A little less humidity please...

So I tried making meringues last week, twice! There are different kinds of meringues, some you find are crunchy, and kinda look like little cookies, and some you find are the cloudy soft white foam that's piled high on top of lemon meringue pies. The ones I made were the former, little crunchy cookies that almost melts in your mouth.

Meringues are hard to make as it really all depends on the weather and the humidity. They say you should make meringues on a dry day, not a wet day and definitely not a humid day and boy do they make a BIG difference! I wonder how hard and frustrating it would be to make meringues in Malaysia or Thailand when it's super humid all year round.

The first batch I made were almond flavored, sprinkled with crushed almonds and baked on a not super humid night. The flavor was spot on delicious but the texture - a little on the chewier side - kinda turned out like a soft nougat. Nonetheless, we gobbled them up because we love almonds and we happen to like chewy stuff.

The second time I made them, which was the very next day ended up hugely different! It was a hotter more drier daytime day. They came out airy, crunchy and they were coffee flavored. Vietnamese coffee flavored actually. I didnt have a pastry bag either times but the first time, they turned out flatter and more round and the second time, they sticked to their more peak-like shape. I guess it was because the first time round the egg whites werent stiff enough and the humidity just made the whites fall and become more dense. Both ways tasted yummy and delicious, but I have yet to make the perfect meringue with almond flavoring.

The temperature of the oven when baking also makes a difference. Some recipes say 200 F, and some say 300 F. When using 200 F, it takes about 2 hours for all the moisture to be released and again if the air is humid leave it in the oven for longer. but watch it so it doesnt burn! When baking at 300 F, it takes about half an hour. And then in both cases leave in turned off oven to dry with the door propped slightly open with a kitchen glove or a wooden spoon. This takes about another hour or so, making meringues can be very time consuming!

I think it's time to buy a pastry bag. I'm always finding new things to buy for my baking whether it'd be pastry bags or cake pans or loaf pans. And I'm always looking for new ways to package my goodies as gifts - boxes, cellophane bags, ribbons, metal tins etc. I think this hobby is getting to be quite pricey but still cheaper than say.. mountain biking..