Candy Cane Meringues Food

MERINGUE CANDY CANES

Steps:

• Whisk the egg whites with an electric whisk or in a stand mixer for 2-3 mins, or until very foamy and doubled in size. With the motor running, add the sugar 1 tbsp at a time, beating in fully before adding the next spoonful.
• When all the sugar has been incorporated, add the peppermint extract and whisk for 2-3 mins more until very thick, glossy, and holding stiff peaks.
• Fit two piping bags with 1cm round nozzles, and paint a few stripes of the food colouring gels onto the inside of the bags using a cocktail stick. (Use one colour for each bag, or alternate the colours in the bags). Heat the oven to 120C/100C fan/gas ½, and line two or three baking sheets with baking parchment.
• Divide the meringue mixture between the two piping bags and pipe roughly 10cm-long, 2cm-thick cane shapes onto the prepared sheets, leaving a gap between each. Bake for 50 mins until dry and crisp. Leave to cool on the sheets for a few minutes, then carefully loosen them from the parchment with a palette knife, and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. U se the meringue canes to decorate your tree, or keep in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

MERINGUE CANDY CANES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with cooking parchment paper or foil. In large bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with electric mixer on high speed until foamy. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until meringue is stiff and glossy. Beat in peppermint extract.
• Fit large decorating bag with 1/4-inch star tip. With small brush, paint 3 to 4 evenly spaced stripes of food color on inside of decorating bag, from tip to upper edge. Carefully spoon meringue into bag. Pipe 2 1/2-inch candy canes onto paper-lined cookie sheets.
• Bake about 1 hour or until dry but not brown.

CANDY CANE KISS MERINGUES

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 175...yes 175, not a typo! :o) Line 1 large cookie sheet or 2 smaller ones with parchment paper. Place unwrapped kisses onto the cookie sheets. I got 7 rows of 5 on one cookie sheet.
• 2. Combine your room temperature eggs whites with the sugar and allow to stand 15 minutes. This will help dissolve the sugar. Add cream of tartar to the sugar mixture and beat on high until stiff peaks form. Then mix in peppermint extract.
• 3. Take a large pastry bag/icing bag and snip the tip off to leave a 1/2" opening. Take your red food color and carefully squirt a stripe down the inside of bag, (less is more) press sides together so you have 2 stripes. Fill your bag with meringue and swirl around each kiss. Starting on the bottom and swirling around to the top finishing at the top, gently pull up on pastry bag to create a nice tip.
• 4. Bake at 175 for 1 hour and 40 minutes. Then turn oven off, open oven door, leave meringues in the oven, allowing them to cool slowly. When cool, immediately remove from cookies sheets and put into an air tight container to keep them crispy.
• 5. Gel color works best for this. You can also use a small paint brush to paint a stripe on the inside of the bag.

MERINGUE CANDY CANES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high until stiff peaks form and sugar is dissolved, about 6 minutes. Beat in peppermint extract., Cut a small hole in the corner of a pastry bag; insert star tip #21. With a new painbrush, brush three evenly spaced 1/4-in. strips of red food coloring on the inside of the bag from the tip to three-fourths of the way to the top of the bag. Carefully fill bag with meringue., Pipe 3-in. candy canes onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake at 225° for 25 minutes; rotate baking sheets to a different oven rack. Bake 25 minutes longer or until firm to the touch. Turn oven off; leave cookies in oven with door ajar for at least 1 hour or until cool.

CANDY CANES

Steps:

• Before you begin this recipe, please take a class from a professional on working with sugar. This is a skill that professional pastry chefs develop after years of experience. Working with sugar will burn your fingers so know before you start that your fingers will develop burn blisters. Place the sugar, vinegar and water in a saucepan over high heat. Insert a candy thermometer and cook until the sugar reaches 320 degrees F. Use a pastry brush to keep the inside of the saucepan clean as the sugar cooks or the sugar may recrystallize. To do this, dip a clean brush in cold water and brush the inside of the pan clean. Pour the cooked sugar onto 3 or 4 silicone baking mats. If you want to color and/or flavor the sugar with food colors and/or flavored oils, this is the time to do so. Add a few drops of color to the sugar. Mix with a wooden skewer. To get started, push the sugar from the sides toward the center. This process takes a little while. Try to keep the sugar divided by color. Use the mat to push the firm sugar around the edges toward the center. Use a folding motion to accomplish that task. The next step is to pick up the sugar with your hands. Place each color under the heat of the sugar lamp. Pull the sugar until it becomes glossy and the color is evenly distributed. You will need to pull the colors simultaneously. Keep them under the sugar lamp but keep an eye on them. The lamp can melt the sugar so it is important keep rotating it and folding it onto itself.
• Start with 2 pieces of colored sugar. I used red and green. Pull them into a rectangular shape that is about 1 1/2-inches wide by 3-inches long and 1/2-inch thick. Place the pieces side-to-side and let them stick together on the long side. Place a piece of white sugar that is about 1/2-inch wide by 3-inches long and 1/2-inch thick in the middle. Close the red and green around it. Roll it and twist it while pulling it. When it gets to the desired thickness, use a scissor to cut the length and shape into a cane. Allow to cool completely. The white is inside and will become apparent when eaten.
• Jacques? tips: Vinegar keeps the sugar from crystallizing. You will not taste the flavor. It serves as an acid in this recipe. Sometimes candy cane recipes contain corn syrup, which makes the sugar very dry and very hot. Adding corn syrup makes it more difficult to work with the sugar at home. Remember, the sugar is at 320 degrees F, and that will burn you. The ideal work surface is a silpat placed over cool marble or granite. If you do not have marble or stone, use wood. It is a good idea to use gloves to help protect your hands from the heat and to prevent burning.
• I use a special sugar box that includes a special heat source, If you don?t have one, you can work in front of the oven. Set the oven to 300 degrees F. Open the oven door and place the silpat on the oven door. It provides a similar effect to the sugar box heater.

MERINGUE CANDY CANES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees, make sure your racks are in the middle of the oven.
• Fit large pastry bag with a 1/2 round tip and medium-bag with 1/4 round tip.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly trace 36, 2-2 1/2 inch long candy canes backward on parchment paper.
• Flip paper over.
• In medium sized bowl, beat whites, cream of tartar and salt until foamy.
• Adding 1 tablespoon of sugar at a time, beat until stiff, glossy peaks form.
• Beat in extract.
• Remove 1/2 cup of meringue; tint pink with food coloring.
• Transfer white meringue into large pastry bag and pink to medium bag.
• Fill in tracing with white meringue and pipe in pink stripes across canes.
• Bake in oven for 1 1/4 hours.
• Turn oven off; let sit for 1 hour in oven.
• With a metal turner transfer canes to wire rack and let cool completely.

CHOCOLATE-CANDY CANE MERINGUE WREATH

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes., Preheat oven to 250°. Add cream of tartar to egg whites; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high after each addition until sugar is dissolved. Continue beating until stiff glossy peaks form. Fold in 1 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup crushed candies., Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 1 in. apart onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake 35-40 minutes or until firm to the touch. Remove to wire racks to cool completely., Line serving platter with a doily. In a microwave, melt shortening and remaining chocolate chips. Dip bottoms of cookies into chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. Stack cookies on prepared platter into a ring to form a wreath., Drizzle remaining melted chocolate over wreath; sprinkle with remaining candies. Let stand until set, about 30 minutes. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.