Italian meringue with fruit compôte
A proper fancy dessert made with the simplest ingredients. Special enough for a dinner party but easy enough to whip up for a family dinner.
The Italian meringue method produces a lovely stable meringue. You will need a good sugar thermometer or digital thermometer to get the sugar to the right temperature.
Ingredients
For the fruit compôte
- 500g/1lb 2oz frozen mixed berries
- 50²µ/1¾´Ç³ú caster sugar
For the meringue
- 115g/4oz caster sugar
- 2 medium egg whites
To serve
- candied peel
- mint leaves
Method
To make the compôte, put the frozen berries in a saucepan with the sugar and cook over a low heat for 4–5 minutes, or until defrosted and softened, stirring occasionally. Leave to stand.
To make the meringue, put the sugar in a saucepan and add 3 tablespoons of cold water. Place over a medium heat and bring to the boil. Cook for 3–4 minutes or until it reaches 120C on a sugar or digital thermometer, stirring occasionally. The sugar syrup should look slightly thickened and glossy.
Whisk the egg whites in a bowl using a stand mixer or hand-held electric whisk. When they are very foamy, start adding the sugar syrup in a thin stream and continue whisking until the egg whites form a stiff and shiny meringue. This will take around 4 minutes.
Divide the warmed fruit between four wide bowls. Using a piping bag, pipe the meringue on top, or you can use a spoon. Use a chefs’ blow torch to toast the sides of the meringue until golden-brown or alternatively, place it on a heatproof plate and toast under a very hot grill. Top with candied peel (see recipe tip) and mint leaves.
Recipe Tips
To make the candied peel, put the finely pared zest of one large orange and its juice into a small saucepan with 25g/1oz sugar and 100ml/3½fl oz water. Bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 5–10 minutes, or until the zest is soft, stirring occasionally. Drain in a sieve.