How to Cook Meringue

Meringue is made from whipping egg whites and sugar together. From there, you can either add to desserts or bake the meringue as a dessert itself. Because of the sugar added, meringue is sweet and when baked can become a delicious treat. Basic meringue is simple and inexpensive to make, without taking hours to finish. Whether used as a topping for pies or a sweet snack, meringue can make just about any dessert taste better.

Things You'll Need

• 3 eggs
• Small glass bowl
• Spoon
• Medium glass bowl
• Flat baking sheet
• Parchment paper
• Electric mixer
• ¼ tsp. cream of tartar
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• ¾ cup sugar

Instructions

How to Cook Meringue

1. Take 1 egg and crack it open into a small glass bowl. Use glass bowls because plastic bowls may harbor bacteria, even after being cleaned. Next, preheat your oven to 250 degrees F.

2. Separate the yolk from the white by slipping a spoon under the yolk and letting the white slide off the spoon and back into the bowl. If any yolk ends up in the egg white, the meringue may not form properly.

3. Empty the egg white from the small glass bowl into the medium glass bowl. Repeat steps 2 and 3 with the rest of the eggs. Throw the egg yolks away when finished separating them from the egg whites.

4. Allow the egg whites to come to room temperature, which will take between 30 and 40 minutes. Room-temperature egg whites beat up better than cold ones. Next, line a flat baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

5. Beat the egg whites on medium speed until light bubbles form. Add the cream of tartar and vanilla extract, then continue beating until the egg whites form soft peaks.

6. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time to the meringue, while continuing to beat the mixture. The sugar is what helps the meringue become stiff. The meringue is ready to cook when the sugar is absorbed and the mixture forms stiff peaks.

7. Place spoonfuls of meringue in a row on the parchment-paper-lined sheet. Bake in the oven for 1 hour and then turn the oven off, leaving the meringue to cool for about 2 hours. When you take them out of the oven, the meringues will be dry and ready to eat or use in a dessert.

Tips & Warnings

• Use pasteurized eggs if you are worried about eating uncooked eggs.

References

• Meringue mix