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Strawberry Frozen Yogurt with Summer Fruits and Italian Meringues

Mixing up the fruits is entirely up to you: plums, melon, blueberries, blackberries or peaches work nicely together, or you can take it in a tropical direction with pineapple and mangoes, maybe sprinkling toasted coconut over the top. Or pair the strawberry frozen yogurt with a scoop of
. I plucked tiny basil leaves and used them as a garnish. If you use basil, the small leaves aren’t as sharp as the large ones.Meringues are fairly easy but do not make them on a humid day as they won’t crisp up. If the idea of making a meringue with a syrup seems daunting, you can make a traditional
. This will make more meringues than you need but you can store them. After the recipe I’ve given some troubleshooting and storage tips. The strawberry frozen yogurt recipe is here.
Course Dessert

Italian meringues

  • 1/2 cup (120ml) egg whites, at room temperature (from about 4 large eggs)
  • optional: 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar, (see below)
  • 1/2 cup (120ml) water
  • 1 cup (200g) sugar

To assemble the dessert

  • One batch strawberry frozen yogurt
  • A mixture of ripe summer fruits and berries, any combination of stone fruits (which include plums, peaches, apricots, and nectarines) and berries
  • Mint or tiny basil leaves, for garnish
  • Preheat the oven to 200ºF (93ºC). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • To make the meringues, put the egg whites in the clean, dry bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment.
  • Heat the water and sugar in a small saucepan fitted with a candy thermometer. As the temperature of the syrup climbs close to 240ºF/115ºC, begin whipping the egg whites on medium-high speed, adding the cream of tartar, if using.
  • When the syrup reaches 240ºF (115ºC), remove from heat and in a slow, steady stream, pour the syrup into the egg whites, making sure you’re pouring it between the whip and the side of the bowl. Pouring the syrup on the whip will cause it to fling and stick to the sides of the bowl, not go into the whites.
  • Continue whipping the meringue on medium-high speed until smooth and glossy, 5 to 10 minutes. If you lift the whip and they look grainy, continue whipping them.
  • Using a pastry bag fitted with a star tip, pipe the meringue into shapes on the prepared baking sheets. You can use a plain tip to pipe another shape, or even make the meringues into “nests” using a soupspoon, shaping them like a mound of mashed potatoes with a crater ready to hold gravy in the middle.
  • Bake in the oven for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until they feel close to dry when you touch them. Turn the oven off and let the meringues rest in the oven until cool and dry.
  • To assemble the dessert, arrange the fruits and berries in shallow soup bowls. Place scoops of the strawberry frozen yogurt nestled amongst the fruits and berries, and garnish with herbs.
  • If you wish to make a strawberry sauce, puree 1 pound (450g) hulled strawberries with 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon lemon juice. Press through a strainer to remove the seeds, and taste, adding more sugar if desired.

Notes

Troubleshooting meringues
The bowl must be clean and dry and free of any grease. If not, the meringues will not whip. Any traces of yolks in the egg whites will have a similar effect. Do not use a plastic mixing bowl as they retain oil, which will prevent the egg whites from whipping properly, too. They meringues may stick to silicone mats, so I use parchment paper for baking them.
I added a dash of cream of tartar, which isn’t the same as tartaric acid. I bring it over from the U.S. It’s not necessary, but does help stabilize the egg whites. In Europe, it’s available from Dr. Oetker and Marks & Spencer carries it. You can omit it, if you wish. If you live elsewhere, check out my Tips for Finding Foods Online.
If you take the temperature of the sugar syrup above 240ºF/115ºC by accident, you can add a few tablespoons of water which will lower the temperature, then continue cooking it to bring it back up to the correct one.
If the texture of the meringue before piping is grainy, it likely needs to be whipped more. If small amounts of syrup leaking out while the meringues are cooking around the base, either they haven’t been whipped enough or humidity is causing it. In most cases, that can be easily removed after baking.