meringue

Holy cow! I just figured this out. I made meringue cookies that were crisp on the outside and soft on the inside without being too chewy. That's kind of hard to describe so let's just use the word "perfect" instead.

I tried several ways to achieve optimum stiffness: vinegar, cream of tartar, and nothing at all. Guess which one was best? Well, I suppose this is a preference question. If you like them crispy through-and-through, then add a pinch of cream of tartar when you start whipping the egg white. If you're like me and like them to be crispy shells with soft centers, then forgo the add-ins.

I also tried different sugars: powdered, superfine, and good ol' granulated. Once again, guess which one was the best? Glance below for the answer.

Finally, I learned that stiff meringue--I'm talking about the ones on steroids (e.g. cream of tartar)--needs a pastry bag. Lame. Too much clean-up. Leave out the stiffeners and they will be soft enough to take dropping with spoons. Plus, you'll get more interesting shapes that you can decipher, like clouds. These meringue are conversation pieces!

Oh, one more thing. These things are like sponges so any bit of humidity will soften them. Try to eat them right away or store them in an airtight container.

Ingredients

1 egg white
1/8 tsp cream of tartar (optional)
1/4 cup sugar

2 dozen

Directions

Preheat oven to 200º.

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a whisk, add the egg white. For very stiff meringue, add cream of tartar. Whip at medium speed until foamy and bubbles become small and uniform (about 3 minutes).

With the mixer running, slowly add sugar. Then turn up the speed to high and watch as the mixture becomes thick and starts to resemble melted marshmallows. After about 3 minutes, you start to see small drop-shaped fissures appear as the mixture pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn off the mixer and lift the top. The egg whites should be stiff. Unless you used cream of tartar, the mixture should be slightly goopy, forming a long stalagtite of meringue on the whisk.

Slowly drop or pipe tablespoons of meringue onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place in the oven, and then turn off the oven. Leave the sheet in there for at least 2 hours before enjoying.

2 hours