FOR THE MERINGUE:
2/3 c. sugar
1 T. cornstarch
4 XL egg whites
1/4 t. salt
2 t. white vinegar
Preheat oven to 225°. Prepare a baking sheet – the easiest route is to line the sheet with a non-stick liner, such as Silpat brand. Or you can cover the baking sheet with a generous spritz of Baker’s Joy non-stick baking spray. Lacking Silpat or Baker’s Joy you can go old school: line baking sheet with parchment paper, butter the paper and dust with flour. The end game is to not have the meringues stick to the pan.
Mix the sugar and salt and cornstarch in a bowl. Stir around with a fork to mix all the dry ingredients.
In a heavy stand mixer (KitchenAid is what you really want) beat the eggs whites on medium until they’re loose and bubbly and frothly. Turn beater to high and add the sugar one tablespoon at a time, allowing each spoonful of sugar to mix in well in before adding the next.
Keep beating on high until the egg whites are very thick, very glossy and very stiff. To test if the whites are ready, turn the beater off, pull out the mixing blades. The whites should stand straight up, making sharp points that do not flop over. Rigid! Once you’ve achieved this consistency beat in the vinegar and sugar just until mixed.
Fit a pastry bag with a large decorative opening. I used a 2″ scallop tip. You may use what you have but keep in mind that some of the meringues will be used to decorate the dish so choose a tip and pattern that will be pleasing to the eye. I made long, fluted, scallop ribbons.
Pipe the meringue in decorative shapes on the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the pre-heated 225° for 2 hours. Take a peek at the one-hour mark to make sure the tops aren’t browning. This slow and low bake ensures crisp yet snowy white results. Even the lightest bits of brown are undesirable. After two hours of baking, turn the oven off. Let the meringues rest in the warm oven for at least two more hours so they dry out thoroughly.
FOR THE MESS:
3-4 c. fresh ripe berries — strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries
2 T. light brown sugar
1 T. Chambord liqueur
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1 c. heavy whipping cream
3 T. confectioners’ sugar
1/2 t. vanilla extract
Prepare the berries: remove stems and cores from strawberries and cut into quarters. Lightly crush berries with a potato masher. Mix the berries with the brown sugar, Chambord and lemon juice and let macerate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. The sugar and lemon will soften the fruit and pull out a lot of juice to make a sweet sauce.
TO SERVE:
Whip the heavy cream to firm peaks, sprinkling in the confectioners’ sugar and adding the vanilla at the very end. [Don’t try to mimic the egg white firmness stage or you’ll end up with a bowl of butter.]
With a metal spatula remove the meringues from the baking tray. Set aside enough pieces to create the decorative final touches. I kept two long scalloped ribbons aside to create a square border around the pile of “mess.”
Fold the soft berries and juice into the whipped cream, mixing just enough to have the fruit and juice streaked through the whipped cream. Take the meringue pieces you’re not saving for the final decoration and break into 1-2″ pieces. Stir these broken pieces of meringue into the berry and cream mess.
Mound the mess onto a serving platter or bowl. Decorate with the remaining meringues. Serve immediately.
When you spoon out the servings, make sure each to include pieces of the decorative meringues with each portion.
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