PROTEIN CREAM FROM THREE INGREDIENTS: “WET MERINGUE” OR SCIENTIFICALLY SWISS MERENGUE

Baked sweet chicken proteins are called meringues, literally from the French word meringue. There is a legend that the authorship of this delicacy belongs to the Swiss pastry chef Gasparini, who lived in the town of Meiringen. Others associate the appearance of these small airy cakes with the time of the Polish king Stanislav Leszczynski. His cook adopted the recipe from the French and prepared airy cakes based on meringue - vacherins.

Today, many people confuse meringue with meringue. However, these are completely different dishes. The meringue is only the base for the cakes, which are later baked at the lowest possible temperature in the oven for several hours and become meringue. Meringue is also used to create creams, layers, souffles, and decorate cakes, waffles, and pastries.

Italian

Italian meringue, the step-by-step recipe for which is quite simple, consists of whipped egg whites into which hot sugar syrup is gradually added. Typically, the temperature of this syrup is at 118 degrees, due to which Italian meringue is considered the most stable and dense. This is achieved by folding proteins. It is customary to make cupcakes, butter creams, tops for pies, muffins and cupcakes with the Italian mixture.

The recipe is very simple, since it contains only 3 components:

• 2 chicken egg whites;
• 40 grams of water;
• 150 grams of white sugar.

Italian meringue is much easier to prepare than, for example, Swiss meringue, which is boiled in a water bath. You can also make Italian meringue faster by adding hot syrup.

Before preparing the meringue, make the sugar syrup:

1. Pour water into a saucepan and add sugar, but not all of it, but only 100 grams. At this stage, you can add any flavorings to the meringue; the composition can also be diversified with dyes. If you need meringue cakes in bright colors, for colored meringue you need to use liquid, definitely food coloring; it is best to use gel coloring.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer the mixture for about 6 minutes. It is ideal when the syrup reaches 110 degrees. If you don’t have a thermometer in your kitchen, test a soft ball. To do this, drop a little syrup into a cup of cold water, then squeeze the ball between your fingers and roll it out. If the mass is soft, the syrup can be removed from the heat.
3. Before preparing meringues, you definitely need to learn how to beat egg whites efficiently. Wipe the dishes with a clean napkin, separate the whites so that the yolks do not get into them. Beat with a mixer at medium speed until it becomes cloudy and foam appears.
4. Gradually increasing the speed, carefully add the remaining sugar. It is important to achieve a dense, stable foam. For such airy meringues, the whites must be soft, this is also called soft peaks, that is, the raised peak should fall to the side.
5. Continuing to beat the mixture, pour in hot, but not boiling, sugar syrup in a thin stream. Pour the syrup directly onto the whisk, as if it gets on the cold sides of the pan it can quickly caramelize.
6. When you use all the syrup (pour into the whites) according to the recipe, you need to beat the mixture for about 7 minutes.
7. Before baking the cakes, transfer the mixture into a pastry bag with a fluted tip, then dry in the oven on parchment at 110 degrees for two or more hours depending on the size of the meringue; the meringue is also suitable for eating fresh. It is used to decorate muffins, muffins, cupcakes and other baked goods. Meringues and meringues with such a base turn out dense, soft, and hold their shape well.

Italian meringue: recipe with sugar syrup

There are many ways to prepare such a delicacy. However, Italian meringue is the most popular in our country. It should be noted that it includes almost all the properties of Swiss meringue. Although there are still differences between these desserts.

Italian meringue is more stable and dense. This dessert is the most stable. It is ideal for decorating cakes and pastries, as well as for building multi-tiered structures. Using such a mass, cooks do not have to worry that their structure will move, float, etc.

By the way, preparing Italian meringue often requires the use of various dyes and fillers. Such additives allow you to make the cream more colorful and use it to decorate various cakes and pastries.

