Meringue is easy but there are definitely some tricks to making meringue come out perfectly. Once you know how to make it, you can make all sorts of impressive desserts like the berry filled meringues below.
Basically, meringue is beaten egg whites and sugar. Most meringue recipes call for cream of tartar which is used to help bind the mixture together. Legend has it that meringue was invented by an Italian chef in the Swiss town of Meiringin in the 1600’s. Meringue can be used alone (like Meringue cookies), as a topping on pie (like Lemon Meringue), or as a basis of light desserts like angel food cake.
I make my meringue by beating 2 to 3 egg whites (depending on size of egg) and 1/2 cup of sugar until soft peaks form. I also generally add a little vanilla. Soft peaks are when you remove the beaters and it leaves a ‘peak’ of foam that curls slightly at the top. (Stiff peaks are when you remove the beaters and a pointed peak forms.) It helps to make meringue in a chilled bowl with room temperature eggs and with an electric mixer. In fact, I have never tried making it with my typical tried and true old fashioned egg beaters but I imagine I’d have very tired hands. It takes at least a couple of minutes to get to the soft peak stage.
Now that you know how to make the perfect meringue–try this excellent meringue recipe that combines the sugary treat with fresh fruit. (e-mailed to me by BabyFit.com)
2 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
2 tbsp of cocoa powder
3/4 cup fresh strawberries
3/4 cup fresh raspberries
Preheat oven to 275 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray paper with cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites with cream of tartar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Add sugar a little at a time, again retaining the soft peaks. (The sugar will cause the peaks to fall so the best thing to do is add a little sugar, beat the mixture a little, add a little sugar and so forth.) Add the cocoa powder, a little at a time, folding in very gently.
Drop the meringue 1/4 cup at a time. Use a spoon to make a small ‘well’. Bake for approximately 45 minutes, until dry to the touch. Just before serving, put fruit in the middle of meringues and garnish with confectioner’s sugar.
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