Hey Amy!

Meringue is a hard word to spell and even harder to pronounce for a first grader.  My mother tells a great story of me passing the local bakery and reading the sign in the door.  Lemon meringue pie came out of my mouth as lemon mer-gan-ee.  I struggled to say it correctly but always knew what it was from that day forward and how much I enjoyed it.  I loved eating my Nany’s lemon meringue pie as much as her chocolate cake.  Once I got old enough to try my hand at making a meringue, I realize how challenging it can be.  I believe the key is to have the freshest eggs possible.  If you live near a farm, go buy them from the farmer.

Today I have a fabulous meringue with marinated strawberries.  It is a lovely, light nonfat dessert.  Like anything, it is best served fresh but if you must, you can make it a few days in advance but be sure to store the meringue in an airtight container in the fridge.  This recipe requires some time so plan accordingly.

Ingredients:

2 large egg whites
1/2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 c. + 1 tsp. sugar
2 c. hulled, quartered fresh strawberries
1/2 c. port
2 Tbs. fresh OJ
1/2 tsp. orange zest
4 springs fresh mint

Place the strawberries in a large shallow glass bowl.  In a small bowl, whisk together the port, orange juice, 1 tsp. sugar, and orange zest.   Pour over strawberries and toss to combine.  Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Preheat the over to 200.

Place the egg whites and lemon juice in a large bowl.   Beat with an electric mix on medium speed until soft peaks form.  Gradually add the remaining sugar and beat on high speed until the whites are shiny and stiff.

Fit a pastry bag with a fluted tip.  Fill the bag with the egg-white mixture.  Onto a nonstick backing sheet, carefully squeeze out four 3″-diameter circles by forming a spiral, working from the inside out, to form the meringue base.  Carefully pipe a line around the exterior edge of the circles to form a basket effect.

Bake the meringues for 3 hours or until they are very dry and a dark cream color.  Remove from the oven and cool on the baking sheet.

Place a meringue shell on each of 4 dessert plates.  Fill the center of each shell with the strawberries.  Garnish with mint.  Enjoy.

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