How to make meringues in a simple and foolproof way?
Let’s talk about Meringue, one of the most elegant, ethereal, and capricious preparations in pastry! It’s a real sweet cloud that, despite its apparent simplicity (only egg whites and sugar), hides some little secrets for its perfection.
As with many classic recipes, the origins of meringue are debated, but the most accredited story links it to a location and a pastry chef of the 18th century:
The Swiss Origin (The most popular theory attributes the invention to a Swiss pastry chef named Gasparini, who lived in Meiringen (a village in the Canton of Bern). It is said that he perfected the technique and gave the preparation its name, “Meringue,” around 1720.
The French Popularity: Meringue became very popular in France thanks to Queen Marie Antoinette, who was a great sweet lover. She herself, it is said, loved making meringue and helped make it an elite preparation in European courts.
The Ancient Recipes: In reality, similar preparations based on whipped egg whites and sugar were known in different cultures for centuries, but it is with the name “Meringue” and the perfected technique that this preparation entered modern pastry history.
Here I explain it to you simply and quickly, you can use a pastry bag with a star nozzle like I did, or a plain nozzle, you can make them large like in this picture or smaller to eat in one bite, the only difference is the cooking time.
For these large meringues of 2.5 to 2.75 inches in diameter, it takes 2 hours, for the small ones 40 minutes are enough, anyway, you have to be careful with your own oven because all ovens cook differently, and if you overcook them, you risk having amber-colored meringues.
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 20 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Oven, Electric Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All Seasons
What You Need for Homemade Meringues
- 3 egg whites (very fresh)
- 7.75 oz powdered sugar
- Half teaspoon lemon juice
- 0.18 oz cream of tartar (optional)
Tools
- 1 Electric Whisk
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Baking Sheet (oven)
How to Make Meringues
How to make meringues? It’s not difficult, just pay attention, for example, when you separate the yolks from the egg whites to ensure no yolk gets into the whites, otherwise they won’t whip.
So, separate the yolks from the egg whites and place the egg whites in a large bowl, the egg whites should be at room temperature.
Start whipping them with the electric whisk and add half the powdered sugar while continuing to whip.
Once whipped to very stiff peaks, test by lifting the whisk, it should hold a peak on the whisk, then add the remaining sugar and whip again.
Place the mixture in a pastry bag with a star nozzle.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and form the meringues, if large, make a wide circle and then slowly rise to form the peak.
If you want to make small meringues, just rest the nozzle on the parchment paper, press the pastry bag, and pull upwards, you will see that meringue peaks of about 1.18 inches will form.
Bake the meringues in the middle rack of your oven at 176°F static for at least 2 hours.
After the first hour, slightly open the oven door leaving a small gap, you can do this by inserting a wooden spoon so it doesn’t close, allowing steam to escape.
Remove the meringues from the oven and let them cool in a dry place for at least 2 hours, you will see they will be dry and delicious.
Storing Homemade Meringues
Meringues can be stored in a tin box or under a glass dome for more than 10 days as long as they don’t absorb moisture, you will see they get drier the more days pass.
Other Recipes
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