Meringue Mushrooms (For Mocha Yule Log Cake)

Meringue Mushrooms

Yield: about 12-15 Mushrooms

Ingredients 

For the Meringue

3 large egg whites, at room temperature **see note at end of ingredient list

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Superfine sugar. (To make superfine sugar, place an equal amount of regular sugar in the blender and process for 30 seconds). **see note at end of ingredient list

Cocoa

Chocolate Sauce

Ingredients for the Chocolate Sauce

1/3 cup (75 g) brown sugar

1/3 cup (about 75 ml) water

1 cup (250 ml) milk

340g (12 oz) dark and milk chocolate, broken up

1 tsp (7 ml) vanilla extract 

** Meringue can be tricky, you need exactly double the amount of sugar to the amount of egg white you have, so if you have a kitchen scale, pull it out to measure your egg whites and your sugar.

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 200 F (90 C, 1/4 gas mark); place two oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of your oven.

2. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

3. Have your piping bag ready.

4. Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar on medium low until soft peaks form.

5. Gradually add the sugar as you beat the egg whites on high until stiff peaks form.

6. Transfer the mix to your piping bag. Pipe the caps of the mushroom in a circular round motion. Pipe the stems in a wide cone-shaped motion. Use a wet fingertip to smooth the tops. 

7. Bake the meringues for 2.5 hours or until they are firm enough that they don't stick to the parchment paper. Halfway through baking, switch and turn the pans from each rack.

8. Once baked, leave the meringues in the oven. Turn the oven off, open the door slightly and let them dry out a good few hours or overnight.

9. To make the chocolate sauce: In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the sugar and water to a simmer, mixing well to dissolve the sugar.

10. Add the milk and bring the liquid back to a simmer.

11. Add the chocolate and stir constantly until it's completely melted. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. 

12. To attach the mushroom stems to the caps, spread the bottom of each mushroom cap with a little chocolate sauce. Then gently press the top of a stem into the center of the mushroom cap. Once the chocolate hardens, lightly dust the tops of the mushrooms with cocoa to give it a dirty, earthy look. 

Note: These Meringue Mushrooms are good for about 2 weeks if you store them in a cool place in an air-tight container. You don't want any moisture to get to them. They freeze well for about a month as well.

⬆️⬆️ For Video Instructions, please check out my video How To Make Meringue Mushrooms

⬆️⬆️ You might also enjoy my video How To Make A Mocha Yule Log Cake