So, in order for Italian meringue with syrup to be as manageable and stable as possible, you need to prepare the following components:

• egg whites – 5 pieces;
• granulated sugar - 50 grams for each protein + one large spoon;
• drinking water - about 12 milliliters for each protein.

Swiss

Swiss meringue is prepared in a water bath and has a slightly different composition. Swiss meringue cream is ideally combined with butter, forming a dense butter cream, and also for layering cakes, for example, in the Pavlova dessert for short layers. Here, when baked, the cake turns out soft and chewy on the inside and crispy on the outside. Swiss meringue can not be baked, but served fresh as a decoration.

We recommend: Cream cheese cream “Cheese”

Swiss meringue cream is prepared from the following ingredients:

• 2 egg whites;
• 120 grams of white sugar.

No water is required for Swiss meringue, just like any other liquid. The composition contains only 2 main ingredients, so there is a difference in structure with other options and in the final taste. Immediately begin to beat the egg whites and sugar:

1. Separate 2 whites into a clean, dried container and immediately add the entire portion of sugar to it.
2. Stir the mixture using a whisk or regular fork until both components are combined.
3. Make a water bath, place the egg whites and sugar in it and heat to a temperature of about 60 degrees, maximum 75. It is very important to use a kitchen thermometer when preparing Swiss meringue buttercream, since it is very difficult to determine the temperature by eye.
4. Continuously stir the whites until all the sugar crystals dissolve and the whites become cloudy. Start beating with a mixer at low speed, after half a minute increase the speed and beat until you get an airy, smooth foam.
5. Remove the saucepan from the heat and immediately place it in a bowl of cold water to allow the mixture to cool as quickly as possible. You can simply pour it into a chilled bowl and whisk vigorously.
6. Turn the mixer on at high speed and beat the meringue for about 6 more minutes.

Now you can transfer the whipped whites into a pastry bag or use the mixture to decorate pastries or cakes, and also bake the meringues in the oven at low temperature until they become cakes. The ideal whipped meringue is dense, soft, but not too porous. Swiss meringue is perfect for cupcakes, pastries, and other desserts.

All about Swiss meringue cream (wet meringue)

Undeservedly relegated to the background, it was the first of the meringues, and only later such varieties as French and Italian appeared.

Meanwhile, using the Swiss meringue method is very convenient, and it is especially suitable for novice pastry chefs!

Swiss meringue is essentially “two in one”. It has a very interesting property. If you heat the whites to a temperature of 35-40 degrees C (until the sugar dissolves and the whites become noticeably warm), then remove from heat and beat until stiff peaks form, we will get a mass suitable for baking airy cakes and pastries - completely similar French merengue.

If we heat the whites with sugar to 60 degrees C, without ceasing to beat, we will get a mass of brewed protein, suitable for decorating cakes, creams and mousses.

In this case, Swiss meringue has an advantage over Italian.

Boiling syrup of the required thickness, and then brewing whites with it correctly is not an easy task. In addition, to make a good Italian meringue, it is advisable to have a stand mixer, since it is difficult to beat the egg whites without holding and turning the bowl.

Unlike French meringue, the risk of adding sugar too early or in too large portions is reduced to zero.

Heating the Swiss meringue during the beating process increases the vibration of the albumin molecules, making it easier for the proteins to change their natural properties.

At the same time, sugar increases the viscosity of proteins and the thermal energy from heating encourages the sugar, water and protein molecules to move closer to each other and form hydrogen bonds with each other.

These factors partially compensate for the difficulty associated with the initial addition of sugar to unbeaten egg whites.

Recipe:

Remember, once upon a time in childhood there were baskets with jam and protein cream? The cream was the softest and very, very light, slightly sour, with a crust on top. I wanted to swallow it whole, the whole balloon.

I remember I didn’t like either the basket or the jam, but only this cream. This cream was also in puff tubes, and they also used it to make legs for the “mushrooms.”

Protein cream is good from all sides. It is low in calories, very tasty, holds its shape perfectly (even flowers are made from it), is made easily and simply from available products, does not melt in the sun and does not spoil without refrigeration.

