Chicken and Egg - Janice Cole [92]
Black-Bottom Raspberry Meringues
These meringues offer a tender, sweet, but fleeting guilt-free pleasure. They are crisp but airy, and melt instantly in your mouth. The dipped chocolate bottoms make them irresistible.
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Preheat the oven to 225°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Beat the egg whites in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-low speed until frothy. Add the cream of tartar, increase the speed to medium, and beat until soft peaks form, about 1 minute. Slowly sprinkle in the powdered sugar and beat at medium-high speed for 1 to 2 minutes or until stiff peaks form. Beat in the raspberry extract. Add the food coloring and stir gently a couple of times until it is swirled through the egg whites.
On the baking sheet, pipe the meringues using a pastry bag with a ½-inch star tip into thirty-six swirled rounds 1 inch in diameter. Or use a teaspoon to dollop the meringues. Make sure you leave long, loopy ends as you pull your piping tip or spoon away from the meringue. It will give the meringues a delicate, playful look.
Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. The meringues will still be slightly soft but will firm as they cool. Keeping the meringues in the oven, turn off the oven, and place a wooden spoon in the oven door to prop it open slightly. Let the meringues sit for 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. (You can store the meringues in an airtight container for up to a week at room temperature.)
If desired, microwave the chocolate in a small microwave-safe bowl for 25 to 30 seconds, until soft but not melted. Stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Line a baking sheet with foil, shiny-side up. Dip the bottom of each cooled meringue into the melted chocolate and place on the foil-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for 5 minutes or until the chocolate is set. Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature.
NOTE
For best results, bake the meringues on a day when the humidity is low. High humidity will cause the meringues to become soft and sticky instead of crisp.
MAKES 36 COOKIES
2 egg whites
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon raspberry extract
2 drops red food coloring
2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped (optional)
Miniature Almond-Filled Cream Puffs
These classic profiteroles, or miniature cream puffs, never go out of style. They puff magically in the oven due to the combination of eggs, steam, and heat. Bread flour provides a little extra gluten, resulting in a bigger puff without sacrificing tenderness. The dough is easy to make, but be sure you bring the water to a full boil before adding the flour.
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To make the cream puffs: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Bring the water, butter, granulated sugar, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. The butter should be melted by the time the water comes to a full boil. While the pan is still on the heat, dump the flour in all at once and immediately begin stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon for 30 to 60 seconds, or until the dough forms into a smooth ball and pulls away from the sides of the pan, leaving only a light film.
Remove from the heat and let sit for 1 minute to cool slightly. Add the eggs, one at a time, quickly stirring each egg until blended (see Note). The dough should be golden, shiny, and very smooth. It should plop lazily from the spoon when you hold it up.
Put the dough into a large pastry bag fitted with a ½-inch star tip and pipe twenty-four mounds about the size of a ping-pong ball onto the prepared pan, or drop by teaspoonfuls, using two spoons.
Bake for 20 minutes or until puffed and light golden brown. Remove from the oven and make a small slit in the side of each puff with the tip of a knife. This will allow excess moisture in the center to escape. Bake for an additional 5 minutes or until firm and golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack.
To make the almond