Italian Meringue Recipes

BASIC ITALIAN MERINGUE RECIPE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, combine sugar and water. Heat over high heat, stirring only until it comes to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, stop stirring. Cook until sugar syrup registers 240°F (115°C) on an instant-read or candy thermometer. Brush down sides of pot as necessary with a pastry brush dipped in water.
• Meanwhile, combine egg whites and cream of tartar or lemon juice in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (see note). Set mixer to medium speed and mix until soft peaks form (when lifted, the head of the mixer should form gentle peaks in the egg whites that very slowly collapse back into themselves), about 2 minutes.
• With the mixer running, carefully and slowly drizzle in hot sugar syrup. (Hot sugar is just as dangerous as fryer oil, so use caution!) Increase speed to high and whip until desired stiffness is achieved. Soft peaks are often used to aerate mousses, for example, while a stiff peak is best for buttercream.

BASIC ITALIAN MERINGUE

Steps:

• Bring sugar, water, and corn syrup to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cook, undisturbed, until syrup registers 248 degrees on a candy thermometer.
• Meanwhile, whisk whites with a mixer on low speed until foamy. Add salt and cream of tartar. Increase speed to medium, and whisk until soft peaks form, about 8 minutes.
• Reduce speed to low, and pour hot syrup down side of bowl in a slow, steady stream. Increase speed to high, and beat until mixture stops steaming, about 3 minutes. Use immediately.

SARAH'S ITALIAN MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• Pour egg whites into the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment; beat at medium speed until frothy. Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form.
• Combine remaining 1 cup sugar and water in a small saucepan. Attach a candy thermometer to the saucepan and place over low heat. Cook until syrup reaches 244 degrees F (117 degrees C) or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms a firm but pliable ball.
• Increase mixer speed to high and pour syrup in a slow and steady stream down the side of the bowl, beating until combined, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-high and continue beating until meringue is stiff and the sides of the bowl feel barely warm, 3 to 4 minutes more.
• Beat in butter 1 tablespoon at a time until smooth. Switch to the paddle attachment, add vanilla extract, and beat on high until buttercream is light and fluffy, 4 to 7 minutes.

ITALIAN MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• Pour egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment; beat on low speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar, increase speed to medium-high, and beat until stiff peaks form.
• Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat; bring to a boil. Cook until syrup reads 240 degrees F (115 degrees C) on a candy thermometer or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms a soft ball that flattens when placed on a flat surface.
• Increase mixer speed to high and pour syrup in a slow and steady stream down the side of the bowl, beating until meringue is no longer steaming, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in butter one cube at a time until buttercream reaches a soft and spreadable consistency, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla extract.

ITALIAN MERINGUE

Steps:

• Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer with the wire whisk attached. Make sure the bowl is dry and clean.
• In a small saucepan with a candy thermometer attached, heat the sugar and water to 210º.
• Turn on the stand mixer to speed 3 (medium low) and start whipping the egg whites.
• When the egg whites are almost at soft peaks, add the pinch of salt.
• Continue to heat the sugar and water to 240º - this is soft ball stage.
• With the mixer STILL ON, carefully pour the hot sugar liquid into the beating egg whites. GO SLOW and be consistent - a slow steady stream.
• After all of the sugar mixture is added, increase the speed of the mixer to about 4 (medium high) and beat until the bowl is cool to the touch. This could take anywhere from 5 to 10 minute.
• Scrape the meringue onto the pie or pies quickly. Once the meringue sets up, it becomes hard to work with. If this happens, just put it back into the mixer and whip until stiff peaks form again.

ITALIAN MERINGUE FOR MERINGUE PIES

Steps:

• Put the sugar, 1/4 cup water and the corn syrup into a small saucepan and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat and cook, without stirring, until the syrup registers 240 degrees F (soft-ball stage) on a candy thermometer, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, while the sugar is cooking, put the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whip on medium-low speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Sprinkle in the cream of tartar and increase the mixer speed to medium; whisk until soft peaks form, about 3 minutes.
• When the syrup reaches the correct temperature, reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly drizzle the hot syrup down the inside of the mixer bowl in a slow, steady stream (be sure not to let the syrup hit the whisk to avoid splattering). Increase the mixer speed to high and whip until the whites are stiff and glossy, about 4 minutes.
• Use the meringue immediately to top a lemon meringue pie.

ITALIAN MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• In a small heavy saucepan, combine 3/4 cups sugar sugar and water. Bring to a boil; cook over medium-high heat until a thermometer reads 250° (hard-ball stage), 8 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, using a stand mixer, beat egg whites in a large bowl on high speed until foamy. Gradually add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high after each addition until sugar is dissolved and soft peaks form. , Slowly pour hot sugar syrup over egg whites while beating continuously. Continue beating on high until mixture cools to room temperature, 15 to 20 minutes., Gradually add butter, a few tablespoons at a time, beating on medium after each addition until smooth. Beat in vanilla.

