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Cobnut Meringues
Posted By Kerri
We picked up a bag of cobnuts while we were in Kent over Christmas and so far have just used them sprinkled on salad. We wanted to do something with them that gave them more of a starring role and decided to use them in meringues – the added bonus being we could strike those off the “cook soon” list.
Stephen has had some success with meringue in the past but mine have always been a disaster, I got on with these while Stephen did the ironing and offered support from the background.
I like a chewy centre to my meringues and a little research suggested adding some cornflour and white wine vinegar to the mixture, I don’t know if that’s cheating or not but it certainly provided the desired effect. The meringues were crispy on the outside and deliciously chewy and marshmallow-like in the centre.
Originally I’d planned to sandwich them together with cream but they came out too large for that so instead we just had one each dipped into some cream flavoured with Amaretto liqueur and more crushed cobnuts.
Serves Four
50g chopped cobnuts (or hazelnuts)
135g caster sugar
2 egg whites
1/4tsp cornflour
1/4tsp white wine vinegar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Combine the cobnuts and 35g of the sugar in a pan on a medium heat until the sugar has caramelised and you are left with a sticky mixture. Remove from the pan, spread the mixture onto a tray and leave until cool. Once cooled, chop into smaller pieces.
Whisk the egg whites until they have formed firm peaks and then start to add in the sugar, a tablespoon at a time. Once all the sugar has been incorporated, add in the cornflour, white wine vinegar and vanilla extract and continue whisking until combined.
Fold half of the crushed nut mixture into the meringue with a spatula.
Spoon the meringue mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment and sprinkle a quarter of the remaining nut mixture on to the top of each meringue.
Bake at 140 degrees for 45 minutes. When cooked, turn off the oven and leave the meringues inside until they have completely cooled.
Serve on their own or with cream. We stirred the remaining quarter of nut mixture into some whipped cream flavoured with a splash of Amaretto liqueur.
Jan 4th, 2009
Meringue is one of those things I really want to like but I can’t get over the texture or the horrible memories of dodgy lemon meringue pie I had when I was little that tasted like washing up liquid. It’s a shame as I always end up with leftover egg white.
Ooooh, they look divine! I adore chewy meringues too, I simply put put these on the to bake list!
Yum yum!
Katie xo
Katie’s last blog post..Gone in a flash
I don’t like lemon meringue pie either Ros, too much softness going on.
Thanks Katie 🙂
These look just dreamy! The crunch of the nuts must be the perfect compliment to the chewy meringues. I love it!
I am a meringue junkie & these look amazing. Love the tips for crusty outside & chewy inside.
Lemon curd is fab in meringue shells! Love lemon curd but never cared for the weepy meringue topping on those old school pies.
Totallly intrigued by “cobnuts” are they available in the US????
Love the photography; it’s like you can reach out & touch!
XO
Butterball
butterball, cobnuts are a type of hazelnut that has traditionally been grown in Kent in England. The thing about cobnuts is that you can get them green which makes them different, but these were dried ones so were very similar to normal hazelnuts.
And glad you liked the picture, thanks for the comment 🙂
these look stunning!
MsGourmet’s last blog post..The Cooks Larder
Hello, we were wondering at The Kentish Cobnut Association if you would mind if we could use your fantastic meringue picture on a display board for promotion of the cobnut? It would be much appreciated. many thanks!
Of course, Sam. I’ve sent you an email.