1. Preheat oven to 120°C. Line two baking trays with baking paper.
2. For a stiff meringue, the mixing bowl and mixing sticks must be clean and free from traces of grease. Best cleaned with a little lemon juice before mixing.
3. Also, carefully separate the eggs and make sure that there are no egg yolk residues in the egg whites. Whip the egg whites with a pinch of salt and cream of tartar / baking powder using a mixer.
4. As soon as the egg mixture becomes firmer forming small peaks, fold in the granulated sugar using a large spoon. Beat the egg whites until firm peaks form, the snow is nice and shiny and the sugar has completely dissolved. You can easily test this by taking some of the beaten egg whites between your fingertips; if you no longer feel any sugar grains, the mixture has been beaten.
5. Spread the meringue mixture in 8 small circles on the baking sheets (about 10 cm in diameter each with approx. 2-3 heaped tablespoons of meringue per circle). Press a small dent in the middle with the back of the spoon.
6. Bake the pavlovas for 15 minutes at 120°C, then reduce the temperature to 100°C and bake in the oven for another 45 minutes. After 45 minutes, turn off the oven, open the oven door and let the pavlovas dry in the oven for another hour. The meringue is ready when it can be easily removed from the baking paper.
7. Allow the meringue circles to cool completely before serving. They should be nice and crispy on the outside and fluffy and soft on the inside.

1. For the sauce, blend the defrosted raspberries and strain through a fine sieve, stir in the icing sugar and store in the fridge until serving. 

1. Whip the whipped cream with the vanilla sugar until dissolved and cream is firm and refrigerate until ready to serve.
2. To serve, spread the meringue circles with whipped cream, pour a tablespoon of the raspberry sauce over them, arrange the fresh berries on top and garnish with a mint leaf.

Tip:

• Once assembled, pavlovas should be served immediately. However, the meringue circles can be prepared in advance and stored in an airtight container. You can also prepare the raspberry sauce and the whipped cream in advance.