“There were musicales and soirées, there were elaborate charades played in the rose gardens by the light of flares and twinkling paper lanterns” Dragonwyck, Anya Seton
NOTES
– Be careful not to over-whip your egg whites. Over-whipping will cause the matrix of the proteins to break down and the foam will collapse becoming grainy, watery and unusable.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
Equipment:
- electric hand or stand mixer (we used our KitchenAid)
- large baking sheet, lined
Makes: 22
INGREDIENTS
For the meringue:
- 2 large egg whites
- 100 grams caster sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon rosewater
- a few drops of red food colouring
For the ganache:
- 100g white chocolate (finely chopped)
- 70ml double creamoptional extras
Optional extras: (not used in the above photos)
- 60g fresh raspberries
- a few drops red food colouring gel as desired.
To finish:
- 20g toasted pistachios, finely chopped
METHOD
Making the meringue:
Preheat the oven to 100°C/90°C Fan and line a baking tray with baking parchment.
- Separate your eggs and place your egg whites into your stand mixer. Beat on medium-high until peaks form
- Gradually incorporate the sugar one tablespoon at a time, whisking well after each addition before adding the rose water. Whisk until the meringue looks thick, firm and glossy.
- Gently fold in the red food colouring (we frequently use Wilton food gels) until you get your desired shade. Note the colour may fade slightly in the oven so you may want to colour the meringue slightly deeper than the desired final shade.
- Spoon the meringue mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large open star piping nozzle and gently squeeze until the meringue is just visible at the nozzle. Pipe small swirls approximately 3cm in diameter onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving a gap of at least 3cm between each swirl.
- Bake in the pre-heated oven for about an hour and a quarter or until the meringues are dry to the touch, easily peel off the paper and sound hollow if the bottom is gently tapped. Turn off the oven and leave the meringues in the oven to cool with the door ajar. The meringues can be made in advance and kept for a week in an airtight container.
Making the ganache:
- Heat the double cream over a low heat in a saucepan until just boiling.
- Remove from the heat and pour over the finely chopped chocolate. Stir well until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.
If adding raspberries, lightly crush them and fold into the ganache. Again, if desired, add a few drops of red food colouring to deepen the colour of the ganache.
3. Chill for 15 -20 minutes or until thickened to a spreadable consistency.
To assemble:
- Just before serving, sandwich a pair of meringues with a small amount of ganache.
- Sprinkle the chopped pistachios round the ganache edge of each meringue kiss to decorate.
- Enjoy with a glass of favourite champagne.
