Missing Meringues? Then you are in luck! It is easy to make these delicious treats without eggs, using a special magic ingredient called aquafaba! Aquafaba is the liquid from a tin of chickpeas. The liquid absorbs the protein from the pulses, giving it some similar properties to egg whites. You can use it in lots of recipes, and it whisks up to white peaks, just like eggs, so you can use it to make perfect vegan meringues.
It takes quite a while to get it to froth completely, so you will need an electric whisk, or very strong arms! I promise you it is completely worth it though.
These meringues are delicious – your guests won’t notice the difference, they taste exactly like the ‘real’ thing. They are white, light and crispy on the outside, and soft and gooey in the middle.
Serve with vegan cream and strawberries for a perfect summer treat!
Equipment
- Hand mixer / whisk
Ingredients
- 1 400g chickpeas
- 100g caster sugar
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 120c or 100c fan assisted.
- Drain the tin of chickpeas using a sieve over jug and save the chickpeas to use in another recipe. The reserved liquid is known as aqaufaba. Stir in the cream of tartar (this helps it stiffen quicker).
- Put the aquafaba into a large mixing bowl and whisk on a medium setting for several minutes until it is white and frothy and forms soft peaks when you pull the whisks out.
- Gradually mix in the sugar, one tbsp at a time, mixing continuously until the mixture is thick and glossy and forms stiff peaks. This process takes longer than whisking egg whites. Around 5 – 10 mins.
- Cover a baking tray with greaseproof paper, then either spoon the mixture on it in 8 – 10 heaps, or you can carefully pipe it to form 'nests'.
- Bake in the oven for 2 hours until fully set. Turn the oven out and leave to cool down for at least 2 hours, you can even leave them overnight if you want.
- Store in an airtight container until you want to use them. Delicious with strawberries and cream!