Vegan Meringue Recipe

photo credit: Brandon

Jerome and I are so excited to post this recipe today. Who would have thought that we would ever bring you a recipe for vegan meringue? It seems almost strangely impossible to make a vegan version of a mainly egg-white based recipe. However, our friend Brandon, the owner and head chef at Loveletter Cakeshop in New York, has created this simple recipe for you all to try! Why should we trust him? Because he creates the most amazing line of vegan cakes and is becoming extremely popular due to his creativity and delicious creations. His restaurant was actually the first in America to add aquafaba meringue to his standard menu. How amazing! I urge you to have a go of his recipe below and try it in your own vegan macarons, meringues, mousses etc... Enjoy!

From Brandon:

"In case you haven’t heard, there's a newly-discovered ingredient that’s taking the vegan world by storm. Better yet, it’s probably sitting in your pantry right now. And to top it off, you’ve probably thrown it out more times than you can count (but I promise you won’t ever again after this recipe).

Vegans of the world, I’d like to introduce you to Aquafaba. It’s a combination of the Latin words Aqua (water) and Faba (bean), and it’s made from the soaking water of a can of beans—most commonly, chickpeas. Not the chickpeas themselves, but the water you cook them in. We all owe a huge Thank You to the wonderful mind that thought of trying this in the first place, but when you whip up this magical ingredient, it behaves almost exactly the way egg whites behave. They foam like egg whites, they stiffen like egg whites when you add sugar, and it carries a pleasing, neutral flavor like egg whites, allowing you to use Aquafaba in a variety of different recipes calling for all kinds of different flavors.

There are generally two ways to prepare aquafaba: you can make your own by cooking dry chickpeas, or you can buy cans of chickpeas. Both methods work equally well, but I prefer the canned variety for its simplicity. (If you opt for buying your Aquafaba canned, make sure to get the no salt added varieties, or at least reduced salt.)

Vegans worldwide have made meringues, macarons, mousses, cakes, and ice cream using this humble chickpea water. At Loveletter Cakeshop, we use Aquafaba to make a luscious, fluffy, and stable Swiss meringue buttercream that will fool even the pickiest non-vegans. Seriously, you can’t tell the difference.

So, let’s get to it. This recipe is for a simple vegan meringue. You can adjust the sugar content depending on what you will use the meringue for, but these particular ratios are for a meringue intended for buttercream."

340 grams of Aquafaba (the liquid from approximately 2 cans of chickpeas)

160 grams of granulated sugar

1/2 tsp of cream of tartar (optional)

1. Sift your sugar and cream of tartar and set aside.
2. Boil your Aquafaba on medium-high until it has reduced to 95 grams, or slightly more than 1/4 of its original weight. (This will make a rather stiff meringue. Reduce less if you prefer it less stiff.)
3. While still boiling, add your sugar and cream of tartar to your Aquafaba and stir until completely dissolved. 
4. Once you’ve dissolved your dry ingredients, pour your mixture into a the bowl of a stand mixer (or any other mixing bowl) and using your whip attachment, whip for 4-6 minutes, or until stiff peaks have formed.
5. Enjoy the vegan meringuey goodness and impress your friends! 

• The cream of tartar is optional but recommended. This will help stiffen your meringue and help prevent it from falling apart. 
• Again, this makes a rather sweet meringue, intended for use in buttercream. Your sugar proportions will differ depending on how you intend to use your meringue. Experiment away!