I’ve been making some really rich desserts lately (mousse, brule…) that only use the egg yolks so right now I am the proud owner of a lot of frozen egg whites.  This says meringue to me and more importantly I got some beautiful local strawberries in my organic bin this week and so I must have pavlova!

I also totally forget how many egg whites are in there so I’m going to measure them out.  Each egg is 2 ounces.  The egg white is almost exactly half of that.  Voila!  This is also handy to use if you are being “helped” by a one year old and lose count or have a diaper emergency to contend with.

I got this meringue recipe from the catering crew I worked for in London at “The Perfect Pear”. 

It’s called Jean’s Meringue but I never met Jean.  I don’t know if they did either.  It is super simple to make in a stand mixer but just as easily made using a hand whisk too.  You can make a huge batch of this meringue (just use up to 2 cups of egg whites and 1/2 tsp of cream of tartar)

Beat 1/4 tsp of cream of tartar and 1/2 cup of egg whites until frothy. 

Gradually add; 2 cups of sugar and beat until it goes schlop, schlop in your bowl. 

Fold in 1 tsp. of vanilla and 1 T. of vinegar.  Make sure that you have a helpful extra set of hands around.

This is a stable meringue (due to the vinegar) but do yourself a favour and don’t make it on a rainy day.  You will be really disappointed.  It will be a flop and not a schlop, schlop.

Bake in a 250 degree oven for 1 and 1/2 hours on a cookie sheet lined with parchment.  Let cool completely in the oven.  You can have one large one or up to four moderately sized ones.

Serve it with lots of whiped cream and berries.  I’ve taken strawberries and added a few dribbles of balsamic and a sprinkle of brown sugar.  These berries were a bit on the unripe side and this is a tried and true method of making them taste like they are warm from the field.

It’s called macerating them and I snagged this idea from my wonderful Marcella Hazan book.

I love hearing from you. Leave a comment-make my day.