Baked: Meringues

A few notes on making meringues:
- Essentials: cream of tartar, patience, good mixer
- Oven shouldn't be over two hundred farenheit
- Try caster sugar next time, smaller granules will dissolve faster
- Be humble!

Left with nine egg whites from making a failed pie*, I spent the early evening considering the gastrointestinal ramifications of eating a giant albumen omelette. If you have ever asked anyone what to do with a jug of whites they will always reply, "meringue!" Despite working at what was once a fine Italian bakery, I've never cared for meringues (with the exception of those little cookies with crushed hazelnuts!) nor have ever had any inclination to make them. BUT, I do love a challenge and a recipe that calls for simple ingredients.

Thus, equipped with my ten dollar Westinghouse mixer (a housewarming gift for my very first apartment), I mustered all the tenacity I have and started whipping away.
I won't go into great detail as the recipe with all the details can be found on the Ontario Egg Farmer's website which was very helpful, with one caveat. Perhaps it was because I had my oven working overtime all afternoon, busy with baking pie crusts and oatmeal cookies, but I will blame the farmers back East instead: 250 is way too hot for meringues! The sugar caramelized much too quickly because of the excess heat and thus turned my meringues a light brown instead of a nice cloudy white with toasted peaks.

I give myself a seven out of ten for this. A bit higher a grade then I think I deserve, but I'll blame the lack of stiff peaks on the rainy day! I probably shouldn't have fished around in the whites with my bare hands either, but I wasn't sure what kind of effect the little viscous umbilical cord part would have. Plus, umbilical cord-filled meringues sounds pretty gross.

*Oops! There's salt in the sugar jar! Thus making for an unpalatable crust for my lemon ice box pie! BUT! Easiest curd I've ever made! The sneaky trick for non-purists: condensed milk!