Merengue (Puerto Rican Pastry)

(Click each picture to make it larger)

I haven’t been to Puerto Rico since I was 12 years old. I’m 27 now so it’s been a while.  I remember exactly how these taste and feel to the touch. I’m ramping up for my visit to Puerto Rico soon so I decided I would give it a shot to try to make these diabetic coma inducing pastries. I’ve never made these before and I couldn’t find a recipe to help me out so it took me about 3 hours, 2 batches, and a little patience to figure it out. I’m still not completely happy with it but Mindy (my wife) gave it a thumbs up.

Ingredients:

-4 egg whites
-1 1/2 cup sugar               If you have finely cut sugar then use it
-1/2 tbsp. cream of tartar
-1 tsp. vanilla extract           Next time I’ll use actual vanilla bean
-dark chocolate cocoa powder            In Puerto Rico this is not used.

Mix the egg whites until they are fluffy.  Slowly mix in cream of tartar, vanilla extract, and sugar.  Mix until it is fluffy like a marshmallow.  Take a baking sheet and cover with parchment paper.  Pre-heat oven to 250F.  Spoon about 1/4 cup of mixture onto the parchment paper leaving about 2 inches between each merengue, they will expand.  Cook for 30 minutes then turn pan and cook  for an additional 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and lest rest. Sift a little bit of the cocoa powder over the merengue. You will notice the outside will be hard and the inside will be a little creamy. Serve it!

Enjoy,

Eric

Yes, I know it’s spelled meringue in English.   I’ll be doing a few variations of this in the future (fruit fillings, different shapes, and other stuff).

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6 thoughts on “Merengue (Puerto Rican Pastry)

  1. Yummy! I love meringue. The cocoa powder sounds like a great idea. Sweetened or unsweetened?

  2. Sweetened for sure. I was even contemplating pouring some dulce de leche on top but I figured that was enough sugar for one day.

    Thanks again for dropping by,

    Eric

  3. Sounds like a Latin dance….GREG

  4. Very nice! And I’d have to agree – I love dulce de leche but too much of a good thing is still too much. This looks great just the way it is.

  5. Pingback: Eric Rivera’s Puerto Rico Travel Guide: Panaderia (Bakery) « Eric Rivera’s Cooking Blog

  6. I’m from PR, a former home economics teacher, and wanted to tell you that traditionally these were baked in a natural hardwood board (such as cedar or oak, NOT chemically treated of course), pre-soaked in water. The release of steam would keep them moist and creamy inside while they developed their crust. That’s the way it used to be done before all the modern cooking/baking equipment we have today.

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