Yes, yes, cupcakes with protein cream can just sit on a dish in the kitchen, and the cream will not sour, it will only dry out and become like marshmallows.

Swiss meringue is traditionally used to decorate tarts and pies. For example, a sour apple pie will taste a million times better with a top of sweet, tender meringue.

The ingredients for Swiss meringue are basic and everyone has them at home. You only need proteins, sugar and citric acid.

The essence of Swiss meringue is that we beat the whites while heating them. Whipped whites are brewed, become stable, dense, do not flow, do not fall off. Also, do not be afraid of salmonella; when heated, it all dies.

Ingredients:

French

Classic French meringue is the easiest to prepare, since the entire composition consists of proteins and sugar, which are simply whipped in a bowl until fluffy. It is from this mixture that various meringue cakes, cake layers, custard or butter are subsequently made. In addition, such a mixture can be baked in the oven, in which case it produces delicious cakes familiar from childhood.

Ingredients for a simple meringue mixture:

• 110 grams of sugar;
• 2 egg whites.

Since this type of meringue is the easiest to prepare correctly, we advise you to start getting acquainted with this airy delicacy with it:

1. Pour very cold egg whites into a clean, dry, chilled bowl. To make the whites whip better, you can add a small pinch of salt if desired.
2. Start beating the whites at the lowest speed of the mixer, gradually increasing the speed. When foam appears, you can add a few drops of fresh lemon juice.
3. After about 3 minutes of beating, we begin to add one tablespoon of sugar at a time, gradually introducing the entire portion. In total, you should whisk the mixture for about 10 to 15 minutes until the sugar is completely dissolved and the peaks are firm but fluffy.
4. To make a cake from the mixture, heat the oven to a temperature no higher than 110 degrees, transfer the mixture from a syringe to parchment, listen so that it does not turn brown.

Such meringues can also be colored with food coloring, added flavorings, cocoa powder, and so on. In its raw form, you can use this recipe to make cakes, shortcakes, cupcakes, muffins and decorate baked goods.

Option 5: Meringue cream with gelatin

With the addition of gelatin and cream, the meringue resembles the filling of Bird's Milk sweets. The cream can be used to fill pastries and cakes, or served as an independent dessert. In the latter case, the cream is placed in bowls and refrigerated for two to three hours.

Ingredients:

How to cook

Pour gelatin into a small cup. Pour 45 ml of cool water, mix and leave for ten minutes. Next, we dissolve the swollen granules by heating the mixture in a microwave oven or using a water bath. Please note that the gelatin should not boil.

Pour the egg whites into a dry bowl, adding a pinch of salt, and beat until stiff peaks form. In a saucepan, prepare clear syrup from water and sugar. Boil it until it boils with citric acid, no longer than five minutes, without allowing it to darken.

Pour the boiling syrup into the protein mass while continuously whisking and continue using the mixer for about five minutes. At the end, add vanilla and dissolved gelatin, beat for another two minutes.

In a clean bowl, use a mixer to bring the chilled cream until fluffy. We gradually mix the creamy mixture into the protein cream.

Source

Oily

Butter meringue, or Swiss Meringue Buttercream, is a type of Swiss meringue, but is prepared with the addition of butter. This meringue recipe is very easy to make at home, despite the difficult-to-pronounce name.

We recommend: Cream Ice cream for leveling the cake. Recipe

You will need:

• 450 grams of sugar;
• 8 proteins;
• 1 pinch of salt;
• 600 grams of butter.

Before making this type of meringue, chill the eggs; On the contrary, bring the oil to room temperature. Let's get started:

1. Separate the whites, slightly cooled, from the yolks, pour into a dry bowl, stir with a whisk (fork).
2. Add one pinch of salt. Add sugar, stir, place in a water bath over low heat, whisk until the sugar crystals dissolve.
3. Remove the bowl from the heat and wait for the mixture to cool slightly. Beat the egg whites vigorously until stiff peaks form. Chop the butter at room temperature into pieces and add to the cream. Beat it with a mixer until fluffy.
4. If you want to get multi-colored meringue based on this recipe, add dye either to the ready-made cream, or at the stage of mixing sugar with egg whites.

