Butterscotch Meringues

A friend recently put me onto this perfect meringue recipe. It is super easy, and totally a hit with the little people in my house!

Butterscotch Meringues (Jo Seagar)

6 egg whites (room temperature)
2 cups caster sugar
1 teaspoon butterscotch or caramel essence (I used half vanilla and half caramel)
1 teaspoon malt vinegar
2 teaspoons cornflour

In a large metal, porcelain or glass (ie not plastic) bowl beat egg whites until soft peaks form. A hand-held electric beater is ideal for this job. Gradually, a teaspoon at a time, add the caster sugar. I emphasise, add the sugar slowly. The mixture should be getting glossy, thick and shiny with each addition and the whole sugar-adding process should take at least 10 minutes.

Beat in the essence, vinegar and cornflour. Spoon mixture out into little 'blobs' onto a baking paper-covered baking tray. Bake in a low 110-120 C oven (I actually did mine at about 90 - 100C) for approximately 45 minutes until dry and crisp. The meringues should just lift off the paper easily.

This also makes a fab pavlova recipe. Just make it into one large plate-size mound on the baking tray. Cooking time will be a little longer, but bake at the same temperature (110-120C) for about 1 1/2 hours.