Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Retro Recipe: (Forgotten) Easter Egg Meringues


Even though we've been averaging 1 snow storm a week for the past month, with Easter this weekend, I couldn't help but get a bit Spring-like around these parts. Yeah there's still snow on the ground but this week and next week is ALL about Spring on the blog. The snow will have to deal with it.



In the spirit of Easter, I figured it was due time for another yummy recipe - this time, one from the good ol' days. Out of Betty Crocker's 1954 cookbook aptly titled "Good & Easy Cookbook." Found in a section called "Fourth Meal," these Forgotten Meringues are easy to make with only 3 ingredients and pretty minimal effort required.


Side note - I'm going to call dessert Fourth Meal from here on out. If it counts as a meal, maybe I'll get less shade for shoving cookies in my mouth while catching up on this week's Riverdale (oh heeeyyy, Jugghead Jones!).


So I am sure you're all kind of wondering why these are called Forgotten Meringues. Well I was too when I spotted it and when I read the recipe, I knew I had to try them to see if it actually worked. They're called Forgotten Meringues because once you place them into the oven you are instructed to forget they even exist and go to bed.


Yup. You read that right.


A recipe you can be lazy about and it STILL comes out wonderful? Heck yes!


Meringues can be tricky bastards - you have to whip a bunch of egg whites into oblivion until they stiffen and get all glossy. While easy to do with a mixer, it can still be a bit of a challenge if you're not used to it. This was my first time doing it, so I looked up some trips and tricks along the way that helped my confidence. I included them in my directions below.


As you can see, I forgot all about these bad boys once placed into the oven and it actually worked! I made them last Saturday night while Cody was immersed in his video games. The next morning, I pulled them out of the oven and they were light as air, had the perfect crust enveloping them, and they were good to go!


While photographed here with Easter eggs nestled in them, we brought them to dinner with Cody's family and devoured them with ice cream plopped inside - BECAUSE WHY THE HECK NOT?


Forgotten Meringues
Recipe by Betty Crocker
Yield: 12 meringues

Ingredients
  • 6 egg whites
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 2 cups sugar
  • Your choice of filling: ice cream, candy, fruit, etc!
  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. Line 1-2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  3. Place egg whites and lemon juice into mixing bowl and use whisk attachment on high (I whipped on 8 on my Kitchen Aid) to beat until frothy (it helps if the egg whites are room temperature).
  4. Gradually add in sugar a little at a time.
  5. Beat until stiff and glossy (this took about 10-15min or so).
  6. Drop by the spoonful onto the parchment paper covered pan and use back of spoon to smooth out and shape into shallow "bowls" (you can also leave them rounder if you don't plan to fill them with yummy things).
  7. Put the tray(s) into the oven and immediately turn the oven OFF (yes, for real!).
  8. Leave meringues into oven overnight.
  9. Do NOT open the oven door again until the next morning.