This cream can be considered universal - it is very dense, holds its shape well, can be frozen, combined with flavors, dyes, and also with nuts or cocoa powder. It can even be stored in the freezer, and before decorating, you need to quickly defrost it and beat it again with a mixer, and then bake or decorate the finished pastries or desserts.

Option 3: Vanilla meringue cream

Vanilla meringue does not require any special skills from the cook; even an inexperienced cook can handle the preparation. The composition of the cream is simple, but the products must be of the first freshness, and the oil must also be of selected quality. Meringue with added butter holds its shape well and can be used for decoration. It can be used to fill eclairs and “Korzinochka” cakes.

Ingredients:

How to cook

The bowl chosen for whipping must be fat-free and dry, so first wash it thoroughly and wipe it dry. Place a pan of water on the stove (prepare a water bath).

Carefully separate the whites from the prepared bowl. Not even a drop of yolk should get into them, so first pour the egg white into a cup, and only after making sure that everything is done correctly, release it into a common bowl.

Pour sugar into a bowl with whites, mix the contents, and move the container to a water bath. Stirring continuously, keep the protein mass over steam until the sugar crystals completely disperse.

Moving the bowl to the table, beat with a mixer until it cools completely. The result should be a fluffy mass that rises in dense peaks following the beaters of the mixer.

Place the softened butter in a bowl convenient for whipping. It must be warm, otherwise the creamy mass will separate. Beat the butter with a mixer until fluffy.

Let's return to the protein mass. Whisk in portions, adding no more than a spoon at a time, and add the butter. At the end, add lemon juice and vanilla. Stop whipping as soon as you get a dense, slightly shiny mass.

Chocolate

Meringue with chocolate is prepared according to a more complex recipe than the usual versions of the cream. For real chocolate meringues you will need the following products:

• 3 eggs;
• a quarter teaspoon of salt;
• 120 grams of dark chocolate without fillers;
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder;
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch;
• 150 grams of sugar.

The final taste of the cake depends on how much and what kind of chocolate you add to the mixture. You can also use white or milk chocolate, but traditionally bitter black chocolate with minimal sugar content is used. Let's start cooking:

1. Chop the chocolate in a blender or with a knife.
2. Mix starch and sugar separately.
3. Add cold whites into a chilled bowl and beat until they form a stable, fluffy foam.
4. Gradually add the sugar and starch mixture one spoon at a time. Continue whisking.
5. When the mixture becomes fluffy and glossy, add cocoa powder through a sieve. Stir the mixture with a spatula and add chocolate chips while kneading.
6. Bake the cakes on a baking sheet lined with parchment for 35-40 minutes at a temperature of 150 degrees maximum.

Coffee meringues are prepared using the same principle, only instant coffee is added instead of chocolate. After baking, the chocolate meringue should cool at room temperature for about 20 minutes, then serve.

Decor

Meringue cream gives you plenty of room for imagination, painting it in different colors, you can create entire works of art, moreover, it is extremely easy to prepare and economical. To color the meringue, use only dry food coloring. Liquid mixtures will disrupt the consistency of the cream. You need to color the cream at the last minute before it is completely ready, that is, it has already cooled down a little.

You can use this cream to make cake layers and bake decorative cake decorations. To make them hard and crispy, the cream needs to be baked, you need to put it on parchment paper and bake in the oven for 90 minutes at 100 degrees. The cream will turn into our usual crispy treat.

If desired, you can add rum or vanilla to this whipped mass to add different flavors. Many cooks also add poppy seeds or finely grated nuts. Professional pastry chefs choose meringue to decorate baked goods, because it is better suited for creating unique designs.

