Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Left Over Egg Whites


Slowly, I am trying to use up everything in the refrigerator before Hubby and I depart for a four week absence. Looking directly into the middle shelf, tucked way back in the corner, was a jar of perfectly good egg whites............six of them, just floating around. I used the eggs to make a custard sauce last weekend. Bingo-there is custard sauce in here somewhere, too! Still smells good. I added a little more cream, heated it gently and all was well in that department. Hence, my little meringue shells filled with a low fat vanilla ice cream, drenched in a high-fat custard sauce. Seems like a proper way to use what is just hanging aound in the frig!
Meringues
6 large egg whites, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 teaspoon of cream of tarter
pinch of salt
1 1/4 cup of sugar
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees. I used the largest baking sheet I had and lined it with parchment paper.
Beat the egg whites, cream of tarter and salt on medium speed until the mixure become frothy. Add one cup of sugar. Add the vanilla. Beat on high speed until the peaks remain stiff. Fold in the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar.
To make the shapes, I simply used a very large spoon and carefully placed a huge spoonful of mixture on the parchment lined cookie sheet. Then I took the back of a tablespoon and gently made an indentation to hold the ice cream.
Bake the meringues for two hours and keep the oven door closed.This is easy~turn off the oven and let the meringues remain in the oven for 3 to 4 hours. I was able to time this just right , so out of the oven and into our stomachs! Store in airtight container. This made 10 really nice sizes shells.

14 comments:

MyKitchenInHalfCups said...

Genius!
Four weeks - fantastic!
Bring on the stories!

T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types said...

You make such great trips - where are you heading next? Wherever you are going, I hope it's great!

Jann said...

mykitchen~thanks for visitng and your comment. There may be a few stories down the road.Tibet???

t.w.~China and Tibet~ and a few other places out that way....should be interesting cooking, right?

K and S said...

what a great way to use up leftovers in your refridge! Have a great time!

Katie Zeller said...

How very thrifty and decadent of you!

Have a great trip...sauteed yak?
Mare's milk wine?

Anonymous said...

What glory can be had in egg whites! What beauty you created!

Simona Carini said...

I love your photo! I make meringues often, with nuts added. Have a safe and fun trip. We'll wait for stories and photos.

T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types said...

China and Tibet! Okay, that's pretty good! Can't wait to hear more! (And here I sit in steamy Atlanta right now ... )

sher said...

Wow! You REALLY know how to use up leftovers! I'm very impressed. Have a great trip.

Christine said...

YUM!! Fabulous looking dessert, Jann. Where are you off to this time?

Betty Carlson said...

I hve a pantry-emptying project in mind for the fall myself. I'll see what my husband leaves while we're gone in July...

I assume this is a trip that's coming up? Have a good one.

I love the new design, BTW. I'm glad I helped you find Madeline!

Betty Carlson said...

I'm terrible about reading comments -- now I see where you're going!

Parisbreakfasts said...

WHERE have I been?
HOW did I miss this...
This is low-fat?
I'll take it either way..
Simply GORGEOUS (even if that does mean multi-colored...)

Helene said...

Meringues were my favorites to get at the bakery with my mom. Such sweet memories!