Strawberry Dust Meringues Food

SUMMER BERRY MERINGUES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 110C/fan 90C/gas ¼. Tip the egg whites and lemon juice into the clean bowl of a food mixer. Whisk until the whites double in volume and hold a peak when the whisk is drawn through them. Keep the whisk running and add the sugar a tbsp at a time, incorporating completely before adding the next. Whisk until all the sugar has been added and the whites are glossy.
• Place a square of baking parchment on a large baking sheet. Pencil nine circles, about 7cm each, onto the parchment. Spoon the meringue into a large piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle and pipe concentric rounds to fit each drawn circle, piping two or more rings around the edge to form a nest. Bake for 2 hrs until they are crisp and lift off the paper easily. Leave to cool completely.
• Whisk the crème fraîche until stiff, then fold in the yogurt. Set 2 strawberries and 9 raspberries aside and roughly chop the rest. Tip the chopped berries, mint and ginger into a bowl. Sprinkle with a little icing sugar and use a wooden spoon to mash to a rough purée. Gently fold the berries into the yogurt mix, adding icing sugar to taste.
• To assemble, cut the remaining strawberries into 9 slices and place a slice inside each meringue case. Generously share the rippled cream between the cases, then top with a raspberry and a mint sprig. Dust with a little icing sugar just before serving. ( Meringues keep in an airtight container for 2 days.)

STRAWBERRY MERINGUE COOKIES

Steps:

• For the remainder of the recipe, click here

STRAWBERRY MERINGUE CLOUDS

Steps:

• Place an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 200 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until the mixture holds soft peaks, about 1 minute. With the machine running on medium-high speed, add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Increase the speed to high and beat until the mixture is thick and holds stiff peaks, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the vanilla extract. Using a spatula, fold in the strawberries and lemon zest, taking care not to deflate the batter.
• Using a 1/4-cup-size ice cream scoop, scoop heaped mounds of batter onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing each about 2 inches apart. Bake for 2 hours. Turn off the oven and allow the meringues to cool completely while still in the oven, about 2 hours.
• The meringues can be stored in an airtight plastic container for up to 4 days.

STRAWBERRY MERINGUE COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 215 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
• In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat egg whites, 1 teaspoon strawberry extract, and cream of tartar on medium speed until frothy. With mixer running, add powdered sugar in tablespoon increments. Add food coloring and continuing beating until stiff peak form. (Careful not to overbeat.)
• Transfer mixture to a pastry bag or large zip-top bag fitted with large round tip. Pipe into 2-inch spirals on prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, rotating once. Turn off oven and open door. With meringues still inside oven, let dry out for 10 to 12 minutes.
• Remove parchment paper from baking sheet and let meringues cool completely.

STRAWBERRY MERINGUE NESTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees with rack in lower third. Coat two baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray; line with parchment paper.
• With an electric mixer, beat egg whites with salt and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Very gradually beat in sugar, adding 1 tablespoon at a time; beat until stiff and glossy.
• Drop 8 mounds of meringue onto prepared baking sheets; twirl a teaspoon in the center of each to spread to a diameter of 4 inches and create a nest. Bake until dry but still white, about 1 1/2 hours, rotating baking sheets halfway through; let cool on sheets.
• Use a small paring knife to hull and quarter strawberries. In a bowl, toss strawberries with sugar; let stand, at least 30 minutes. Spoon into nests.

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.

FRESH STRAWBERRY MERINGUE

Steps:

• Combine egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt with 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla in a large bowl.
• Beat with an electric mixer until partially stiff.
• Add sugar gradually, beating until stiff.
• Spread meringue about 1 inch thick over a buttered 9 inch pie plate, building up a high fluffy border.
• Bake in a preheated 275 degree oven for 1 hour or until it feels dry and firm.
• Meringue shell will crack while it's baking.
• Let cool in plate.
• Cream 2 cups powdered sugar,butter, and egg yolks until light and fluffy, then beat in lemon juice and peel.
• Spread over meringue shell.
• Wash, drain, and hull strawberries,reserving a few for garnish. Arrange berries over over creamy layer,pressing down lightly.
• Whip cream,remaining powdered sugar,unflavored gelatin, and remaining vanilla until stiff; spread over berries.
• Chill in refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
• Garnish with reserved berries and serve.

PRALINE MERINGUE CAKE WITH STRAWBERRIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 140C/fan 120C/gas 1, and line two flat baking sheets with baking parchment. Whizz about two-thirds of the toasted almonds in a food processor until chopped. Don't let them start to look greasy or clump together - they should still be in pieces rather than ground. Roughly chop the remaining third with a knife.
• Stir the sugars together. Using an electric hand whisk, beat the egg whites in a large bowl until stiff, then add the sugar in three batches, beating the mixture back to stiff after each addition. Add the cornflour and vinegar, and keep going until the meringue mixture is glossy and so stiff that the beaters begin to feel heavy when stirring - this can take up to 5 mins.
• Quickly fold in all of the finely chopped nuts and most of the roughly chopped with a spatula, then divide the mixture between the two baking sheets. Spread both into 20cm circles, then scatter the remaining chopped nuts over. Bake for 1 hr, then turn the oven off and leave the meringues inside to cool for at least 1 hr. Leave the oven door closed (this will help to prevent them cracking). Will keep overnight in an airtight container, or freeze, wrapped in cling film, for up to 1 month.
• For the strawberry sauce, purée 600g of the strawberries in a food processor or blender. Press through a sieve to remove the seeds, then sweeten with 2 tbsp of the icing sugar. Can be made up to 1 day ahead. Sieve the remaining icing sugar into the double cream, whip until it just holds its shape, then carefully swirl through two-thirds of the sauce.
• To serve, slide one of the meringues off its baking parchment onto a serving plate, then spread over half the cream. Place the second meringue on top, pile over the rest of the cream and top with the remaining strawberries. Dust with a little more icing sugar if you like, and serve the leftover strawberry sauce alongside.