Chocolate Meringue Cookies Recipe • Food Folks and Fun (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to making a good meringue? ›

Italian meringue has a soft and creamy texture that is considered the most stable of the three types. Because it holds its shape so well, you can typically find Italian meringue piped on desserts like baked Alaska or pastries.

Chewy meringues are the result of two possible situations, under-baking and humidity. If they are under-baked they might always be a little chewy. For humidity, you can try popping the meringues back into the oven on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet at 200°F for 10 minutes to try crisping them up a bit.

You may be cooking it at too high a heat. The best way to cook meringues is to preheat the oven to 300°F, then turn it down to 250°F as soon as you put it in the oven. An 8″ or 9“ Pavlova should take about an hour and a quarter at that temperature.

Meringue rules: The final verdict

Abide — Avoid yolks; use a non-plastic bowl; add sugar slowly, and bake low and slow. Let slide — Don't pull your hair out if your eggs are cold, you don't have superfine sugar, or it's a humid day.

The cornflour and vinegar that is added strengthens the egg white and make it more stable and you get the marshmallowy centres from the shorter cooking time.

Overmixing: Overmixing the egg whites can cause the proteins to break down, resulting in a denser, chewier texture rather than a light and airy consistency meringue.

The bottom line: For smooth, stiff beaten egg whites that keep their shape, don't skip the cream of tartar. If you don't have cream of tartar, substituting 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar per egg white works almost as well. To avoid meringues that weep, don't skip the cream of tartar...

Hard meringue is made with a higher sugar content and baked for a long time period at a low temperature. Soft meringue is often used to ice tarts (i.e.lemon meringue tart), cakes or in desserts (i.e. floating islands). Today, we're going to tackle the kinder beast, the French Meringue technique.

If you add the sugar too quickly then the mixture will never acquire the stiff consistency you want. You also need to be careful if you've used extra ingredients to flavour your meringues. Oils (such as those in nuts or zest) and liquids can stop the egg whites from stiffening, so you have to experiment with amounts.

Why add cornstarch to meringue? ›

Cornstarch: Cornstarch is an excellent way to foolproof your meringue. Use it to create added fluff and keep your hard-won volume from shrinking. Cream of Tartar: Often added in when making meringues, acidic cream of tartar provides lift and stabilization.

Over whip the egg whites and you risk making them too firm and they will risk losing the moisture that they hold. This will affect your meringue's crispness, as well as making it more likely to collapse or weep beads of sugar. As my meringue guru Gary Mehigan advises: “If you over whip the egg whites you cannot fix it.

Cornstarch: Cornstarch is an excellent way to foolproof your meringue. Use it to create added fluff and keep your hard-won volume from shrinking. Cream of Tartar: Often added in when making meringues, acidic cream of tartar provides lift and stabilization.

Fats, water, or dirt may compromise the meringue and prevent it from achieving the fluffy heights you desire. Avoid plastic bowls, which can retain traces of oil. Separate your eggs carefully. Enough yolk will also prevent the egg white proteins from binding together in the way you need.

Meringue is a fluffy mixture that is delicious on its own. It is also used to give mousses, macarons, and some buttercream frostings their light and fluffy textures. If you've never made meringue yourself, you might be surprised to learn that the main ingredients are simply egg whites and sugar!