay them onto the base to create a 10mm wide border, then refrigerate.
5.Combine the sugar, lime juice, zest and cream cheese in a mixing bowl and beat well, until the sugar and liquid have been absorbed into the cheese.
6.Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, then refrigerate the cheese mix.
7.Preheat oven to 190sC/375eF/gas mark 5.
8.Spread the cheese mix on to the pastry base inside the border.
9.Quarter the pears and remove all the seeds. Cut each quarter into two to three slices and arrange neatly on top of the cheese.
10.Scatter the physalis cut side up then brush the fruit with the honey.
11.Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 35 minutes or until golden brown. -
12.Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then sprinkle on some of the raspberries before cutting and serving.

CHEF'S TIP
I used Quark cream cheese because it's low in calories. The fresh raspberries add colour to the dish plus a little more acidity but, if you wish, you can leave them out.

*This recipe appeared in my column in the Sunday Mercury in January 2007

“I knew I’d be lucky to find any shop selling barbecue charcoal in January because all large stores remove items once there out of season, but luckily my local garage still had a couple of left over disposable barbecues which I snapped up. Although it was a sunny January day the nice lady behind the counter thought I was being a bit too ambitious to be barbecuing so early in the year. You see I’d woken up the other morning with a idea of putting a new twist on pepper steak and I wasn’t going to let a little thing like winter get in my way.”

Ingredients
2 x 200g (8oz) Fillet Steaks
100g (4oz) unsalted butter
1Tbsp Black peppercorns
1 Tbsp Brandy
1 Bag of rocket leaves
1 Punnet of baby plum tomatoes
2 Handfuls of wood chips
2 Rashers of streaky bacon
1dessertspoon of Olive oil
1 disposable barbecue
1 disposable tin foil tray the same size

Method

1. Soak the wood chips in cold water at least 2 hours before you need them.
2. Wash rocket leaves and baby plum tomatoes, then drain.
3. Cut up the butter into small pieces so that it will soften quickly.
4. Light barbecue per the instructions.
5. Crush peppercorns in mortar and pestle but not too fine.
6. Mix butter and peppercorns together then add the brandy, stirring well until brandy has been absorbed into the butter.
7. Shape the butter into a few small "scoops" using a dessertspoon then place the scoops onto a tray covered with parchment paper and refrigerate.
8. Wrap one rasher of bacon around the side of each steak, using a toothpick to pin it in place.
9. After the barbecue coals have turned grey (about 40 minutes) and are tempered, this is to avoid flare up on the grill. Drain the woodchips and carefully make a bed of them on the lit barbecue. There needs to be enough woodchips so the steaks can rest on the chips not on the grill.
10. Cover the steaks with the disposable roasting tray and allow them to smoke for 10-15 minutes. Check once every five minutes to make sure the steaks are smoking not grilling.
11. Once steaks are smoked, remove the bacon and any woodchips stuck to them and brush fillets with olive oil.
11. Carefully remove woodchips from top of the barbecue into a fireproof tray then grill the steaks to your liking, making sure to seal all sides of each fillet to seal in the juices.
13. To serve, place a little mound of rocket leaves into the centre of each plate. Scatter a few
plum tomatoes onto the rocket. Place on the steak and top with the peppercorn butter.

Chef’s Tips
Most large supermarkets or hardware store that sell barbecue equipment in the summer will also usually sell wood chips. There are various types like Oak, Hickory but you can also find wood chips from various fruit trees including Plum, Apple and Damson.