Merengón

Ingredients

Meringue

• 6egg whites, at room temperature
• 350 gcaster sugar
• 1 teaspoonwhite vinegar
• 1 teaspooncornflour
• 1/2 teaspoonvanilla
• a pinch of salt

Cream

• 500 mldouble cream, cold
• 3 tablespoonsicing sugar
• 1 teaspoonvanilla

Fruit

• 400 gguanabana pulp, soursop
• or 500 g strawberries, hulled and sliced
• or 3 ripe mangoes, diced
• 2 tablespoonssugar, if the fruit is tart
• a squeeze of lime

Directions

1. Whisk the whites with the pinch of salt. Start slowly and build up the speed. Whisk until they hold soft peaks. Add it one spoonful at a time. Whisk well between each addition. Adding sugar too fast collapses the foam.
2. Rub a little between your fingers. It should feel completely smooth. Keep whisking it until it does. Fold gently with a spatula rather than whisking. Heat the oven to only 120C for it.
3. Line two baking sheets with paper. Draw two circles of about twenty centimetres. Turn the paper over so the pencil is underneath.
4. Spoon half the meringue onto each circle. Spread it out to the edges of the circle. Make a slight hollow in the centre of each. Bake them for about two hours. Do not open the oven door during that time.
5. Turn the oven off at the very end. Leave the meringues inside with the door shut. Let them cool completely in the oven. Several hours or overnight is best. Toss them with a little sugar and lime.
6. Let them sit for fifteen minutes to release juice. Mango should be diced and used as it is. Whip the cold cream with the icing sugar. Add the vanilla extract as well. Stop at soft peaks, not stiff ones. Set one meringue disc on a serving plate. Spread half the cream over it. Spoon half the fruit over the cream.
7. Set the second disc on top of it. Spread the rest of the cream over that. Pile the remaining fruit over everything. Do not press down or the meringue will shatter. Cut it with a long serrated knife. Unfilled meringue discs keep a week in a tin.

Technique

• Guanabana, or soursop, is the traditional fruit for merengon and is sold as frozen pulp in Latin American shops.
• Strawberry and mango versions are equally common and are what most roadside stalls sell.

Substitutions

• Any soft fruit works, and passionfruit or blackberry both suit the dessert.
• Whipped cream can be stabilised with a little mascarpone if it must stand for a while.

Variations

• A single-layer version is closer to a pavlova.
• Some bakeries build it in a tall tin as a layered cake.
• A version with arequipe drizzled between the layers is sold in some places.

Frequently asked questions

What is Merengón?

Merengón is a dessert from Colombia: baked meringue layered with cream and guanabana, strawberry or mango.

How long does Merengón take to make?

Merengón takes 30 minutes of preparation and 2 hours of cooking. The recipe makes serves 8. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Merengón?

Yes, within limits. Any soft fruit works, and passionfruit or blackberry both suit the dessert. Whipped cream can be stabilised with a little mascarpone if it must stand for a while.

What is the most important thing to get right in Merengón?

Rub a little between your fingers. It should feel completely smooth. Keep whisking it until it does. Fold gently with a spatula rather than whisking. Heat the oven to only 120C for it.