Mastering meringues

April 7, 2:15 PMDetroit Cooking ExaminerCourtney Monigold

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Photo by: CM, Sweetened meringue with stiff peaks

Welcome to April's Edition of "How to Tuesday".  Every first Tuesday of the month I post a full "how to" report on different cooking topics and techniques.

I used to be very intimidated by meringues because they look so soft and delicate. But the truth is, I have been whipping my own meringue since I was in my tween’s without a lick of baking experience other than a Betty Crocker cake mix.

Don’t let meringues fool you; they are simply just whipped egg whites. But they can be so much more than that. You can use it to top a pie, you can make angel food cake, you can make a “to die for” (and I really mean to die for) Italian Meringue buttercream frosting, and you can make macaroons (which I will post later this week for Passover). The possibilities are truly endless. So once you master these, there is no telling what you may come up with.

Much of my so called meringue experience has come with trial and error (and believe me, there have been many errors). So don’t worry, this is how you learn. But I am going to tell you the secrets to great meringues and hopefully this will prevent you from having any kitchen disasters.

While mastering meringues can be quite easy, there are a few rules you need to follow:

1. Any tools you use, your mixing bowl, beating whip, must all be FREE of oil or residue. Any grease will prevent your whites from whipping up.

2. It’s easiest to separate your whites from the yolks while the egg is chilled, but the egg whites need to be at room temperature before whipping. So separate your eggs in the bowl and let them sit out for 20 minutes or so before proceeding.

3. If you break any of the yolk into the egg white, this will prevent the whites from whipping, also. So be sure to crack each egg in its own bowl, and then transfer the whites to the larger bowl you are working with so that you don’t contaminate the other eggs. This is also a good habit to get into because each egg should be inspected for freshness. If it smells funny, throw it out

4. If you happen to ‘store’ your egg whites for later use, how you store your eggs is super important. Be sure to put them in a non reactive stainless steel bowl OR a glass bowl. NEVER store the egg whites in plastic ware. The proteins of the white will adhere to the plastic therefore not allowing the whites to whip up. However, if you plan on only using the egg whites for a recipe that does not require you to whip the egg whites or aren’t the leavening agent in a recipe (say for an egg white omelet) you can certainly store the egg whites in a plastic container without it ruining the egg.

5. Store the egg whites no longer than 2 days in the refrigerator. You can cover with plastic wrap, just be sure the plastic wrap doesn’t touch the eggs.

6. There are conflicting views on what and when to add to the egg whites before the whipping process begins. i.e. adding cream of tartar, sugar etc. Its best to let the whites get to at least soft peaks before adding ANYTHING as this can interfere with the whipping process.

7. Egg whites whip up fast, and go in stages from foamy, to soft peaks, to firm peaks, to stiff peaks, and then to dry. Once you go so far, there is no going back so watch the bowl closely as start to firm can literally take a minute or so. If you want to see pictures of the stages, I liked the progression shown on this site. Just scroll to the bottom.

8. The phrase “If you don’t use it, you lose it” applies to whipped egg whites. Be sure to whip the egg whites and use them immediately as the peaks fall quickly and will turn into a liquid mess.

9. When using the whipped egg whites in a recipe, be sure to fold them in gently to as to not break down the fluffy air bubbles you worked so hard to create.

Now you are well on your way to mastering meringues! Remember to just follow the cardinal rules of whipping the meringue and you will do just fine!

Have any tips or tricks you would like me to review? Let me know!

For other "How to Tuesday" reports: Homemade peanut butter, Homemade Vanilla Extract,  Homemade Ricotta Cheese