Pavlova Surprise !

Everyone loves surprises….and I love giving & getting surprises too...don't U?

Well, on today’s agenda was a surprise birthday party for S…whose birthday falls tomorrow.
Actually… the STAR of the day is hub, cuz today is HIS birthday.
I thought it will be great to celebrate their birthdays together....for two of my favourite people.
It’s like striking 2 birthies with a cake….!

I had everything planned for today & I got S's lovely daughter to cohort with me.
And she did a marvelous job! Kudos to U...little hole in the tongue...if U're reading this.

Woke up today with the sun smiling…And I just knew everything is gonna turn out just great.

For a change of scene, instead of the usual buttery or spongy kinda cakes, I opted for Pavlova as THE birthday cake.
I make Pavlova very frequently cuz it’s my favourite kind of dessert...not too heavy & it will not cause too much harm to your hips – that’s how I see it! *wink*.
How much damage can egg whites & sugar do????
Ummmmm!!! U tell me!

Now...where was I? Ahhh!!! the Pavlova….this is Nigella’s recipe & she did hers with passion fruit.
Went hunting around for some passion….I mean fruit yesterday, no luck!
So, I gotta make a do with the boring stuff…that’s strawberries & blueberries.
Pavlovas are delish marshmallowy centered cakes with crisp outer crust that goes extremely well with heavy whipped cream & lots of sourish fruit to contra the sweetness of the meringue.

This was the birthday cake that had a candle sitting on it earlier.

I made some vanilla cupcakes as well......specially for the kids.
Frosted them with coloured royal icing.
These cupcakes were made from real vanilla pods.
The pods were given by Jo a long time ago & only recently that I was reminded of their existence.
They were buried deep down in my pantry, retrieved them earlier to make this batch of cupcakes.

This is my 1st time using real vanilla….and it’s good stuff I tell ya!
The cupcake tasted delicious…the aroma of the vanilla was overwhelming…even while they were baking away in the oven, the whole apartment smelt heavenly.
If U like to get your hands on some vanilla pods, U may try getting some from Jo…she sells them.

Anyway, the day ended as planned, everything was great, everyone was happy, so am I.

Mission accomplished.