Custard

Essentially, custard meringue is an Italian custard protein cream. It is very dense, perfectly takes a given shape, so it is used both for decorating small baked goods and for layering cake layers in cakes and desserts.

You will need 4 main ingredients:

• 140 grams of sugar;
• 2 egg whites;
• 1 packet of vanilla sugar;
• 50 grams of plain water.

Preparing this version of meringue is not difficult at all:

1. Mix sugar with water, put on fire and, stirring, bring to a boil. When the temperature rises to 120 degrees or you test for a “medium ball,” remove the fire container. On average, the process takes up to 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, beat the chilled whites into a very stable, strong foam with vanilla sugar.
3. Add boiling sugar syrup into the beaten egg whites in a thin stream. At the end you can add a couple of drops of lemon juice. In total, the mixture must be beaten for about 8 minutes.

This meringue is called custard because the boiling syrup quickly coagulates the protein, making this cream dense, soft and very stable.

Walnut

Sometimes nut meringues are called “Dacquoise” and amazing desserts with berries and cheese and cream filling are prepared on their basis. You can also try making such a dessert to surprise your guests and family.

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To prepare it you will need the following products:

• 3 squirrels;
• 100 grams of any nuts;
• 100 grams of sugar.

Walnut cake is prepared on the basis of ordinary French meringue in a classic design, to which ground and pre-roasted nuts are added. If you don't like too much of a nutty flavor, you can add about 20 grams of sugar.

After preparation, the mixture is transferred to a pastry bag, small cakes or large cakes are squeezed out on parchment, baked for 30 minutes at a temperature of 150 degrees. You should not overdry them; they should remain soft inside.

How to use in cooking?

Unlike Italian and Swiss meringue, the recipes for which were presented above, this protein cream is very often used to serve as a full-fledged dessert. It is placed in bowls, decorated with berries, fruits or chocolate chips, and then presented to family members along with a small spoon.

If you decide to use this dessert for greasing cake layers or decorating cakes, then it must be used within two hours after preparation. Otherwise, the protein cream will begin to bubble and will not fit well on dessert.

It should also be noted that meringue used in time will prevent your cake or pastries from spreading for 2 or even 3 days.

Multicolored

Rainbow meringues are best made using a Swiss recipe. You will also need pastry bags according to the number of shades of cream, liquid food coloring in the selected colors.

The step-by-step process is as follows:

1. Make the meringue as directed in the recipe.
2. Divide the mixture into as many parts as you plan to make shades. In our case - into 3 parts. The dishes must be dry and clean.
3. Add a little food coloring to each portion of the cream and gently stir with a spatula until the color is even.
4. Transfer the mixture into separate piping bags with the tips cut off and no tip attached. Tie the bags tightly at the top.
5. Now carefully place all three bags vertically in a large M-size bag with a wide, flat or embossed nozzle.

When you pipe the mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, you'll end up with three rainbow-colored brownies. You can use absolutely any shades. The cakes are dried in the oven at 100 degrees for 60 minutes, and then cooled for another hour with the door open.

How to use meringue in cooking?

Italian cuisine is very popular in our country. Therefore, most housewives make meringue exactly according to the recipe described above. By strictly observing all its requirements, you should get a very stable and fairly airy mass.

Continue beating the whites with sugar syrup until they are completely cooled. Only in this case will you get a stable protein cream for decorating various cakes and pastries.

To use such a mass to obtain a beautiful dessert, it is recommended to put it in a culinary syringe or cornet. Using unusual attachments, you can easily form flowers, petals and other patterns. Italian cuisine will allow you to not only taste delicious food, but also beautifully set your holiday table.

Using meringue, you can also make desserts such as meringue. To do this, squeeze the protein-custard cream for cakes and pastries onto baking paper, and then place the products in a preheated oven. At a temperature of 210 degrees, the meringue should be cooked for about 7-12 minutes. During this time, the mass will set well, become crispy on the outside and stretchy on the inside.

