Meringue

Yield: 8 Servings

Measure Ingredient
4 larges Egg whites; room temperature
1 pinch Salt
1 cup Granulated sugar

This recipe makes enough meringue for about 5 douzen cookies.

Master meringue - an easy feat - and everything you've ever wanted to know about airy whipped egg whites will be revealed. With a batch of meringue, you're ready to bake cookies, shape shells to fill with mousses and creams, stack a napoleon, top a pie, construct an elegant Viennese torte, whip up a chiffon cake, or make a light buttercream.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Put the egg whites and salt in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or work with a hand-held mixer). Starting on the highest speed, beat the whites for about 3 minutes, until they increase in volume and form medium-soft peaks that hold their shape. Whith the mixer running, gradually add ¾ cup of the sugar and continue to beat on high speed for 5 minutes, at which point the peaks will be stiff. Add the remaining ¼ cup sugar and beat 2 to 3 minutes more. When you remove the bowl from the mixer, dip the whisk attachment into the meringue and lift it straight up - the meringue that adheres to the whisk should hold a firm peak if you turn the whisk upside down.

The meringue is now ready to pipe, swirl onto a pie, or fold into a batter and bake.

Three Types Of Meringue:

Plain: egg whites beaten with sugar, plain and simple; an uncooked meringue that is the least stable but easiest to make member of the meringue gang Cooked: the egg whites and sugar are heated and then whipped to peaks; a more stable meringue, often used for buttercream, bake Alaska, or meringue pies

Italian: the egg whites are whipped with a sugar syrup that has been cooked to the soft-bal stage' the most stable meringue and the one used to make frozen desserts and soufflŽs.

Per serving: 105 Calories; 0g Fat (0% calories from fat); 2g Protein; 25g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 44mg Sodium NOTES : Recipe source: Baking with Julia Child Recipe by: Ron West

Posted to Bakery-Shoppe Digest by Ron West <ronwest@...> on Feb 15, 1998

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