Meringue & Meringue Cake

Makes 1 cake serving 8

Meringue is made with whipped egg whites and sugar and baked slowly. It creates a crisp, sweet shell for whipped cream, fruit, ice cream, etc., and there is lots of room to be creative!

Pavlova is a meringue dessert named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova. It is baked until soft inside rather than Meringue which is baked until completely dry and crisp, allowing it to act as a basket for fruit and fillings.

Although it’s delicate, baked meringue can be frozen. It’s best not to freeze it in plastic, as this can produce moisture and soften the meringue.

I prefer wrapping meringue lightly in parchment and then foil. Place it somewhere safe in the freezer so that it doesn’t break. I freeze individual meringues by placing them in a tin container like a cookie tin.

Note: Have the eggs at room temperature before you start.

Tips:

• To whip egg whites, use a stainless steel bowl. Plastic bowls have oils that will keep the egg whites from whipping.
• Clean your bowl: To whip egg whites, there must be no trace of fat. 
• Rinse the bowl you’ll whip the eggs in with hot water and soap. 
• Dry with a clean towel. 
• Add a splash (1 Tbls) of plain red or white vinegar and wipe the inside of the bowl with a paper towel. Dry completely with more paper towels.

• To separate eggs: 
• Before you start, it’s easiest if the eggs are at room temperature. 
• Have a clean small metal or glass bowl, ready, along with your clean mixing bowl and a small container for the egg yolks.
• Crack an egg on the counter rather than the bowl to avoid eggshells getting into the bowl. Allow the egg white to drip through your fingers into the small glass or metal bowl. Place the yolk in its container.
• Check the egg white in the small bowl for shells or yellow yolk. If you see any yolk, use the shell to remove it. If it seems impossible to remove the yolk, save that white for another use. If it’s clean, add it to the whipping bowl and crack the next egg.

Ingredients:

• 8 large room-temperature egg whites with absolutely no yolk
• 1 pinch of fine salt
• 2 ½ cups (500g) sugar
• 4 tsp. cornstarch
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tsp. white wine vinegar
• 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper
  

Filling

ideas below

You will need 3 baking sheets, lined with parchment.

Preheat the oven to 275ºF. If your oven runs hot, it’s good to have an oven thermometer, turn it down to 250ºF

• If the whites are not room temperature, they can be gently warmed over a double boiler, whisking constantly until warm to the touch.

For a three-tiered cake:

1. Draw a 9-inch circle on the parchment-lined sheets using a plate as a guide. 
2. Turn the sheet over so the pencil drawing is facing the cookie sheet.
3. In a clean metal bowl or your stand-alone mixer bowl, whisk the egg whites with the salt on medium-high speed until they hold soft peaks but are not stiff. 
4. Gently add the sugar, slowly and spoonful by spoonful, with the mixer running, until you've got a bowl full of gleaming, satiny, shiny, and fairly stiff meringue with the tips drooping. 
5. Sprinkle the cornstarch, vanilla, and vinegar on top and whisk just to combine.
6. Using your finger, place a small “blob” of meringue on each corner of the cookie sheet and press the parchment into the meringue blobs. This will act as a glue to keep the parchment from lifting up.
7. Spoon the meringue onto the baking parchments in three equal “blobs”. Use the back of the spoon or spatula to create flat, wavy discs while staying within the lines. 
8. Put the sheet pans into the oven and and bake for 30 minutes.
9. Switch the pans around and bake for another 30 minutes. 
   🥮 Note: If they begin to brown slightly, prop a wooden spoon in the oven door to cool the temperature slightly and turn the oven down by 50º. 
10. Turn the oven off; let the meringues stand in a closed oven for 2 to 2 ½ hours or overnight, until the surface is dry and crisp when lightly tapped with a fingernail or spoon and the meringues can be lifted from the paper without sticking. They should also easily peel off the parchment paper. 
    🥮 Put a Post-it on the oven so that you don’t forget they are in the oven! Trust me!!

To assemble:

1. Whip the cream in a bowl on medium speed with the vanilla and enough sugar to lightly sweeten and just until stiff peaks form.
   🥮 The meringue is sweet, so the whipped cream should be lightly sweetened to balance the flavors.
2. Place a meringue disc on a platter and spread with one-third of whipped cream.
3. Place the second disc on top and repeat. Add the third disk and cover with the remaining whipped cream.
   🥮 The cake can be served immediately or chilled up to two hours.
   🥮 Cut with a sharp, thin-bladed knife.

Other filling to use in place of or with whipped cream:

• Spread pastry cream on each meringue layer and top with whipped cream
• Spread lemon curd on each meringue layer and top with whipped cream
• Spread each layer with whipped cream and add fresh berries or pitted cherries
• Spread each layer with whipped cream, drizzle with chocolate sauce or ganache, and add sliced strawberries
• Add 1 to 2 tsp. (or more) instant espresso powder and sugar to taste to the whipped cream. Use as your filling between the meringues.
• Dust the top meringue with powdered sugar or powdered sugar mixed with cocoa powder, or spread with whipped cream and top with berries.

Individual meringue “boats”:

1. Use the base of a cup or other object to draw circles for each individual meringue leaving circles 2 inches apart as the meringue expands.
2. Using your finger, place a small “blob” of meringue on each corner of the parchment paper. Turn the paper over so the pencil and meringue are facing the cookie sheet. Press the meringue to make glue for the paper.
3. Starting with one circle to practice, plop a large spoonful of meringue in the center of a circle. 
4. Use the back of the spoon to create a nest with the center lower than the sides. Continue with the remaining meringues.

Individual meringue “lids”:

1. Prepare parchment cookie sheets as above for individual meringues.
2. Using a pastry bag with a plain round tip, pipe what looks like giant meringue or chocolate kisses onto the prepared sheet pan.
3. Using the back of a small metal spatula or a regular dinner knife, drag the meringue up from base to tip. Continue around the meringue.
4. Note: you can also design whatever you’d like, as the meringue is flexible as long as you don’t play with it for too long.
   🥮 Bake individual meringues for 30 to 45 minutes, depending on size. They should easily peel off the parchment paper.