I've never met a child who didn't like meringues, and they're child's play to make, too - Nigella Lawson
Well, yes they are! Very very easy. And a great way to use up left-over egg white from this (or any other recipe calling for egg yolk/s only).
The verdict:
Unusual or substituted ingredients: This recipe is so simple that it only has two ingredients (or 3 if you want coloured meringues). Egg white and caster sugar - 60g of caster sugar per egg white. Can't get simpler than that!
While I mostly stuck with the white meringues, inspired by Nigella's description of using the back of a spoon to make "neat nippled small bosomed shapes", I decided to go the whole nine yards and make them pink as well, for added realism (or childish delight, more like!)
Special utensils or cookware: I used the kitchenaid to mix the whites and sugar - meaning this is truly a recipe you can make while doing something else (eg knitting!). Just put the mixer on to beat for about 5-10 minutes and go and multitask! A good way to tell when you've beaten your egg whites and sugar enough is to rub a little between your thumb and forefinger - if it feels gritty, beat some more. You will probably never get it entirely smooth, but the level of grittiness will reduce.
Beat until it is a "gleaming, satiny mass".Repeatability: If I have leftover egg whites I will definitely make these again - the other great thing about meringues is that they keep very well in an airtight container - and they taste good too! When I was making them, my husband asked me what I was going to do with them and I told him I was planning on taking them to work. After he'd eaten his first one, he wasn't so keen on me taking them out of the house!
Sauciness: "neat nippled small bosomed shapes" - need I say more??!!
Overall pleasure level: I hadn't had a meringue for ages before these - I'd forgotten that lovely chewy centre and crisp crust (heh, bet you can't say "crisp crust" ten times in a row!). These are really very good and fun to make to boot! - 8/10 for me!
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