How to Whip Egg Whites to Soft or Stiff Peaks

Soft of potent, getting the right peaks for your recipe is crucial for low-cal and blusterous desserts. Learn how to make soft and stiff peaks from our Test Kitchen experts.

When it comes to my favorite desserts—baked Alaska, berry pavlova and chiffon block—meringue tends to play an important function. This light, marshmallow-y confection is made with beaten egg whites and it's what gives and then many treats their signature style. Merely getting that airy sweet only right can be a chip tricky for less experienced bakers.

That'southward where our Exam Kitchen team comes in. These experts break down how to trounce egg whites into the perfect soft and stiff peaks for your meringues, macarons, angel nutrient cakes and much much more. To go the idea of how to whip upward these whites into soft (or stiff) peaks, we'll start with a basic recipe.

How to Become Soft and Strong Peaks

You'll demand:

• 6 egg whites, room temperature
• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar

Stride 1: Set yourself up for success

Before you even start beating the egg whites, it's important to take a few steps to make sure y'all get the best end product possible. Start, be sure that you're working with room temperature egg whites. This volition help you get the maximum volume from the eggs for a lighter, fluffier result. Also, be sure there are no yolks (not even a drop!) in your egg whites. This will likewise prevent you from getting the right volume. You can learn a few tips about separating eggs here.

Also be sure that you're working with a pristinely clean bowl, preferably metal or glass. Whatsoever speck or residual grease from your terminal batch of cookies could prevent your egg whites from beating upwardly to the right book. Avoid plastic, if possible, because information technology's more likely to to hold onto whatsoever oily remainder.

Footstep 2: Start beating to go soft peaks

With your egg whites in your mixing bowl, add in the foam of tartar. The foam of tartar is important here—it helps stabilize the eggs and then they hold their shape.

Beginning beating your whites with the whisk attachment on medium speed. At first your eggs volition announced translucent and frothy. That ways you're simply getting started. With a fiddling more than time, you should finish up at the soft pinnacle stage. You lot tin can tell you've developed soft peaks by turning over your whisk. At that place should exist a definite peak shape, just it's loose and melts back into the mix later a few seconds.

Footstep 3: Continue going for stiff peaks

If your recipe calls for stiff peaks, you lot can continue beating the egg whites. Stiff peaks are formed when yous lift up your beater and you lot get a overnice meridian and it holds its shape (rather than melting away like with soft peaks).

Step 4 (We hope you don't get to this i!): Over-mixed egg whites

You do not want to get to footstep four! Overworked egg whites won't be a good addition to whatever of your recipes. You tin tell your egg whites accept been mixed likewise long if they await grainy and you see liquid pooling at the bottom of the basin.

If you're in a real bind, yous tin can endeavour to recover over-mixed egg whites by adding in an additional egg room temperature egg white to assistance loosen up this mixture.

With this essential technique mastered, yous're ready to accept on archetype desserts like lemon meringue pie (or one of its tasty variations).

Go whipping!

Buttermilk Lemon Meringue Pie

For lemon lovers everywhere, this wonderful pie with a lilliputian tang beats lemon meringue every fourth dimension, no contest. Compliments roll in whenever I serve it. —Ellen Riley, Murfreesboro, Tennessee Go Recipe

Lemon Meringue Muffins

These muffins taste like a favorite pie of mine. The meringue adds a unique flavor.—Nancy Kearney, Massillon, Ohio

Meringue Shells with Lemon Curd

We love a dazzling dessert of meringue shells filled with sunny lemon curd. It'southward sweet and tart, crunchy and fluffy. Top this lemon curd dessert with whipped cream and berries. —Kris Brill, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Classic Lemon Meringue Pie

This is the one and just lemon meringue pie recipe you lot'll e'er need. The flaky and tender from-scratch crust is worth the try. —Lee Bremson, Kansas Urban center, Missouri

Lemon Meringue Angel Block

I've been told that this dessert tastes exactly like a lemon meringue pie and that it's the best angel food block anyone could ask for. I'g non sure about all of that, but it is delightful to serve, and each piece is virtually fat free. —Sharon Kurtz, Emmaus, Pennsylvania

Lemon Meringue Floats

I actually dreamed of this float idea one dark, and woke upwards knowing I needed to make it. Thank you, Mr. Sandman! —Cindy Reams, Philipsburg, Pennsylvania

Florida Citrus Meringue Pie

Why limit a fantastic dessert to just one kind of citrus fruit? Thanks to orange and lemon, this lovely pie packs a bold sweet-tart flavor! —Barbara Carlucci, Orange Park, Florida

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Source: https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/soft-peaks-stiff-peaks/

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