Meringue With Raspberries And Almonds

1) Preheat your oven to 200ºF/93ºC.

2) Prepare a bain-marie by simmering water in a saucepan.

3) Combine the egg whites and sugar in a large mixing bowl.

4) Place the bowl over the bain-marie and whip continuously until the egg white and sugar mixture reaches 120ºF/49ºC.

5) Remove from the heat and continue whipping until stiff peaks form.

6) Pipe (using a pastry bag) or drop (using a large spoon) the meringue onto the prepared sheet pans.

7) Gently place one raspberry and the desired amount of slivered toasted almonds on each meringue mound.

8) Immediately bake at 200ºF/93ºC for 2 to 3 hours, until the meringue cookies are dry, crisp, and lightly golden brown.

Chef's Note & Story

* An instant-read thermometer would be nice but not necessary. Just make sure you don’t end up with scrambled eggs when whipping over the bain-marie.

* The ratio of sugar to egg whites is 2 to 1 by weight. This formula will yield a crisp and firm meringue.