Vegan meringues - who knew?

[TrickyD]

Well obviously I love them because I have some in the oven at the moment, and DS1, with a vegan partner told me about this wonderful method.

But who first opened a can of chick peas and thought “Goodness, I bet this cloudy yellow juice would whip up into clouds of fluffy delight?”.

It works, and the end product, using chick pea water or Aquafaba, , is indistinguishable from the egg white version and does not compel you to rustle up lemon curd with the left over yolks.

Works amazingly well, doesn’t it?

Yes, left over egg yolks are always a pain with egg meringues.

What ratio do you use for this? Do they go chewy too like 'proper' meringue?

It's amazing!

Have you tried aquafaba chocolate mousse too? Yum!

I found it pretty mindblowing the first time I heard about it on some youtube video. Great for people with egg allergies.

Have you tried aquafaba chocolate mousse too? Yum!

This is also amazing. I made far too much of it and it stayed fresh and kept its texture for days in the fridge.

Can we have some recipes please? Does it definitely not have a hint of legume about turn finished product?

No, haven’t tried the mousse yet, but it sounds great.

doradoo I follow Prue Leith’s recipe, 200cls of aquafaba, (just under two tins’ worth), 270 grams castor sugar, a teaspoonful of wine vinegar and, in the absence of cream of tartar which I have but couldn’t find, a teaspoonful of Xanthan gum which came to hand and is used in other similar recipes. They are indistinguishable from egg meringues.

They always take ages longer to cook than recipes state, but I found that with ‘real’ meringues too, which were an item I could never make successfully.

Hurray for chick peas! And DH has made a Dhal with them.

Where do you get Xanthan gum?

I did know this but completely forgot.... my DD has an egg white allergy so could be a nice treat.... she'll prob hate them, like she hates eggless pancakes but I will give them a go! Thanks x

Chickpea water is also amazing in cocktails - I think it must be used in a similar way whipping it as an alternative to egg white. I had one when out for my birthday and it was delicious!

I knew but haven't actually has one, I don't often eat meringues and the option to have a vegan one has never arisen

@Ihopeyourcakeisshit

Where do you get Xanthan gum?

I got mine from Amazon. Was under a fiver for a decent size tub.

@Ihopeyourcakeisshit

Where do you get Xanthan gum?

God knows , apart from the back of a cupboard when hunting for the cream of tartar., Actually probably from Amazon for a long forgotten reason.

I don’t think it is a critical ingredient. I have seen meringue recipes involving a teaspoonful of cornflour, that would probably be OK.

I still can’t imagine how the first person thought of using the liquid like this.

Yes! I thought they came out better than normal ones. It feels so satisfying using the chick pea gloop that would otherwise go down the drain. Anyone got a tried & tested vegan marshmallow recipe?

I have to try this.

If I make a chickpea curry, can I drain the liquid and freeze it until I'm ready to use it?

Most decent sized supermarkets sell xanthan gum too. I wouldn't live without it, DD2 is gluten free. Really want to try the meringues now, we eat a lot of chickpeas.

I think this about everything though. Who decided to crack an egg into a pan and it made good food (well, not to me but to a lot of people), or who thought I know I'll kill that buffalo or whatever back in the day, chop it up, and add it to fire to make it taste better?