I Made Meringues!

Yes, I made meringues! And they actually turned out. These are the ones that I made. That's a half batch of meringue batter. They don't look that pretty, but they taste really really good and they were surprisingly very easy to make.

Two nights ago, Sister Baldwin who's the wife of a member of the bishopric in my ward, taught us girls in the Relief Society to make meringues. I was really excited because 1) I love meringues 2) they looked really cute and 3) I would learn a new baking/cooking skill!

I've always heard that meringues are difficult to make, but I believe I have mastered this skill. I just need to learn how to  make them look nicer and not so sloppy. I'm going to try and make them again this weekend so I can experiement with other flavors and perfect it a little more.

I was amazed to find that after you beat all the ingredients together and do your little designs on the cookie sheet that once you stick it in your preheated oven, you turn off the oven, and leave it in there all night! I was a little disappointed that I would have to wait that long, but oh well. But it was the most satisfying feeling when they turned out. They didn't turn out at first and I disappointedly pulled them out of the oven still gooey the next morning. But I did some research and found out what to do to make them hard and crispy again. I tried it, and it worked! It turns out you can redry them by putting them back into the oven for a little bit. If you expose them to the air for too long, they will absorb the moisture in the air and become gooey again. So once you make them, you have to stick them into a sealed plastic bag (will little air). But anyway, I will stop rambling on about this amazing dessert. I am just so happy that I did it! I made meringues! Here is the recipe....

Meringues
2 egg whites (room temperature)
1/2 to 2/3 cup superfine or powdered sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp extract of choice (I did almond my first time, next I'm going to just try vanilla)
Pinch of salt
Food coloring of choice

Preheat oven to 200 degrees (I don't have a 200 degrees setting on my oven, but I do have 245 degrees, and that seemed to work, so just do a low heat). Make sure your bowl and beaters are perfectly clean, and oil residual in the bowl or on the beaters will fail the meringue. Always wash and dry even clean bowls and beaters prior to beginning the recipe. It is also good if the beaters and bowl are warm from just being washed. This will increase the volume of the egg whites when they are beaten. It is good to use a glass mixing bowl.

With your room temperature eggs, in a large mixing bowl beat the egg whites (there cannot be any egg yoke or you will need to start with other eggs), pinch of salt and cream of tartar until frothy. When eggs are foamy and frothy begin adding the sugar slowly, one tablespoon at a time. Incorporate each sugar addition before adding the next. When 1/2 the sugar has been added; add the extract. Then continue on adding in the rest of the sugar. Add food coloring and beat until stiff peaks form. When finished the meringue should be shiny and tight. Do not over beat.

Transfer mixture into a zip top bag, clip corner or fit with pastry tip. Pipe onto parchment paper covered cookie sheet.

To bake; place cookie sheet in preheated oven, turn off oven and leave overnight. Cookies should be dry and crisp. Cookies will keep several days in zip lock bags sealed against moisture in the air.

(Like I mentioned earlier, when I took mine out of the oven the next morning, they were still gooey, so later I experimented and preheated my oven to 245 degrees again and then put the meringues back in. Instead of turning the oven off right away, I let them sit with that heat for about 5-7 minutes, then I turned off the oven and let them sit in the oven for another 25-30 minutes. When I pulled them out that time, they came out perfect! I ate them all except for an M I made for Monica, my roommate, and a heart for Adam. I put Adam's in a zip block bag to give to him later, and I didn't do anything with Monica's. At the end of the day, Adam's meringue was still crispy in the bag, but Monica's, whose still was on the cookie sheet, went gooey. So If you're not going to be eating them right away, zip block bag them up! I don't know, maybe I did them wrong and they aren't supposed to do that, but that is why I am going to experiment some more. You should try this recipe. It's amazing and has 0 fat! I like those numbers.)