QUICK ITALIAN MERINGUE

Steps:

• Bring sugar, water, and corn syrup to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cook, undisturbed, until syrup registers soft-ball stage (238 degrees) on a candy thermometer.
• Meanwhile, whisk egg whites with a mixer on low speed until foamy. Add salt, cream of tartar, and vanilla. Increase speed to medium, and whisk until soft peaks form, about 8 minutes.
• Reduce speed to low, and pour hot syrup down side of bowl in a slow, steady stream. Increase speed to high, and beat until mixture stops steaming, about 3 minutes. Use immediately.

ITALIAN MERINGUE (MAGNIFICENT PIE MERINGUE)

Steps:

• Place a shelf in the middle of the oven. Place a baking stone on it and preheat oven to 375°F/191°C.
• In a small saucepan, heat the cornstarch and ⅓ cup (79 ml) cool water over medium heat, stirring steadily with a whisk until thick and cloudy. Reserve until needed.
• Read Egg-White Foams and Meringues At a Glance (see below). Follow precautions - scrupulously clean bowl and beater.
• In a mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form when the beater is lifted. Add in ¼ cup (1.8 oz/50 g) sugar and continue to beat.
• In a heavy unlined saucepan, stir together remaining 1¾ cups (12.3 oz/347 g) of the sugar, the corn syrup, and ½ cup (118 ml) water. Bring to a boil, rinse down the sides of the pan with the water on a pastry brush. Attach a candy thermometer to the saucepan, and continue to boil the syrup until it reaches 248°F/120°C (hard-ball stage).
• Continue beating whites until stiff peaks form. Ideally, have the whites stiff when the syrup reaches 248°F/120°C. Rinse a 2-cup (473 ml) heatproof glass measuring cup with a spout with the hottest tap water and dry well. When the syrup reaches 248°F/120°C, carefully pour the syrup into the cup. Drizzle the hot sugar syrup into the meringue while beating on medium speed. Try to avoid drizzling the syrup on the beaters or the sides of the bowl. The meringue will swell dramatically and fill the whole bowl. Beat until the meringue has cooled, about 10 to 13 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and salt, then beat in about 3 tablespoons (45 ml) of the reserved cornstarch paste, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) at a time. The meringue is essentially cooked but it is still snow white. It is the perfect palette for a masterpiece.
• Spread the meringue on the pie. Place the pie in the middle of the oven and bake for about 10 minutes - just until the ridges are brown - then remove from the oven and touch up with a blowtorch as desired. (I think that you have to be very experienced to brown a meringue with a blowtorch alone. It is easier to bake just until you start getting color on the ridges, then pull out of the oven and touch up with the blowtorch.)
• Egg-White Foams and Meringues At a Glance
• What to do? Use scrupulously clean bowl and beaters for egg whites. Use fresh egg whites. Why? Any oil or grease will wreck an egg-white foam.
• What to do? Use room-temperature eggs. Why? Warmer eggs are easier to separate. The length of time it takes to beat egg whites is inversely related to how cold the whites are. The colder the whites, the longer the beating time.
• What to do? Separate the eggs using the three-bowl method. Why? Even a trace of egg yolk will deflate an egg-white foam.
• What to do? Use a copper bowl or add ⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar per egg white. Why? To get a more stable foam that will hold up better in cooking.
• What to do? For meringues, add the sugar when soft peaks form when the beaters are lifted. Be sure to add sugar then-do not wait until too late. Why? Adding sugar too early reduces the volume and increases beating time. If you wait too late to add sugar, meringue can dry out and will not expand.
• What to do? Do not overbeat egg whites. Beat them only until they are still moist and slip a little in the bowl. Why? Overbeaten egg-white foams become dry and rigid and will not expand in a hot oven.
• What to do? Stir tapioca starch into the sugar or make a cornstarch paste and beat in the paste after adding the sugar. Why? Starch prevents the meringue's shrinking when baked and prevents tearing when the meringue is cut.

ITALIAN OR COOKED MERINGUE

Steps:

• Combine the sugar and water in saucepan and stir well. Cook over medium-high heat but do not stir. Instead swirl pan by the handle.
• Continue swirling pan and bring mixture to boil. Let it boil until the liquid becomes completely clear.
• Reduce heat; cover pan and continue to simmer while beating whites.
• Beat whites slowly until they become foamy. Then beat in cream of tartar and salt. Increase speed and beat whites until stiff peaks form.
• Uncover sugar syrup; insert candy thermometer and boil until the temperature reaches 238 degrees, the soft-ball stage.
• Remove from heat; start to beat whites at medium speed and slowly pour boiling syrup into whites, beating all the time. Continue to beat until the mixture forms stiff peaks, about 8 minutes. The meringue is the proper consistency if it does not move when a spatula is run through it.