How to make a firm meringue like the one used in bakeries
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Total: 45 min Diners: 6
Today’s recipe is the specialty of many bakeries in Spain and, as of today, it’s going to be in your house too.
Meringue is a calorie bomb, that’s true, but it is a sweet quite easier to make than most people think and very cheap, because basically we need egg whites and sugar. With that and a little patience we will get a firm, stable and shiny meringue that holds without altering and that we can use to prepare desserts such as mille-feuille, paulovas, toasted meringue… obtaining results worthy of the best pastry shops.
The trick is to prepare what is called Italian meringue, and it is a meringue in which the sugar is not added to the egg whites in its granulated form but in the form of syrup and beating for a long time, so it is not advisable to do it by hand. The most convenient is to use an appliance that can work autonomously as a multifunction food processor such as a Thermomix or a Kitchen Aid type mixer-kneader.
How to make a firm meringue that will hold for hours
Ingredients
. Egg whites L, 4 White sugar, 100 g + 350 g Water, 125 ml
Step 1
Egg whites
Make sure there is no grease, moisture or dirt in the mixer bowl. Grease makes it difficult to whip the egg whites. We add the egg whites and if we are going to add salt we add it at this moment. Run the mixer at high speed.
Step 2
Syrup
Step 2
Syrup
In a saucepan put the water with the 350 g of sugar over medium-low heat (4/12) and stir gently from time to time to dissolve the sugar and form the syrup.
Step 3
White whites to stiff peaks
.Meanwhile the egg whites in the mixer will first begin to foam, then whiten and finally reach the famous point of loose snow, to check it we just have to lift the rod and see that it forms a fine peak as if it were a stalactite. At this moment and without stopping to beat add the 100 g of sugar slowly and in the form of rain. We will see that it begins to take shine and consistency and the color becomes whiter.
Step 4
Sugar dissolved in water
The mixture of water and sugar should continue to low heat.
Step 5
Syrup at 80 ºC
At 80 ºC most of the sugar is already dissolved and it will soon reach 100 ºC. When it reaches 100 ºC, if we are monitoring the temperature with the thermometer, it will give us the feeling that it is stagnant and it is very difficult to continue rising. In reality what happens is that when reaching that temperature the water vaporizes, but it is necessary to be patient and not to fall in the temptation to raise the fire, because we do not want that the sugar takes color neither much less that it burns. So wait.
Step 6
Syrup at 120ºC
When we get to 120 ºC , we will know it is at that temperature because bubbles of approximately one centimeter in diameter are generated on the surface at a constant rate.
Step 7
Whisk until the bowl is cold
Whisk until the bowl is cold
.At that time and very careful not to splash us because it burns a lot, with the mixer running we will add the syrup very little by little in the form of thread – if we would throw it all at once we would directly make us an omelet – and continue beating until when touching the bowl we do not feel it hot. It usually takes about half an hour. Be careful, if you want to do it with a manual electric mixer, you can not do it in a plastic bowl that with the heat of the syrup could melt.
Step 8
How to make a perfect meringue
.If you use a mixer of this type, be careful when lifting the rod because after so much time of beating, the rod that connects it to the motor of the mixer will be very hot and you have to handle it with caution so as not to burn yourself.
Step 9
How to make a perfect meringue
And now we have our firm and stable meringue that we will keep in the refrigerator until the time to use it.
