{"id":43414,"date":"2025-01-23T18:06:24","date_gmt":"2025-01-23T18:06:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/recipes\/category-a-b\/baking-category-a-b\/meringue-recipe-the-best-tips-tricks-for-success-every-time-izy-hossack\/"},"modified":"2025-01-23T18:06:24","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T18:06:24","slug":"meringue-recipe-the-best-tips-tricks-for-success-every-time-izy-hossack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=43414","title":{"rendered":"Meringue Recipe – the best tips & tricks for success every time – Izy Hossack"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Post updated: September 2023<\/em><\/p>\n
\n <\/source><\/picture><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
Making meringue (pronounced MER-ANG) is quite a fun thing to do \u2013 it\u2019s great to see the egg whites balloon up as you whisk them into a glossy, opaque fluff. Here in the UK, I\u2019ve grown up eating these mostly topped with whipped cream and berries (for mini pavlovas) or crushed and folded into cream with raspberries & strawberries for Eton mess. Whatever you\u2019re using them for, these crispy delights are worth a try as I think the homemade versions taste so much better than shop bought.<\/p>\n
Being so simple (just egg whites and sugar, as their base) can make them prone to fail occasionally. I\u2019ve listed my top tips<\/strong> to make the best, fail-safe meringues below to prevent that from happening!<\/p>\n\n
Tips for the best meringues:<\/h2>\n
Want to know the secrets for making the best meringues? I\u2019ve listed all my favourite tips and tricks here for you!<\/p>\n
\n
Separate your eggs one at a time<\/strong> into a small bowl. This way, if one of the yolks breaks, you don\u2019t have to discard the whole bowl of egg whites.<\/li>\n
Ensure the bowl & whisk you\u2019re using are clean <\/strong>and not greasy at all. Even a small amount of fat can prevent the egg whites from whipping up. It\u2019s best to use a metal or glass bowl as these are less likely to have residual fat on them (unlike plastic which is more prone to be greasy!).<\/li>\n
Use caster sugar\/superfine sugar<\/strong>. The smaller sugar crystal size means that the sugar will dissolve more easily into the meringue. You can use granulated sugar but you\u2019ll need to whisk the mixture for a lot longer to get a smooth meringue. You can also pulse granulated sugar in a food processor or blender until broken down, to mimic caster sugar.<\/li>\n
Warm up your sugar<\/strong>. This is a tip from Helen Goh\/ Ottolenghi \u2013 by warming the sugar in the oven before whisking it into the egg whites, it speeds up the process of the sugar dissolving in the egg white. It\u2019s not 100% necessary (you\u2019ll just need to whip a bit longer) but I like to do it as the oven is already going to be preheating for when I\u2019m baking the meringues anyway!<\/li>\n
Whisk the egg whites until the mix is no longer gritty. <\/strong>You need to test if all the sugar has dissolved to know if the meringue is ready to bake. Take a small amount of meringue mixture and rub it between your fingertips. If it\u2019s gritty, you need to continues whisking.<\/li>\n
Use a piece of baking paper as a funnel\/chute to slowly drizzle in the sugar. <\/strong>This makes it easy to gradually pour the sugar into the egg whites. If you add the sugar all at once, it\u2019s more likely that it\u2019ll disrupt the egg white\u2019s foam structure and prevent it from whipping up properly. <\/li>\n
Whisk at a medium speed<\/strong> for a longer time<\/strong>. Doing this creates smaller and more evenly-sized bubbles throughout the meringue which in turn makes the mix more stable. It also prevents you from over-whipping your meringue (which is quite likely if you leave the mixer on high speed!). <\/li>\n
Whisk until the mixture is glossy and holds its shape. <\/strong>This will ensure that the egg whites are full of air which will make your meringues light and foamy, not dense\/sticky.<\/li>\n
Use an oven thermometer!<\/strong> They\u2019re pretty cheap and very useful for situations where you want to know the precise temp of your oven. Unfortunately, a lot of ovens aren\u2019t calibrated correctly so even if you set the temperature to 100C, it may be higher or lower than this. With meringue, a temperature which is too high will result in golden\/brown meringues.<\/li>\n
Bake the meringue soon after whisking<\/strong>. This style of meringue is not very stable and the whipped structure will start to break down and weep if left to sit for too long. <\/li>\n
Higher temperature to start, then low and slow<\/strong>. By starting the oven off at a higher temperature we make sure the meringues form a nice crust. The oven temp will drop when you open the door to put the meringues in there so this higher temperature helps to mitigate some of that heat loss. We then turn the heat down lower and bake for an hour. This ensures that they stay bright white and get crispy and dry throughout. <\/li>\n
Leave the meringues in a turned off oven to cool<\/strong>. Letting the meringues sit in the oven for another 2-3 hours post-bake allows them to slowly cool down and dry out even further.<\/li>\n
