DATE: Wednesday, June 4, 1997               TAG: 9706030043

SECTION: FLAVOR                  PAGE: F1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY RUTH FANTASIA, FLAVOR EDITOR 

                                            LENGTH:  108 lines

PEAK PERFORMANCE SECRETS OF MAKING A PICTURE-PERFECT MERINGUE

MERINGUE CAN weep and fall like Scarlett O'Hara watching the burning of Atlanta.

Those fluffy peaks of egg whites and sugar, which top pies and desserts so nicely in the bakery, tend to slide southward an hour after you remove one from the oven. If you're lucky enough to get the meringue to stay still, it may look like it's been in the rain - with little brownish droplets of liquid forming on the surface.

``No matter what I do,'' says one reader, ``they just don't look as good and nice as the professionals.' ''

That's because you haven't had the arsenal of tricks professionals use to make picture-perfect meringues. Until now.

Cleanliness is next to godliness, especially when it comes to utensils you're using to make meringue.

``One of the big, big problems is that the tiniest bit of fat or egg yolk will wreck a meringue,'' says Atlanta food chemist and cookbook author Shirley Corriher. ``Use a glass or metal bowl that is scrupulously clean. Plastic bowls tend to allow traces of fat to hide in cracks on the insides of the bowl and you can't get them out, no matter how much you scrub,'' Corriher says.

It's also not a bad idea to wash your bowls and beaters with hot soapy water, rinse well and dry thoroughly just before you make a meringue. Another trick is to avoid letting your fingers touch the areas that will come in contact with the egg whites. That way, you'll avoid leaving oils from your hands on the utensils you just washed.

Three bowls are a must when separating eggs, says Corriher.

Prepare one small bowl, one medium bowl and the bowl you'll use to make the meringue - all just washed, of course. Crack the egg, draining the white into the small bowl. Place the yolk in the medium bowl. Discard the shell. Check to make sure none of the yolk has managed to slide into the white, then dump the white into the large bowl you'll use for beating.

Repeat, one egg at a time. This way, if you break an egg yolk, you haven't ruined your whole batch of whites.

There are two major types of meringue, say the experts.

Common meringue is the weepy stuff we find in most recipes. It's simply egg whites whipped with sugar and maybe some cream of tartar. Then there's Swiss meringue. Not nearly as fragile, the Swiss version is mostly sugar, holds its shape and is easier to work with, says Shelly Owens, a pastry chef as well as chef-instructor at Johnson & Wales University in Norfolk.

But let's tackle the problems of common meringue first.

There are a few things you can do to make perfect meringues, says chemist Corriher.

``Cream of tartar is a wonderful stabilizer,'' Corriher says. ``Add 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar for each egg white you are using. Stir lightly to mix it in. Start beating and when it reaches a nice, soft, fluffy stage (the meringue bends like a bird's beak when beaters are lifted), begin adding the sugar. Use two tablespoons sugar for each egg white to make a soft meringue.

``Beat until the peaks will stand upright when you pull the whisk or beaters out,'' Corriher says.

A helpful (though not absolutely necessary) step is to microwave 1/3 cup water with 1 tablespoon cornstarch just until the starch becomes a thick, blobby paste. At the end of beating, whisk in the starch mix, a tablespoon at a time. The cornstarch keeps the meringue from shrinking and makes it cut nicely, says Corriher.

Corriher's bag of culinary tricks also includes these tips:

Fix the meringue first. Then prepare the filling. Place meringue on the piping-hot filling to begin cooking the bottom of the meringue.

Sprinkle cake crumbs on top of the filling before adding the meringue. ``I've even resorted to buying a Twinkie and crumbling up the cake part and using it,'' Corriher says. The cake crumbs act like sponges to soak up anything that leaks from the egg whites. ``And the crumbs disappear like little elves got 'em,'' Corriher says.

Use nine large egg whites for a breathtaking, mile-high meringue.

Those watery beads (weeping) are caused by overcooking the meringue. Leakage is the soup that can develop between the meringue and the filling. ``Oddly enough, you can do both at the same time if you have a cold filling, and too hot an oven,'' says Corriher.

Meringues will become more done if you bake them at a lower temperature for a longer time. Try 325 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes, Corriher says.

Some cookbooks claim the temperature of the eggs and the coarseness of the sugar have an influence on the success of meringue. That's true, says Corriher, but they are not as big a deal as we've been led to believe.

``They tell you that cold egg whites whip nicely, and they do,'' Corriher says. ``The time it takes to get a meringue is directly related to the temperature of the egg whites. Warmer eggs whip faster. You can make a meringue with cold eggs, but make sure you aren't whisking it by hand.''

As for the coarseness of the sugar? Finer sugar dissolves faster and that's great, says Corriher.

But generally, you can use anything from granulated to superfine, from confectioners' to brown sugar, and make a successful meringue.

Unlike common meringue, Swiss meringue is more sugar than egg.

Use two parts sugar to one part egg whites, says chef Owens. Gently heat the mixture over a double boiler, whisking gently to prevent the egg whites from cooking. Heat until sugar is dissolved.

Whip the egg whites and sugar with an electric mixer until cool.

Then, Owens says, you can pipe it, spike it or pile it high and it will hold the shape. ``You can brown it in the oven or be really pyrotechnic and use a propane torch.''

``It tastes like marshmallow cream,'' says Owens. ``It's just fun to eat by the spoonful.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color] File Photo

Key lime pie...

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