If you still do not know how to make meringue, we will tell you! A detailed description of the dessert, the features of cooking and recipes, as well as tips on how to diversify the sweet food - all this awaits you in our article!
Description
Protein meringues are a delicate crispy dessert that looks more like sweets. When bitten, the pieces melt in the mouth, leaving a sugary-vanilla aftertaste. There are meringue sweets and meringue cakes. Both are prepared on the basis of egg whites and sugar, but they are baked in various forms.
Flavoring or aromatic substances are added to the protein dough:
- food-grade synthetic or natural fruit and berry dyes;
- spices for sweet dishes;
- ground nuts or seeds;
- coffee or cocoa powder.
Cooking features
In order to learn how to make meringue, read the features of the preparation of this type of dessert:
- take only cold egg whites;
- do not use glass or enameled dishes for whipping, this is an important rule - after all, with increased rotation of the whisk with a mixer, a piece of the container may break off and ruin the dessert dough;
- beat only in a clean and dry container;
- if you take sweet powder instead of sugar, its grains will dissolve faster in proteins, and the consistency of the mass will be softer and more uniform;
- add acid (citric acid or fresh citrus juice) to still liquid proteins - so the mass will become snow-white and mouth-watering;
- when whipping proteins with a mixer or a blender, first use the first speed of rotation of the whisk when the mass is thickened, add speed to the second, third and, if necessary, fourth;
- if you plan to add something to the protein dough during whipping, reduce the speed of the mixer to the first;
- what to do if the meringue does not whip: add a pinch of ordinary table salt to the proteins.
Meringue recipe: classic
What ingredients are needed:
- proteins from chicken eggs - 4 pcs.;
- sugar - 300 g;
- powder vanilla - a couple of pinches;
- citric acid - a couple of pinches (or 1 tsp. lemon juice).
How to make meringue at home? About it - further.
Mix the cooled proteins in a volumetric cup with vanilla and citric acid.
Beat the whites at the first mixer speed. When the mass becomes a little thicker and whiter, add sugar to the proteins in a thin stream. Keep the whisk in the opposite edge of the container. Otherwise, sugar will crumble throughout the kitchen.
Continue whisking at increased speed until a thick, stable mass is formed. Check it out is simple. Turn off the mixer and lift the whisk out of the protein mixture - it should not fall and should be thick enough (see photo below).
Put this foamy dough in a pastry bag and place on a baking sheet in small volume fragments.
Send to bake in the oven at a standard temperature for protein dough at 170 ° C. In a couple of minutes, the products will be ready. But the baking time largely depends on the mass of one candy - large ones take longer to bake.
You have learned how to make meringues in the oven. Now let's get acquainted with how you can diversify the classic version of the preparation of a sweet dessert.
Colorful meringues - what's the secret?
And there’s absolutely no secret! Just add some paint! Food grade synthetic or natural. They are added when whipping proteins.
It is interesting that if you immediately introduce a dye into liquid egg whites, then the finished dough will turn out to be a homogeneous specific color or shade. But if you add in the end, when the mass is already similar to whipped snow-white peaks, the color will turn out to be marble, not uniform. Here's how to make meringues different in texture and color.
Meringue paints
To make natural color bezeshki, use natural dyes. In contact with egg white:
- blueberry juice gives a blue color;
- spinach or Tarkhun syrup - green color;
- strawberry (or redcurrant) jam or jam - pink and red.
The shade of ready-made sweets depends on how much you add dye.
Meringue and whipped cream dessert - recipe
What ingredients are needed:
- egg whites - 2 pcs.;
- sweet powder - 200 g;
- fatty cream 33% - 100 ml;
- nuts (almonds, walnuts or cashews) - 7-8 kernels;
- fresh zest of lemon (or orange) - 0.3 tsp;
- Kiwi - 1 pc.;
- banana - 1 pc.;
- strawberry jam or jam - 3-4 tbsp. l
Step by step recipe:
- Peel the kernels. If walnuts are taken - fry them, and scald almonds with boiling water. Then dry and grind the kernels into crumbs. If you take cashews, there’s less work with it - you don’t need to peel dark skin. Cashew simply does not have it.
- Mix the egg whites with half the indicated amount of sugar and the whole zest, beat in a strong foam (how to make meringue, see above). Add ground nuts and mix a little.
- Place the protein dough in a plastic bag and cut the edge to 2-3 mm. Place the mass in fragments on a baking sheet. It is better to cover it with food foil or baking parchment. Send bezeshki to the oven for 4-5 minutes at 170-180 ° C. Watch out - the finished sweets should be rosy. Then pull them out and cool at room temperature.
- In the meantime, mix the cream with the remaining sugar and beat until thick foam.
- Peel the fruit and cut into thin slices or cubes - as you like.
- It's time to collect dessert - put a layer of meringue in a bowl (for this, the baked pieces can be broken or left whole). The next layer is cream. Put the fruits on top and garnish with strawberry jam, like syrup.
There may be another design option - see photo above.
Meringue Cake: A Simple Recipe
What ingredients are needed:
- butter - 150 g;
- sugar - 150 g;
- whole eggs - 2 pcs.;
- baking baking powder - 0.5 tsp;
- salt - a couple of pinches;
- wheat flour (premium) - 400 g;
- egg whites - 2 pcs.;
- icing sugar - 150 g;
- vanilla extract - 1 drop;
- citric acid - a pinch;
- lemon jam - 150 g.
How to make meringue at home: a recipe
- We start by putting lemon jam on a plate. He had better be at room temperature. The finished product is indicated in the recipe, however you can cook it yourself from the juice of 2-3 lemons and one glass of sugar.
- Soft butter mix well with sugar, a pinch of salt and eggs. In this mass, mix the baking powder and flour. The dough should be elastic and soft, but thick. Roll the baking dish over the diameter. Cover it with parchment and lay the dough. Form the edge edges. If the dough goes beyond the mold, cut it.
- Place the dough in the oven at 200 ° C until rosy. Since the dough is thin, it will not bake for long.
- You already know how to make meringue - we examined the recipe above. Therefore, we dwell on the fact that for its preparation we take 150 g of powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, two proteins, vanilla extract and citric acid.
- So, do not pull the baked cakes out of the mold. Lay lemon jam on the cake - spread on the entire bottom surface with an even layer.
- Then put protein dough on the jam - even with a spatula or spoon.
- Place the cake in the oven at 170-180 ° C for 10-13 minutes. Shortcrust pastry is already ready, so we are waiting for baking only meringues.
In such a cake you can use puff pastry for puff pastry - homemade or store-bought. The recipe is given for a large voluminous cake, but if you want, instead of a wide form, take small cookie cutters - in them, the dessert will be portioned for each family member or invited guest.
Additional Ingredients: Pros and Cons
How to make meringues varied, original and interesting? Add extra ingredients! They can become:
- a drop of rum, liquor or white dry table wine - as an aromatic component of the dessert (do not use cognac - it will give a steady gray color to the protein test, it will not be possible to correct the situation);
- confectionery topping on finished sweets - beautiful and appetizing (especially for children);
- ground or chopped nuts for decoration;
- small pieces of candied fruit at the end of protein mixing - meringues will have multi-colored inclusions inside;
- spices and seasonings as additional components of the dough made of protein (add cinnamon, nutmeg or vanilla with citric acid);
- dry herbs are also used - for meringues, mint, oregano, basil, tarragon, dessert sorrel or spinach are suitable.
As you can see, you can cook meringues yourself without much effort. Enjoy your meal!