Miles of Meringue

A dessert that is sure to go down a treat at any party is a meringue. They are sweet and tasty and can be tailored to fit with the season or occasion. The fruit you pair with the meringue allows for colour and decoration that'll look spectacular! 

Recently, at a Burn's Night party, a 'mile of meringue' was served. As I was helping with the catering (my friend's parents were the stars of that) I thought I would share what was created for the centre piece.

A meringue is simple to make, but can be hard to master. Here's a recipe for one:

4 egg whites

225g/8oz caster sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 120C. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking parchment.
2. Place the egg whites in a spotlessly clean bowl and whisk with an electric whisk until they form stiff peaks when the whisk is removed from the bowl. 
3. Continue whisking as you add the sugar, one teaspoonful at a time, until all the sugar is incorporated. The meringue will then become shiny and will hold stiff peaks when the whisk is lifted from the bowl.
4. Pipe or spoon onto the baking tray in the desired shape. 
5. Bake for 1½-2 hours, or until the meringue can be lifted easily off the paper without sticking. Turn off the oven, leave the door ajar and leave until the meringues are cold.

Give it a go, it might need a little practice to get it perfect.

For this dessert, the meringues were filled with a cream mixture, of half double cream and half plain greek yoghurt. The addition of the yoghurt gave a lighter and fresher taste. They were then topped off with fresh fruit; we used strawberries, blueberries and grapes, but you could use any fruit that you want to.

Enjoy!

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