Fruit meringues

We have already seen how to make classic white meringues and how to replace the egg whites, in those white meringues we used liquid aquafaba, read the recipe.

In this recipe, we'll see how to make fruit meringues.

To do this we will need fruit puree, which can be a ready-made puree of the kind you buy in the carton (which I recommend) or a homemade puree, for example by blending and sieving strawberries.

Ready-made puree is easier, especially for certain types of fruit where it is difficult to obtain a nice puree (seedless, fluid, rich in color and flavor) such as passion fruit, apple, or cherries, where to make a good quantity of puree you need tons of it and therefore it is also cheaper to buy it ready-made.

The puree used in this recipe is blackcurrant, so we get bright pink meringues.

By whipping and incorporating air, the meringue becomes increasingly lighter, so the color will never be that of the initial puree. Therefore, a pink puree like strawberry puree will have very, very light pink meringues.

Egg white is made up of approximately 90% water and approximately 10% protein.

We use the puree instead of the watery part, so we need the protein part that will help whip this puree, so we use powdered aquafaba. This is hydrated in the puree and then whipped like a traditional egg white. Gradually add the sugar, and you get a meringue.

Procedure

Preheat the static oven to 90˚C. 

Prepare 2 baking sheets with baking paper.

Weigh the fruit puree in a bowl, the powdered aquafaba in another, and the granulated sugar in another.

Pour the puree into the bowl of a stand mixer (you can also do it by hand with an electric whisk).

Add the powdered aquafaba, whisk well to dissolve it into the puree.

Then attach the whisk to the planetary mixer and start whipping at a medium-high speed.

After a couple of minutes, when it starts to incorporate air, gradually add the granulated sugar while continuing to whisk.

The sugar should not be added all at once, but one spoonful at a time as you whip.

Then continue whipping at high speed for several minutes until you obtain a shiny, airy, stable meringue.

The meringue is ready when it holds firm when you turn the bowl upside down and doesn't fall over, or when it sticks well to the whisk without falling over.

It will take 5 to 10 minutes to whip it up well.

Transfer the meringue to a pastry bag with a decorative tip of your choice; the one used in this recipe is a closed star tip, size 11.

Tip: To ensure the baking paper adheres well to the baking sheet and prevents it from moving, make a small meringue peak, one in each corner, and place the baking paper on top.

Now decorate the meringues by making small peaks, all of the same size. Make many small meringues until the mixture is used up.

There is no need to space them too far apart as they don't grow much during cooking.

Cook, or better yet, dry – dehydrate, the meringues in the oven at 90˚ for about 4 hours, with the vent open or by inserting a spoon into the door to let the moisture escape. 

They can be made in a fan oven if the fan isn't too powerful, but a conventional oven is also fine, as long as you place a spoon in the door to let the moisture escape.

They should be completely dry and come away from the parchment paper. The cooking time varies depending on the size of the meringues.

It is important that the T is low, to avoid cracking and to prevent them from turning yellow.

Turn off the oven, open it and let them cool completely inside.