Wednesday 10 June 2015

Vegan meringues - made with aquafaba (chickpea brine)

Now that every vegan in the world seems to have tried aquafaba meringues, it no longer seems very novel and yet I had to try it.  For the uninitiated aquafaba is the brine that chickpeas or other beans are cooked in.  The residual protein and starches seem to imitate the properties of egg white.  If you want to see what experiments are in progress, just check out the Vegan Meringues - Hits and Misses Facebook Group.

When I first read about these meringues, my jaw dropped to the floor in amazement.  Yet it took me a while to try it.  In fact it was after having the brine of two consecutive tins of chickpeas sitting in the fridge until it went manky that I decided I just had to try it and stop filling the fridge with old chickpea brine.  Also I remember making maple syrup meringues in summer and how sticky they became in the humidity so it seemed wise to try these in winter.


And by jove, I was dumbfounded at the miracle of how much the aquafaba acted like egg white.  I take my hat off to the genius who created this.  My mum makes pavolvas a lot so the taste of the beaten egg and sugar is a taste I remember fondly from my childhood.  I am not a huge fan of meringues but E and Sylvia love them.  I took some meringues to my parents' house and they were similarly amazed at the meringues. 

The meringues were crisp all the way through.  While cooling on the tray I could hear a little crackle and they were ever so slightly cracked.  Perhaps they needed to cool slower in the oven?  On the first day I made them they tasted a bit beany but the next day the bean taste was undetectable.  By day 6 they had become chewy in the middle but were still edible. 

Now that I have had success with aquafaba, I am keen to try it in other recipes.  Sylvia just loves pavlova so I guess I should try a pavlova though I had heard from others that this is harder with aquafaba than meringues.  I also would like to try it with maple syrup after making maple syrup meringues in summer.  So much experimenting to do.  Thank goodness we love chickpeas!

More aquafaba recipes online:
Chocolate chip cookies - Vedged Out
Chocolate mousse - Mouthwatering Vegan Recipes
Eton mess - Not Quite Nigella
Eggless pasta - Vegan Dad
Faye's mousse your own adventure cake - Veganopoulous
Lemon coconut banana cake - Veganopoulous
Rhubarb ice cream - Seitan is My Motor
S'mores cupcakes - Agent Minty
Yeasted pumpkin seed fruit loaf - Bunny Kitchen

Aquafaba Meringues
From Banana Bloom
Made about 75 meringues

1/2 cup aquafaba (chickpea brine)
3/4 cup castor sugar

Beat aquafaba until frothy.  Continue beating and gradually add the sugar.  Beat sugar and aquafaba about 5 minutes until mixture is smooth and glossy and you can made stiff peaks with it (also it should stay in the bowl if you are brave enough to hold it upside down).

Spoon or pipe onto a lined baking tray and bake at 100 C (or as low as your oven will go - I did 120 C because my oven is very slow) for about 1 hour or until meringues are crisp.

Cool on the tray.  Keeps about 5 to 6 days in an airtight container.

On the Stereo:
Discography: the complete singles collection: Pet Shop Boys

26 comments:

  1. nicely done!!! Thanks for the links to my blog too. I haven't tried the meringues yet, as I'm not really a big fan but I wouldn't hesitate to try someone else's!

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    1. Thanks Faye - meringues are something I feel I should make for others in my house so it made it easier to do this experiment!

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  2. Ah I have been reading about aquafaba meringues too and have planned to make them this weekend, so I am pleased to see and read your positive results. Yes when I first head, my jaw dropped too, so its real exciting esp if your vegan, this is a real gift. Giving them a go this weekend with my KitchenAid that has hardly been used.

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    1. Thanks Shaheen - sounds like a great recipe for the stand mixer because it does take a bit of beating - hope your work well - it is such a new idea!

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  3. I am yet to have any success with aquafaba despite many attempts. Mine don't seem to have any hold to them no matter how long I whisk it for :-/ So frustrating.

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    1. Thanks Sandy - sorry to hear your experiments are not going well - do you have electric beaters - I tried to lightly beat some chickpea brine the other day with a hand whisk and it didn't work at all.

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  4. Your meringues look so fluffy - perfect! I have some chickpea brine in the fridge to make chocolate mousse with later today :D

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    1. Thanks Kari - chocolate mousse is on my list of aquafaba recipes to try - I have never liked the idea of raw egg in mousse

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  5. Glad that you gave this a go Johanna! Thanks for the shout out too. I'm amazed at how this originally came about though! Who thought to whip it?

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    1. Thanks Lorraine - it is one of those discoveries that just seems so unlikely - sometimes I wonder if someone just had the wrong stuff in the bowl and it worked unexpectedly

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  6. Lovely! This is on my to-try list, too. :)

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  7. So cool! I have never heard of this aquafaba, but I'll have to look into it!

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    1. Thanks Joanne - the facebook page with all the recipe is amazing

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  8. I first heard of this on Lorraine's blog. You do wonder who came up with this idea. It just seems so bizarre. I'm glad it works well and is a good substitute for those who love their meringues but can't eat eggs xx

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    1. Thanks charlie - it is a wonderful discovery for those who don't eat eggs - and i am excited about it as I have never liked eggs and lately have felt less keen about cooking with them.

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  9. I read about this technique on Lorraine's site and I was a doubter - but having read about your successes too, I will have to try it the next time i open a can of chickpeas (the brine is normally tossed at my house).

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    1. Thanks Cakelaw - you should try it - might be a great standby if you are out of eggs but have a tin of chickpeas in the cupboard

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  10. I *still* haven't tried making/using aquafaba yet. It's on my to-try list... I just haven't got around to it yet.
    These meringues are only 2 ingredients??? Wow. And they look absolutely gorgeous! I would LOVE for you to share these at Healthy Vegan Fridays =D

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    1. Thanks Kimmy - good luck with getting around to it - I am not so into the meringues but it seemed a good starting point but the endless possibilities are exciting - I am lagging a bit with blog events - last week was pretty low on time but will try and get some stuff to HVF soon.

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  11. Brilliant! I have a friend with a daughter who can't eat egg, so I will pass this on to her! They have turned out perfectly! Well done x

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    1. Thanks Kate - am sure your friend will love this idea

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  12. I've still not tried these yet because I haven't got an electric whisker. Do I need one, or is beating by hand an option? Does it have to be foamy like egg meringue?

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  13. Hi Johanna, I too recently discovered this maaagic ingredient and like you, my jaw dropped in amazement. Indeed, who thought to whip it and see what happens? I overbaked my round blobs, but no worry they turned into eton mess quite happily. I am eager to try these again, and now I have stumbled onto your blog post, you've given me a wealth of inspiration and links to explore. Go the aquafaba!

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