H2Ope for Haiti - a BLOGGERAID fundraiser & a Tropical Fruit Pavlova

"Although each person's donation may be small, even single drops of water will eventually fill a swimming pool"
BloggerAid

It's time to give back ... to give back to a blogging community that has helped us grow, finds time to stop by, has something nice to say, shares the highs as it does the lows, is there for you no matter what! It is heartening to see foodie bloggers come together for Blogger Aid to put together a cookbook which at one time seemed impossible. To see it happen was like a dream come true. This couldn't have been possible without 2 truly wonderful hard-working bloggers, Val and Giz, the hearts behind Blogger Aid.

They came together to help publish the Blogger Aid Cookbook for the World Food Programme, and have now, with an intiative from Jeanne @ Cook Sister, have come up with another great event to extend a much needed hand to the horrific natural calamity we saw in Haiti.

As clean drinking water was one of the most acute needs in the aftermath of the quake, BloggerAid-Changing the Face of Famine selected Concern Worldwide because of its long track record and quick response after the quake to provide clean drinking water and water purification tablets.

From Sunday, February 21 - Sunday, February 28th, BloggerAid Changing the Face of Famine (BA-CFF) is running H2Ope for Haiti, an online raffle to raise funds for Concern Worldwide's relief effort in Haiti. For full details and how you can help please visit our HOME page at BloggerAid Changing the Face of Famine  as well as our donation page at Justgiving. A list of prizes is available on the here.

It is time, dear readers, to try and give back a little bit. I have got much joy and inspiration from blogs and blogging, that I'm here to support Jeannes' call  in my own little way...

 As part of the auction, I am offering a pair of hand painted Mughal miniature paintings (unframed) by artists from the princely state of Rajasthan in India.

Dimensions are 20cms X 10 cms each. Total 2 in number.

Will post worldwide.
PRIZE CODE:  HFH05

The Mughal miniature paintings feature stylized imagery in rich draped figures with a blend of Indian and Persian styles, reflecting India’s rich cultural heritage. The miniatures have a lyrical quality that enamors the mind and the soul. Most of the paintings are unique compositions on innumerable themes that are characteristic only of India. The colors used in the miniatures were derived from minerals, vegetables, precious stones, indigo, conch shells, pure gold and silver. Some other themes revolve around love scenes, Mughal Royal courts and the battle fields in gold and stone colors.

Mughal miniature paintings are still being created today by a small number of artists in Rajasthan concentrated mainly in Jaipur. Although many of these miniatures are skillful copies of the originals, some artists have produced modern works using classic methods to, at times, remarkable artistic effect. A miniature painting, as the name signifies, is an intricate, colorful illuminations or painting, small in size, executed meticulously with delicate brushwork. The skills needed to produce these modern versions of Mughal miniatures are still passed on from generation to generation, although many artisans also employ dozens of workers, often painting under trying working conditions, to produce remarkable works sold under the signature of their modern masters. They reflect the painstaking efforts of skill and talents exhibited by Indian artisans, and are well acclaimed worldwide.

Tweet about the raffle ( #H2OpeforHaiti), Retweet it, mention it on Facebook, purchase a raffle ticket for a minimal amount,  tell all your friends, bloggers and non-bloggers alike. Any help you can give would be most appreciated. Thank you!

For this post, I chose to post a recipe from a beautiful book on desserts that I received from BloggerAid to review some time back. You can read a review about INDULGE - 100 Perfect Desserts by Claire Clark here where I made an Apple and Black Grape Band Aux Fruit. To connect to the H2Ope for Haiti event, it seemed right to pick something from the same book to post today. It's a Tropical Fruit Pavlova from Indulge by Claire Clark. This was my first time making pavlovas ...

Pavlova is a meringue-based dessert named after the Russian ballet dancer Ánna Pávlova. Colloquially referred to as "pav", it is a cake of meringue with a crispy crust and soft, light inner.The dessert is believed to have been created to honour the dancer during or after one of her tours to Australia and New Zealand in the 1920s. Where it was created and the nationality of its creator has been a source of argument between the two nations for many years, but research indicates New Zealand as the source. The dessert is a popular dish and an important part of the national cuisine of both countries, and is frequently served during celebratory or holiday meals such as Christmas dinner.

The results were absolutely delicious, and I am amazed that I have procrastinated about making them for so long. The bases were light as air, crisp from the outside, and slightly soft from within. I painted the bases with some melted chcoolate because I was filling them ahead. Make sure you fill them with cream and fruit just 30 minutes prior to serving as they could go soggy otherwise. The melted chocolate prevented mine from getting soggy. I used a mix of low fat cream and mascarpone for the filling, and it complimented the fruit beautifully. This is an awesome dessert to make, and I know it shall be a difficult choice in the future to decide where to use the whites ...  in macs or pavs!!

Tropical Fruit Pavlova
From Indulge - 100 Perfect Desserts by Claire Clark, page 100
Serves 6
(recipe scaled down to 3 egg whites)
3 large egg whites
150gms castor sugar
1 tsp cornflour, sifted
3/4 tsp white wine vinegar
Filling
adapted from Indulge
150ml cream (25% fat)
1/2 cup mascarpone (recipe here)
1-2 tbsp sugar
Tropical fruit (strawberries, kiwifruit, cape gooseberries etc)

Method:
Prehat the oven to 120C.

Beat the egg whites with 1/3 sugar with an electrical mixer to firm peaks, followed by another third for 1-2 mintes on medium speed. Then add the remaining 1/3rd, and beat in until just incorporated.

Using a large metal spoon, fold in the sifted cornflour and the white wine vinegar. Be careful not to overmix and lose volume.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment, and drop a large spoonful of the meringue in a mound on the paper. Using the back of the spoon, make a well in the centre for the cream and fresh fruit to sit in, keeping the meringue as round as possible. Repeat to make 5 more mounds, making sure you leave 5cms/2inches between each one.

Bake for 1 hour or until the outside of the meringue is dry and golden, and the inside is still soft. Leave to cool completely. (I cracked mine a little because I was in a hurry to see how they baked!) 

Filling

Cut the fruit into different sized pieces.

Whip the cream and icing suger till firm. Smoothen the mascarpone with a spoon in a bowl, and gently fold in the whipped cream, being carefuil not to lose volume.

Paint the bases of the pavlovas with melted dark chocolate (optional)

Pipe or spoon into the centre of the cooled pavlovas, and decorate with an assortment of fresh tropical fruit.

♥ Thank you for stopping by ♥

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