Meringues

[vicki2]

I've been into making meringues. This started at Christmas time when I found a recipe that used pecans and dried cherries (they were super), and lately I've been doing plain ones or almond flavored ones just to have around. They do last well.

Thing with meringues is picking a dry day to do it or they just never cook all the way through. I've been doing it on about 200 degrees and it takes most of the afternoon. Does anyone else make them and how hot can you go?

[cat lover]

I used to make meringues all the time as a newlywed, just because my grandmother was always getting me some at the bakery when I was little. So I thought I bet I can make them! Worked great! Haven't made any in awhile, but here is the recipe I always used.

2 egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2/3 cup sugar

Beat egg whites with cream of tartar, vanilla and salt in a bowl till soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating till very stiff peaks form. Spoon meringue onto brown paper on cookie sheets using about a heaping tablespoon for each. Make a deep well in the center of each, and spread out to make a shell 3" in diameter. Bake at 275 degrees about 1 hour till crisp and very lightly brown. Cool a few minutes before removing from the paper. Cool completely and fill shells with ice cream and topping. We liked filling ours with pudding also.

You can freeze the meringues in a tightly covered contianer also, never kept them long though! LOL What do you fill yours with? You are right on it having to be a dry day, if it is raining or even a humid day no use in even trying to make them!

[vicki2]

Okay, so 275 degrees ..I can up the temp a little and give it a try.

I don't always fill them but add things like toasted nuts and dried cranberries or cherries directly to the meringue before baking. Makes them more like cookies!

[happy2bg33k]

Any tips for making sure the egg whites are separated carefully enough from the yolks? I have a tough time with this. :(

[vicki2]

I've always just cracked the egg, and then transfer the yolk back and forth until all the white has fallen into a bowl. I don't screw up often enough to try to work out a new way lol.

[cat lover]

You can but a inexpensive tool called an egg separater if you need one; you crack the egg into it and the white runs through and a little "cup" holds the yolk. Me, myslef I just crack the egg and dump it into my hands and let the egg white run through my fingers in to a bowl while I'm not letting the yolk through.

[happy2bg33k]

Isn't it funny how the simplest answers are right in front you most of the time and you don't even think of them? :p Both of those are very sensible and easy suggestions which never occurred to me!

[vicki2]

I didn't pick up much from my mother in the way of cooking ...or I didn't think so ...but there are some old methods I use in the kitchen that I learned from her. Cracking eggs was one lol.

[cat lover]

Transferring the egg back and forth works to, but since we have all our own fresh eggs and don'tt use anything except running water over the ones that need it, I don't use that method because of transferring some "unknown" (LOL)from the outside of the shell.

The drip through the fingers works faster for me than the egg separater because we use so many eggs. DH can't eat the yolks so for every egg called for we use two egg whites so we go through a tremendous amount of eggs.