Vanillicious.com – Easy Desserts

Lemon Meringue Roulade

Also in this article: how to beat egg whites

Do you also have too many egg whites in your fridge or freezer? A few days ago, when freezing another egg white I realized I had too many jars, full of them. I then decided I must do something about it. I figured a meringue roulade is a great solution. When I think of meringue, I have the crunchy type of meringue in mind, from the time I was a little girl, when a cute coloured meringue swirl was called “A kiss”. This roulade has a different texture, a very soft, spongy meringue that almost melts in the mouth. An absolute yum!

The filling: I chose to fill my meringue roulade with lemon cream. If you prefer, you can fill yours with any other cream of your choice: vanilla, chocolate, berries (add some smooth berry purée of your choice to the whipped cream) etc.

It is also gluten free, so suitable for those who are allergic (coeliac/celiac disease). I think of those things because of my mom, so whenever I find a recipe suitable for her, I immediately call her, expecting her to try it the next day, if not immediately (though it never works that way..)

But before you go on and try the recipe, here are some beating egg whites tips:

• For best results, bring the egg white to room temperature before beating them. This will ensure your foamed egg whites will get into the highest possible volume.
• It is recommended to beat egg whites for meringue with a mixer. If you don’t have one, a hand mixer can do the job as well. However, it might take 2-3 more minutes to get similar result.
• When you start beating the egg whites, start at a slow speed and gradually move into higher speed.
• You should beat your egg whites until they are well firmed and fluffed (stiff peaks). At that point, you should stop! The texture should be smooth and look glossy and shiny. Another way to know your foam reached it’s max volume is to tilt the bowl, and the beaten egg white will not flow. Even if you overturn the bowl in the air (carefully!), the foam will remain in the bowl in the same shape. I never dare to do that, but I think rolling the bowl to it’s side is good enough.
• If you overbeat the egg whites, the texture will look dry and granular and it will liquify again.
• Use the beaten egg whites immediately

Click here to read up this recipe!

Raspberry Souffle

We have a tradition in this house that every Saturday we treat ourselves with a wonderful home-made dessert which is not a cake, and if we want to have more of it – we’ll have to wait for the following weekend(s). This weekend we had raspberry souffles. The raspberries, by the way, can be replaced with any other sour berry of your choice.

As you already know, a souffle is made of whipped egg whites and flavouring. However, unlike other souffles I’ve made or had before, this one is a no-bake souffle and can be made in advance and can definitely wait for you. As long as it’s in the fridge.

I run and tell that quickly because we just loved it. Hope you will, too! Click here to read up this recipe!

Berry fool

Fool is a British summery dessert (though I don’t see any reason why one should not have it all year long), which is probably hundreds of years old. This amazingly elegant, simple and delicious dessert is basically made by a sweetend fruit purée, stirred and folded into whipped double cream (single cream when it’s not available, or when you want your dessert less fatty, of course).

The name fool is derived from the French word foulé, which means crushed, and refers to the crushed fruit. In the following recipe I’m using mixed berries. My favourites for the purée are blackberries, raspberries, blackcurrant, redcurrants and strawberries. Though it can be made with any berry or berries of your choice. Remember to serve in sophisticated looking glasses (ice cream or wine glasses), just to make it look even more delicious than it already is, and top with some fresh berries!

Click here to read up this recipe!