Meringue Clouds Recipes

Steps:

• Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 250 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt in a large clean dry bowl with a mixer on medium speed until foamy. Increase the speed to medium high and beat until thick and opaque, about 1 more minute. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, about 1/4 cup at a time, and beat until stiff shiny peaks form, about 5 more minutes.
• Scoop 6 large mounds of meringue (3/4 cup each) onto the baking sheets, leaving space between each. Using the back of a spoon, pull up the meringue to form swoops and spikes on each mound. Sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake at 250 degrees F until dry and crisp, 4 to 5 hours. Let cool completely on the baking sheets. Store in an airtight container in a dry place for up to 1 week.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange two oven racks evenly in the oven.
• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and spread the sugar in an even layer on the paper. (Leave a small border of paper around the sugar so the sugar doesn't spill onto the pan.) Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the sugar is hot (an edge will begin to brown). Reduce the oven temperature to 250 degrees F.
• Meanwhile, place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. When the sugar is almost ready, whisk the egg whites on high speed for 1 minute, until the whites are frothy. With the mixer still on high, slowly add the hot sugar to the egg whites. (I use a large spoon to start and then pick up the paper and pour the sugar in slowly.) Add the vanilla and continue to whisk on high for 10 minutes, until the meringue is at room temperature. It will be very thick and glossy.
• Using two large serving spoons, scoop 12 very large oval dollops of meringue onto two sheet pans lined with parchment paper. You should be able to get 6 meringues on each pan; space them well because they will expand while they bake. Place 3 candied rose petals on top of each meringue. Bake for 2 hours, until the outsides of the meringues are crisp and the centers are still soft. Set aside to cool on baking racks. Allow to sit uncovered and serve at room temperature. (Don't refrigerate or store covered or they will lose their crispness.)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Arrange two racks evenly spaced in the oven.
• Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and spread the sugar so it's a perfectly even thickness on the paper right to the edge of the sugar, leaving a border on the paper so the sugar doesn't spill onto the pan. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the edges start to brown lightly. Watch carefully! Lower the oven to 250˚ F.
• Meanwhile, place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Just before the sugar is ready, whisk the egg whites on high speed for 1 minute, until frothy. With the mixer on low, slowly add the hot sugar to the egg whites. (I use a large spoon at first, then pick up the paper and pour the sugar in slowly.) Add the vanilla and continue to whisk on high for 10 minutes, until the egg whites are room temperature. (The bowl may still be warm.) The meringue will be very thick and glossy.
• Using two large serving spoons, scoop 6 very large, messy oval dollops of meringue onto each of two sheet pans lined with parchment paper, spacing them out because they will expand while they bake. Sprinkle the pistachios on top and bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours (make sure your oven isn't above 250˚ F!), until the outsides of the meringues are crisp but not browned and the centers are still soft. Sprinkle with the fleur de sel and set aside to cool.

Steps:

• Beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until soft peaks form. Add vanilla.
• Gradually add sugar, beat until stiff. (Don't over beat though or they get 'tough'!) Fold in chocolate chips and nuts.
• Drop by teaspoonful on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake until dry at 300 degrees, about 20-25 minutes (sometimes this takes 35-45 minutes).
• Note: you can also add 2 Tbls of cocoa to make Chocolate Clouds.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 120C/100C fan/gas 1. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a pencil, draw 6-8 clouds on each piece of parchment measuring about 10cm across by 8cm in height. Use a template as the left half of the cloud needs to be a mirror image of the right (or they won't match when they are sandwiched together). Then, turn the parchment over so the pencil marks don't come into contact with the meringue.
• Whisk the egg whites until stiff, then gradually whisk in the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, until stiff and glossy. Add in the black food colouring to make a light grey.
• Place the meringue mix in a large piping bag and pipe over the templates. Bake for 20 mins then reduce the heat to 100C/80C fan/gas ¼ and cook for a further hour or until completely dry. Leave to cool thoroughly in the oven.
• To create the storm cloud lollies, pipe stiff royal icing on the meringue, just around the edge, then add a little more to secure the stick. Fill the inside of the piped area with coloured sprinkles of your choice. Add the lolly stick to the cloud, over the icing, then sandwich the other meringue over the top to enclose the sprinkles and the top of the lolly stick. Leave to dry completely for about 3 hours or overnight.

Steps:

• Place an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 200 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until the mixture holds soft peaks, about 1 minute. With the machine running on medium-high speed, add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Increase the speed to high and beat until the mixture is thick and holds stiff peaks, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the vanilla extract. Using a spatula, fold in the strawberries and lemon zest, taking care not to deflate the batter.
• Using a 1/4-cup-size ice cream scoop, scoop heaped mounds of batter onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing each about 2 inches apart. Bake for 2 hours. Turn off the oven and allow the meringues to cool completely while still in the oven, about 2 hours.
• The meringues can be stored in an airtight plastic container for up to 4 days.