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French meringue
French meringue at home is a very tasty and light dessert that can be served on its own, but more often meringue is used as a base for various creams, layers for cakes, and desserts. Meringue is often used to cover Easter cakes.
Meringue is also used to make meringues and the famous dessert 'Pavlova'. To make French meringue deliciously, use this step-by-step recipe with photos.
Preparation time: 3 hours.
Ingredients
Show ingredients
- egg whites – 3 pcs. (100 g);
- sugar (fine granulated) - 200 g;
- salt – 1 pinch;
- lemon juice – a few drops.
Preparation
- The first rule is to carefully separate the egg whites from the yolks. The yolk is fat; it will complicate the rise of the egg whites, so not a single drop of yolk should get into the whites. Another very important point is that the eggs must be fresh. Ideally purchased one or three days before preparation. The egg whites need to be weighed.
- The second rule is to take twice as much sugar as egg whites.
- The bowl in which we will whip the French meringue must be clean and dry. To be safe, you can degrease the bowl with lemon juice. Cut a small slice from the lemon and wipe the inside surface of the bowl.
- Add a pinch of salt to the bottom of the bowl. We will whip the egg whites together with the salt; it will stabilize the whites.
- Place room temperature egg whites in the bowl. There is no point in cooling them in the refrigerator; warm whites will whip into a denser foam than cold ones. The bowl and the whisk of the mixer should also be at room temperature. Start whipping the egg whites at low speed.
- Whip the egg whites for one to two minutes until the mixture acquires the texture of 'sea foam'.
- Now switch the mixer to maximum speed. Continue whipping for another two to three minutes. By now, it is already visible that the mass has increased in volume several times and has thickened. Soft peaks have formed.
- Without stopping to whip the egg whites at maximum speed, you can gradually add the sugar in a 'rain' manner. Do not add all the sugar at once; this will deflate the egg whites, and it will be practically impossible to whip them back up. Only add the sugar in parts and in a thin stream.
- If desired, for a glossy texture, you can add a few drops of lemon juice to the egg whites. Continue whipping for another couple of minutes.
After adding the sugar, the egg mixture should be whipped for no more than five minutes.
- The readiness of the meringue is very easy to check. Take a small amount of the mixture and rub it between your fingers; if the sugar has dissolved and is not felt, then it is ready.
- The egg white mixture should also have stable peaks and should remain in the bowl even if turned over. The meringue is ready. You can continue to work with it as you wish. We will dry the meringue for decoration.
- You can divide the meringue into several parts and color it using gel-based food coloring.
- Add a few drops of coloring to the egg white mixture. Adjust the color saturation to your liking.
- Transfer the meringue to a pastry bag.
- Pipe onto parchment at a distance from each other, as the meringue will 'grow' during baking.
- Preheat the oven to t-80⁰ C, place the baking sheet with the meringue to dry. While the meringue is in the oven, the door must not be opened. The dessert should bake for two and a half to three hours, depending on the size. Sometimes the temperature in the oven can be set higher, thus reducing the baking time. But in this case, there is a greater likelihood that the dessert will crack.
French meringue at home is ready. Ours turned out smooth, without cracks, with a glossy surface. On such a base, a large number of various desserts can be prepared. The main thing is to follow all the cooking rules.
