This weekend I’d planned to go for a run – a really long run as I head towards a first half marathon of the year in a couple of weeks. This was the plan…..then it started raining sideways, and a niggle in the knee from last week felt a bit rubbish, so I decided not to go, but instead stay in and bake….a much better idea!
After half an hour browsing through books with a cup of tea (which has to be one of my favourite ways to spoil myself and relax), I’d decided to make these – little lemon and vanilla meringues sandwiched together with fresh lemon curd.
For the meringues I used:
- 2 egg whites
- 150g caster sugar
- zest of 1 lemon – finely chopped
- little bit of vanilla extract
To make the meringues just whisk the egg whites, before gradually adding in the caster sugar – it should turn shiny and thick. I mixed in the lemon zest and vanilla at the end, then put the mix into a piping bag. I’d read something online about getting a lovely strip of colour along one side of the meringue by painting a line of food colouring down the side of the piping bag so gave it a go – it definitely worked but I think perhaps a wider stripe with more food colouring would be better in making the stripe more vibrant.
The lemon curd was exactly the same as I used in the lemon macarons I posted about recently, and it worked equally well between the meringues.
I think they look really pretty, and it’s definitely an idea I’ll be experimenting more with – there are so many nice flavorings and colours that could go in the meringue, and yummy things that would stick them together. One word of warning though – they are dangerously more-ish! A couple of friends helped me make short work of these after dinner so quickly that we almost forgot to photograph them!
Very nicely done! Great photo too.
Thanks! Have invested in a better camera lately and think the photos are looking better for it!
These look gorgeous – so pretty!
Thanks! I think they’re cute too – I really like the stripe of colour on them.