For best results, bake on a dry day<\/strong>. If the air is very humid when baking meringues, it\u2019s going to take longer for them to dry out. They\u2019re also more at risk of losing their crispy texture post-bake as the sugar in the meringue will attract the water from the air. If you can\u2019t avoid this, make sure you let the meringues cool fully then store in an airtight container. You can even put a sealed packet of food-safe silica gel into the container too which will help keep them dry (just keep this way from children\/pets and obviously do not consume the silica gel!).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\n
\n
<\/source><\/picture><\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
125<\/span> g<\/span> (1\/2 cup) caster sugar (superfine sugar)<\/span> see notes for if you only have granulated<\/span><\/li>\n
75<\/span> g<\/span> (1\/3 cup) egg whites (around 2 egg whites)<\/span> see info in post above if you have more\/less egg white than this<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
\n
Optional inclusions<\/h4>\n
\n
1\/8<\/span> tsp<\/span> cream of tartar OR 1\/2 tsp white wine vinegar\/apple cider vinegar\/lemon juice\/distilled vinegar<\/span> optional<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n
1<\/span> small pinch<\/span> fine salt<\/span> optional<\/em><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
Preheat the oven to 150\u00b0C fan (170\u00b0C non-fan)<\/strong>. Line a baking tray with baking paper.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Spread the sugar out on the lined baking tray and place into the oven for 5-7 minutes<\/strong>. This warms the sugar up which will help it dissolve into the egg white more easily. It’s an optional step but IMO is worth it for the best meringues!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n
125 g (1\/2 cup) caster sugar (superfine sugar)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Place the egg whites into a clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment \u2013 you want to make sure there’s no grease\/fat in the bowl as this can prevent the egg whites from whipping. Don’t turn it on just yet<\/span><\/p>\n
75 g (1\/3 cup) egg whites (around 2 egg whites)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Once the sugar is hot, turn the oven down to 110\u00b0C fan (120\u00b0C non-fan)<\/strong> and start the stand mixer on a medium speed<\/strong> (around speed ‘6’ on a KitchenAid).<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Once the egg whites start to look frothy and form soft peaks, add the cream of tartar\/ vinegar<\/strong> and salt<\/strong> (if using) then mix for 1 minute. <\/span><\/p>\n
125 g (1\/2 cup) caster sugar (superfine sugar), <\/span>1\/8 tsp cream of tartar OR 1\/2 tsp white wine vinegar\/apple cider vinegar\/lemon juice\/distilled vinegar, <\/span>1 small pinch fine salt<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Gradually pour in the warm sugar (you can use the baking paper as a funnel to slowly ‘drizzle’ the sugar into the bowl) \u2013 it should take around 3 minutes for you to add it all.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Continue whisking at the same speed until the meringue is cool \u2013 around 5-7 minutes. <\/strong>At this point, the meringue should look thick, opaque and glossy. It should hold stiff peaks. If you rub some of the mix between your fingertips it should feel completely smooth \u2013 if it feels gritty at all you’ll need to keep whisking until it’s smooth.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Dot a bit of meringue mixture into the four corners of a baking tray and line with a piece of baking paper (you can re-use the baking paper from the sugar). Doing this helps the baking paper stick to the tray so it doesn’t flap around in the oven.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Take a large heaping tablespoonful of meringue and dollop onto the tray. Space each dollop a few centimetres apart as the meringues will puff up quite a bit as they bake. You should get 6 medium meringues.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Bake the meringues for 7 minutes<\/strong> at the current temperature of 110\u00b0C fan (120\u00b0C non-fan).<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Now turn the oven down<\/strong> to 90\u00b0C fan (100\u00b0C non-fan)<\/strong> and bake for a further 40 minutes.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n
\n
Turn the oven off but leave the tray of meringues inside<\/strong>. Allow to cool in here for 2-3 hours<\/strong> \u2013 the remnant heat of the oven will make sure that the meringues cool down very slowly, helping them to dry out a bit more, which will make them extra crisp on the outside. The meringues are ready when they easily peel away from the baking paper.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
![\"a](\"https:\/\/topwithcinnamon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Meringue-Recipe-08.webp)
<\/source><\/picture><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n![\"baked](\"https:\/\/topwithcinnamon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Meringue-Recipe-08-300x300.webp)
![\"YouTube](\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/3CfOpFImJZk\/hqdefault.jpg\"\/)
![\"YouTube](\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/3CfOpFImJZk\/hqdefault.jpg\")
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n