Simple tricks for making perfect meringues - summer's favourite dessert

Knowing how to make meringue will stand you in good stead for summer dinners, parties and all sorts of other occasions when you want something that you can make well in advance and bring out with aplomb knowing that many just can’t get it quite right.  And yet with the right instructions they are very easy to make.

I must have made meringues hundreds of times as my kids love them.  And along with Delia Smith’s wonderful chocolate mousse have brought out these two desserts, made a couple of days before, in large quantities to feed huge numbers.  There will always be those who eschew desserts, but if you want something to please the sweet toothed and of which there will never be anything left, then these are your answer.

There are simple tricks for how to make meringues perfectly:

Make sure your bowl and whisk are absolutely clean or your egg whites may not beat up.

Don’t allow any egg yolk to go into your egg white – again it may not beat properly.  So break each egg separately (I use a couple of mugs) before adding the white in with the rest.

Have some non stick baking tray liner at the ready – you can’t use greaseproof paper here, they will stick.  You can buy this at Lakeland and also at Amazon and you can use it over and over again and for anything where you want non-stick.  You just clean it and put it away after use.

Beat your egg whites and sugar together until the mixture stands in stiff peaks but don’t overbeat.

Follow Delia Smith’s excellent steps on how to make meringues and you won’t go wrong.  I always use a large beater (mine is a Kenwood) and five or six egg whites will make you a large round meringue to use as a base for summer fruits, banana and ginger, or anything else you want.