Ingredients:
served approx. 20 meringues
2 egg white
50g caster sugar
60g icing sugar
Method:
1.
Preheat
the oven to fan 100C/ conventional 110C/gas 1⁄4. Line 2 baking sheets with
Bake-O-Glide non-stick liner or parchment paper (meringue can stick on
greaseproof paper and foil).
2.
Tip the 2 large egg whites into a large clean mixing bowl (not plastic). Beat them on
medium speed with an electric hand whisk until the mixture resembles a fluffy
cloud and stands up in stiff peaks when the blades are lifted.
3.
Now turn
the speed up and start to add 50g caster sugar, a dessertspoonful at a time. Continue beating for 3-4 seconds between each addition.
It's important to add the sugar slowly at this stage as it helps prevent the
meringue from weeping later. However, don't over-beat. When ready, the mixture
should be thick and glossy.
4.
Sift one third of the 60g icing sugar over the mixture, then gently fold it in with a big metal
spoon or rubber spatula. Continue to sift and fold in the remaining icing sugar a third at a
time. Again, don't over-mix. The mixture
should now look smooth and billowy, almost like a snow drift.
5.
Scoop up a
heaped dessertspoonful of the mixture. Using another dessertspoon, ease it on
to the baking sheet to make an oval shape. Or just drop them in rough
rounds, if you prefer. Bake for 1 3⁄4- 2 hours in a fan oven, 1 1⁄4 hours in
a conventional or gas oven, until the meringues sound crisp when tapped
underneath and are a pale coffee colour. Leave to cool on the trays or a
cooling rack. (The meringues will now keep in an airtight tin for up to 2
weeks, or frozen for a month.) Serve two meringues sandwiched together with a
generous dollop of softly whipped double cream.