Pavlova is the quintessential Australian dessert. All other Australian recipes may have a foreign origin, but Pavlova was invented in Australia. According to legend, it was invented by a station cook in Western Australia who named it after Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova. That may not be the case, but this sweet meringue cake is truely delicious, it was a great hit with all my guests.

There are several recipes for pavlova around and I combined a couple. Pavlova is traditionally topped with passionfruit, but I wasn't able to easily find it in February in California, so I used strawberries, bananas and kiwis instead. It worked very well. Feel free to use your favorite fruits.

The cake was easier to make than I expected (given that making meringue can be an iffy proposition), and it held quite well. I'll certainly make it again

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Mixed-Fruit Pavlova

Ingredients

4 egg whites

1 cup very fine sugar

2 tsp. cornstarch

1 tsp. vanilla essence

1 tbsp. white vinegar

1 cup whipping cream

3 kiwis

3 bananas

1/2 lb. strawberries.

Instructions Preheat oven to 300°F. Grease a 7" or 8" round baking pan.

Beat egg whites until soft peaks appear. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until the sugar is dissolved and the eggs become thick. Add the cornstarch, vanilla and vinegar. Mix carefully.

Spoon the mixture into the baking pan. Bake for about 40' or until golden. Let cool and then turn onto a serving plate.

Slice fruit and whip the cream (you can add sugar and vanilla to the cream to make it sweeter). Cover the cake with whipping cream and fruit. Serve.