MERINGUE

I also made meringue today since I had some egg whites left over from the creme brulee. :)

see "photo gallery" for more photos


MERINGUE:

4 egg whites
2 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). Butter and flour a baking sheet.

2. In a glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites until foamy using an electric mixer. Sprinkle in sugar a little at a time, while continuing to whip at medium speed. When the mixture becomes stiff and shiny like satin, stop mixing, and transfer the mixture to a large pastry bag. Pipe the meringue out onto the prepared baking sheet using a large round tip or star tip.

3. Place the meringues in the oven and place a wooden spoon handle in the door to keep it from closing all the way. Bake for 3 hours, or until the meringues are dry, and can easily be removed from the pan. Allow cookies to cool completely before storing in an airtight container at room temperature.


Tips:

-when beating the egg whites, make sure to beat it long enough till peaks form, which make take up to 15 min

-after adding the sugar, the final mixture should not be too soft. it should not be too stiff, but it should drop from the beater quite slowly, like a thick mixture

-yes, the meringues have to be in the oven for 3 hours. i tried breaking off a little in the oven after 1 hr and the middle was not hardened yet, only the outer layer was


Links:

Meringue: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Authentic-French-Meringues/Detail.aspx