Mini Meringues with Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, and Bourbon

Several years ago, I began exploring how to make a vegan Angel Food cake. Initially, I wasn’t successful, but my results showed that it should be possible. I just needed to find the right liquid to use. Then I heard about Aquafaba- the liquid from a can of beans, such as chickpeas. Aquafaba works just like egg whites. It’s extremely cost-efficient, and I don’t have a bunch of excess egg yolks left every time I want to make a meringue.

By itself, aquafaba meringue is indistinguishable from meringue made from egg yolks. And plain meringue is wonderful on a pie or as the base of a pavlova. But I wanted to make individual meringues for snacking, for when people visit my stand at the Virginia Renaissance Faire. And of course, I wanted meringues that will have people going, “WOW!” So, I “upped my game” by using some brown sugar, instead of white sugar, and adding cinnamon and bourbon. Yes, these meringues will leave you saying WOW!

And the best part for people who visit my stand at the Virginia Renaissance Faire is that it works equally well for people who have no food restrictions, are gluten-free, vegan, and even diabetic friendly! Why diabetic friendly? When the meringue is piped into a 1½” circle, there are fewer than 2½ grams of carbohydrates per meringue!

The Inside Scoop

The prepared meringue can be spooned onto parchment-lined baking sheets. However, it is hard to make meringues that are similar in size and shape when the meringue is dropped from a spoon. To create uniformly-sized meringues, pipe the meringue onto parchment paper that has been marked with circles for the desired size. To mark the size and placement of the piped meringues, use a circle template, or some circular object that is the desired size and that can be traced. This could be a glass, an empty spool, the inside of a roll of tape, or almost anything that can be traced. Smaller meringues work better- it’s easier to dry out smaller meringues, and once the meringues are ready, it is easy to just pop one in the mouth! I used a 1½” circle template, which will make approximately 54 meringues.

Once the circles have been drawn on the parchment paper, flip the paper over so that the ink is on the bottom of the parchment paper and will not touch the meringues.

Before mixing the meringue, dampen a paper towel with lemon juice and then wipe the inside of the mixing bowl to remove any possible traces of fat or oil. Dry the bowl thoroughly. Fat will prevent the aquafaba from whipping into stiff peaks.

When making meringue, the most important mistakes to avoid are over-whipping and adding the sugar too quickly. Meringue, made from either aquafaba or egg whites, that has been overwhipped will collapse into a puddle of goo. Meringue that had the brown sugar added too quickly may be grainy. To avoid these pitfalls, begin by whipping the aquafaba on a medium-high speed until frothy. Then add the brown sugar, one tablespoon at a time, and continue whipping until the sugar has been completely incorporated. If you are unsure if the brown sugar has been incorporated completely, rub a little of the meringue between you fingers. If it feels gritty, keep whipping on a medium high speed before adding the next tablespoon of sugar. Once the brown sugar, cinnamon and cream of tartar (if using) have been incorporated, increase the speed of the mixer to high and whip until the meringue begins to form stiff peaks. Then STOP. Add the Bourbon and continue to whip on medium high speed just until the Bourbon is blended in. The meringue is now ready for piping.

Meringue can be piped using a plain piping tip…..

…..or a decorative tip.

Either way, they will look beautiful and taste wonderful.

When baking meringues, the rule of thumb is LOW AND SLOW. Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, and Bourbon Meringues should be brown from the brown sugar, cinnamon, and Bourbon, not from baking. The goal of baking is to dry the meringues. Therefore, the oven is set to only 225 degrees. For this size meringue, I baked for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Then I shut the oven off and KEPT THE DOOR CLOSED. As tempting as it is to open the oven door, don’t. The meringues need to finish drying as the oven slowly cools.

Once the oven is completely cool, remove the trays of meringue, pop one in your mouth and…

ENJOY!

Print Recipe

Mini Meringues with Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, and Bourbon

(2 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)

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By Connie Teunis – Serves: Approximately 4 1/2 dozen mini meringues

Prep Time: 30 minutes – Cooking Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Mini Meringues made from chickpea liquid and flavored with brown sugar, cinnamon and Bourbon. These meringues can be enjoyed by everyone, including those who are Vegan and Gluten-Free. And, at only 2 1/2 grams of carbohydrates per meringue, they are safe for most diabetics!

Ingredients

• For 4 ½ dozen Mini-Meringues: (see Note)
• 6 T. Aquafaba (Liquid from a can of Chickpeas, preferably Unsalted)
• 128 g./ 2/3 c. Light Brown Sugar
• 1 t. Cinnamon
• 1/4 t. Cream of Tartar (opt.)
• 4 t. Bourbon

Instructions

1

To spoon meringues, line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

2

To pipe meringues, measure out parchment paper to line 2 large baking sheets. Use a 1½” circle template, or a template for the desired size, to trace rows of circles onto the parchment papers. If a circle template is not available, trace around a large coin, the bottom of a small glass or spool, or any object that will give you the desired size. Flip the parchment papers over so that the ink is on the bottom and will not touch the meringues, and place onto two large baking sheets.

3

Preheat oven to 225 degrees. If available, use the convection setting for even baking.

4

If you plan to pipe the meringues, fit a piping bag with the desired piping tip.

5

Affix the whisk attachment to a stand or hand mixer.

6

Dampen a paper towel with lemon juice and wipe the inside of the mixing bowl; dry thoroughly.

7

Place the brown sugar into a small bowl; set aside.

8

Pour the chickpea liquid into the mixing bowl. On medium-high speed, whip the liquid until frothy.

9

Once the liquid is frothy, add the brown sugar, approximately 1 tablespoon at a time, whipping in thoroughly before adding the next tablespoon. Scrape the bowl frequently. Once all the sugar has been added, add the cinnamon and cream of tartar, if using. Whip on high speed until stiff peaks form. Add the bourbon and whip until completely blended in.

10

Spoon or pipe the meringue onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake at 225 degrees (200 degrees for a convection oven) for 1 hour, 15 minutes.

11

After 1¼ hours, shut off the oven. DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR. Leave the meringues in the oven until the oven is cool, to finish drying the meringues.

12

Once the oven is completely cool, remove the meringues from the oven and…

13

ENJOY!

14

Note: To make approximately 2 dozen mini meringues, cut the recipe in half. To make approximately 9 dozen mini meringues, double the recipe.