Cooking secrets

It would seem that there are very few ingredients in the recipe, a simple method of preparation, but meringues do not always turn out the way you would like. To ensure that the result always pleases you, follow these simple tips:

• whisks and whipping containers should not contain a drop of fat or moisture, since these components greatly affect the stability of the meringue and disrupt its structure;
• some advise beating the whites warm, but the ideal temperature is 10-20 degrees;
• Sugar for cooking should be finely crystalline; it can be replaced with powdered sugar or ground with a blender, which will give the product an airy structure;
• always start beating the whites at the minimum speed of the mixer, gradually increasing it;
• Always add sugar one teaspoon at a time, without ceasing to beat;
• the stiffer the peaks in the process of whipping egg whites, the drier and more stable the product will be; accordingly, the softer the foam, the lighter the cake or cream will be;
• For many, baking meringue is difficult, since the product must be dried in the oven at a minimum temperature for at least 1 hour, without forming a golden brown crust, without cracking, or crumbling.

The ideal meringue is soft enough inside, has no cracks on the surface, remains snow-white or has the color of the dye you added to the mixture.

Varieties of cream

There are three classic recipes for meringue cream: French, Italian and Swedish.

To prepare large decorations for a meringue cake, the most common version is usually prepared - French. Its difference is that the texture of the cream in this recipe is slightly thinner than in the Swedish one. When baking decorations from meringue cream according to the French recipe, it may float a little, so you won’t be able to bake small delicate details from it. Decorations made from such meringue cannot be placed on hot cakes or icing; the delicate airy crust will melt. This particular type of cream is called “Wet meringue”, because when baked, the dessert turns out hard on the outside and tender, soft, viscous on the inside.

Preparing meringue cream according to the Italian recipe is a little more complicated than described above. It is difficult to cope with the recipe alone; Italian confectioners prepare such cream in several hands, enlisting the help of other chefs. The recipe includes hot sugar syrup, which is very important to add at the right time and stir constantly. The consistency of meringue cream according to the Italian recipe is more liquid; cakes are usually filled with this cream; it is practically not used in decoration.

The most complex meringue recipe is Swedish. It requires great care, even the whipping process is not as simple as it seems, this will require certain skills that are taught to pastry chefs. The Swedish recipe requires apothecary precision when heating the mass in a water bath. A few degrees above or below the temperature specified in the recipe and it is ruined. The Swedish recipe for meringue cream for decoration is ideal: it will not melt when it comes into contact with hot butter, and will hold its shape perfectly when in contact with liquid meringue according to the Italian recipe.

Shelf life

Rarely does it occur to anyone to store meringue for a long time. This charming, fluffy dessert is usually the first to disappear from the plates. However, if there is a need for storage, follow the rules:

• in an airtight package, the baked cake can be stored for up to 7 days;
• do not store them in the refrigerator, as there they will instantly become damp, soft and tasteless;
• some types can be stored in the freezer, after packing tightly in a pastry bag.

Due to the small amount of moisture in the meringue, they can be stored for quite a long time without refrigeration at normal room temperature. The main thing is to maintain maximum dryness and absence of moisture. The ideal place to store meringue is in special paper boxes or airtight containers.

Techniques for making cream jewelry

You can bake meringues in various shapes and sizes. Most of the famous designs are made using a piping bag and different tips.

Line a baking tray with baking paper and squeeze the cream out of the bag, making roses, rosettes, leaves, rings and any other elements necessary for your idea. Once baked, the meringue buttercream will rise and warp slightly, so it will take practice to get the decorations perfect.

If there is no bag, ordinary baking paper is perfect for this purpose. Roll it into a bag, leaving a hole of the required diameter at the bottom, and squeeze out the cream, squeezing the paper from above. Depending on how the tip of the paper from which the cream comes out is cut will determine the design of the decorations.