Cream Meringue Recipes

BASIC MERINGUE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C).
• Beat egg whites in medium bowl with electric mixer until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar, 1 tbsp (15 mL) at a time, until sugar is dissolved and stiff, glossy peaks form.
• Spread over hot pie filling in decorative swirls.
• Bake pie in preheated 425°F (220°C) oven until tips of meringue are golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Makes topping for a 9-inch (23 cm) pie.

EASIEST, MOST DELICIOUS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• Place the egg whites and sugar into a metal bowl and set over a pan filled with about 2 inches of simmering water. Heat, stirring frequently, until the temperature of the egg whites reaches 140 degrees. They will feel very hot to the touch.
• Transfer the heated egg whites and sugar to a large mixing bowl or stand mixer. Mix at high speed (or as high as you can go without egg flying out of the bowl) until they have reached their maximum volume, 5 to 10 minutes. Mix on medium or medium-high speed while pinching off small pieces of butter and throwing them in. Mix in vanilla if using. The buttercream may look like it is breaking down, but keep on mixing and it will come back together.

MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring sugar and water to a boil. Clip a candy thermometer onto the saucepan. Boil the syrup, brushing down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush dipped in water to prevent crystallization, until the syrup registers 240 degrees (soft-ball stage).
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on low speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar, and beat on medium high until stiff but not dry peaks form.
• With the mixer running, pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl (to prevent splattering) into the egg whites in a steady stream, and beat on high speed until the steam is no longer visible, about 3 minutes. Beat in butter, piece by piece. Add vanilla; beat until smooth and spreadable, 3 to 5 minutes. If it looks curdled at any point during the beating process, continue beating until smooth.

EASY MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• One of the best-tasting buttercreams is also the easiest to prepare. See the end of the recipe for flavoring possibilities.
• Place egg whites, sugar and salt in medium-sized heatproof mixing bowl over a pan of simmering water and whisk gently and constantly until egg whites are hot (about 140 degrees) and sugar is dissolved, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and whip by machine until thick and cooled, about 5 minutes. Beat in butter and continue beating until buttercream is smooth and spreadable. Use immediately or refrigerate, covered, for up to 5 days. Before using, bring buttercream to room temperature and beat smooth by machine. Beat in flavoring, a little at a time, and continue beating until buttercream is smooth, about 2 minutes longer (always flavor buttercream immediately before using it).
• Flavorings: Liqueur: 2 to 3 tablespoons liqueur, such as Grand Marnier or dark or light rum. Lemon: 2 to 3 tablespoons lemon juice. Coffee: 3 tablespoons instant coffee (espresso, if possible) dissolved in 2 tablespoons water, coffee or rum. Raspberry: 3/4 cup thick raspberry puree made by cooking down and straining a 10-ounce package of frozen raspberries. Chocolate: 6 ounces chocolate melted with 4 tablespoons water, coffee or milk and cooled.

GOOD MERINGUE

Steps:

• In large bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with electric mixer until foamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until mixture forms stiff peaks.

LEMON CREAM MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• To make the filling, combine milk and sugar in a nonreactive saucepan, preferably enameled iron. Strip the zest from the lemons with a sharp vegetable peeler, making sure you remove the yellow zest but none of the white pith beneath. If you do remove some of the white pith, scrape it off the strips of zest with the point of a paring knife and discard it. Add the zest to the milk and sugar and bring to a simmer over low heat. Remove from heat and allow to steep for 5 minutes; remove the strips of zest with a slotted spoon or skimmer and discard them.
• Squeeze lemons to make 1/2 cup strained juice. Place juice in a mixing bowl and whisk in cornstarch, then yolks.
• Return milk and sugar mixture to a boil over low heat and whisk about a third of the boiling milk into the lemon juice mixture. Return remaining milk and sugar mixture to a boil once more and whisk the lemon juice and yolk mixture back into it, whisking constantly until the filling comes to a boil and thickens. Allow to boil, whisking constantly, for about 30 seconds. Remove from heat, whisk in butter and pour into a nonreactive bowl. Press plastic wrap against the surface of the filling and chill until it is approximately 75 degrees. (If you prepare the filling in advance, let it come to room temperature before proceeding.)
• Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Roll out the dough to make bottom crust and arrange in pan. Chill crust until firm.
• To bake the crust, pierce it all over with the tines of a fork at 1/2inch intervals. Line it with a disk of parchment or waxed paper and fill with cherry stones or dried beans. Bake about 20 minutes, until lightly colored. Remove paper and beans and continue baking until the crust is a deep golden brown. Cool crust on a rack.
• Spread the cooled filling evenly in the cooled crust.
• Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees.
• To make the meringue bring a small pan of water to a boil. Lower heat so that water simmers. Combine egg whites, sugar and salt in the bowl of the mixer or if you are using a hand whisk another heatproof bowl. Place bowl over pan of simmering water and whisk gently for about 2 minutes, until egg whites are hot (about 140 degrees) and sugar has dis solved. Whip meringue on medium speed until it has cooled and is able to hold a shape, but it should not be dry. Distribute spoonfuls of the meringue all over the top of the pie, then use the back of a spoon or a small offset metal spatula to spread the meringue evenly. It should cover the top of the pie and touch the edges of the crust all around. Here and there, bring up the surface of the meringue so that it is swirled. Place the pie on a cookie sheet and bake for about 5 to 10 minutes, until the meringue is colored evenly. Cool on a rack.

SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• Combine egg whites, sugar, and salt in the heatproof bowl of a standing mixer set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly by hand until mixture is warm to the touch and sugar has dissolved (the mixture should feel completely smooth when rubbed between your fingertips).
• Attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting on low and gradually increasing to medium-high speed, whisk until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Continue mixing until the mixture is fluffy and glossy, and completely cool (test by touching the bottom of the bowl), about 10 minutes.
• With mixer on medium-low speed, add the butter a few tablespoons at a time, mixing well after each addition. Once all butter has been added, whisk in vanilla. Switch to the paddle attachment, and continue beating on low speed until all air bubbles are eliminated, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl with a flexible spatula, and continue beating until the frosting is completely smooth. Keep buttercream at room temperature if using the same day. If not, transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat with paddle attachment on low speed until smooth again, about 5 minutes.
• To tint buttercream, reserve some for toning down the color, if necessary. Add gel-paste food color, a drop at a time (or use the toothpick or skewer to add food color a dab at a time) to the remaining buttercream. You can use a single shade of food color or experiment by mixing two or more. Blend after each addition with the mixer (use a paddle attachment) or a flexible spatula, until desired shade is achieved. Avoid adding too much food color too soon, as the hue will intensify with continued stirring; if necessary, you can tone down the shade by mixing in some reserved untinted buttercream.

MARSHMALLOW CREAM MERINGUE

Steps:

• Beat egg whites and salt until SOFT peaks form.
• Gradually add in the marshmallow cream, beating until STIFF peaks form.
• Spread over pie filling, making sure to spread and seal to the edges of the baked crust.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes, or until the meringue is lightly browned,.

ULTIMATE MERINGUE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 110C/ 100C fan/gas ¼.
• Line 2 baking sheets with non-stick liner or parchment paper (meringue can stick on greaseproof paper and foil).
• Tip 4 large egg whites into a large clean mixing bowl (not plastic). Beat them on medium speed with an electric hand whisk until the mixture resembles a fluffy cloud and stands up in stiff peaks when the blades are lifted.
• Now turn the speed up and start to add 115g caster sugar, a dessertspoonful at a time. Continue beating for 3-4 seconds between each addition. It's important to add the sugar slowly at this stage as it helps prevent the meringue from weeping later. However, don't over-beat. When ready, the mixture should be thick and glossy.
• Sift one third of the 115g icing sugar over the mixture, then gently fold it in with a big metal spoon or rubber spatula. Continue to sift and fold in the remaining icing sugar a third at a time. Again, don't over-mix. The mixture should now look smooth and billowy.
• Scoop up a heaped dessertspoonful of the mixture. Using another dessertspoon, ease it on to the baking sheet to make an oval shape. Or just drop them in rough rounds, if you prefer.
• Bake for 1 ½-1 ¾ hours in a fan oven, 1 ¼ hours in a conventional or gas oven, until the meringues sound crisp when tapped underneath and are a pale coffee colour.
• Leave to cool on the trays or a cooling rack. (The meringues will now keep in an airtight tin for up to 2 weeks, or frozen for a month.) Serve two meringues sandwiched together with a generous dollop of softly whipped double cream.