These lovely desserts were the finale to our Easter meal this past weekend.  I did not make them and cannot take any credit for their deliciousness.  My friend Jackie found the recipe in Cooking Light and offered to bring them.  They were the perfect end to the meal. 

The meringues were light and crunchy, the lemon curd and raspberries were perfect partners; tart and sweet, and the pistachios added such a wonderful richness to the whole dessert.  To top it all off, they were beautiful.  This is an impressive looking dessert, and Jackie said that it wasn’t all that complicated or tedious.  She even let the meringues sit in the oven overnight and they were still perfect.

Making individual dessert can sometimes me a pain, but these are incredibly easy to assemble.  I will definitely be putting this recipe away to make another time.  Thanks, Jackie!

Pistachio Pavlovas with Lemon Curd and Raspberries

Ingredients

Meringues:

• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 4 large egg whites
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup dry-roasted pistachios, chopped

Lemon curd:

• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg white
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 3 lemons)
• 1 teaspoon corn starch
• Dash of salt
• 2 (6-ounce) packages fresh raspberries
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 250°.
2. To prepare meringues, cover 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Draw 4 (4-inch) circles on each piece of paper. Turn paper over; secure with masking tape.
3. Place cream of tartar and 4 egg whites in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until foamy. Gradually add 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form.
4. Divide the egg white mixture evenly among 8 drawn circles on baking sheets. Shape meringues into nests with 1-inch sides using the back of a spoon. Sprinkle evenly with nuts.
5.  Bake at 250° for 1 hour, rotating baking sheets after 30 minutes. Turn oven off, and cool meringue nests in closed oven for 2 hours. Remove from oven, and carefully remove meringue nests from paper.
6.  To prepare lemon curd, combine whole eggs and 1 egg white in a medium bowl; stir well with a whisk. Heat 1/2 cup granulated sugar, rind, juice, potato starch, and salt over medium-high heat in a small, heavy saucepan to 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge. Gradually add hot juice mixture to egg mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return juice mixture to pan. Cook over medium heat for 2 minutes or until thick, stirring constantly. Spoon curd into a bowl; cool to room temperature. Cover and chill.
7. Arrange about 1/4 cup raspberries in each meringue nest; top with about 2 tablespoons lemon curd. Sprinkle the nests evenly with powdered sugar, if desired.  Sprinkle with a few chopped pistachios if you have any left over. Serve immediately.