| CATEGORY | CUISINE | TAG | YIELD | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eggs, Dairy | American | 1 | Servings | |
INGREDIENTS
| 2 | tb | Butter or margarine |
| 1/4 | c | All purpose flour |
| 1 | c | (4 ounces) almonds (I use unblanched) |
| 1 | tb | Cornstarch |
| 1 | c | Superfine or verifine sugar, divided (3/4 cup and 1/4 cup) |
| 6 | lg | Egg whites, room temperature |
| 1/4 | ts | Cream of tartar |
| 1/8 | ts | Salt |
| 1/8 | ts | Almond extract |
| 2 1/2 | ts | Pure vanilla extract, divided (1 teaspoon and 1/2 tablespoon) |
| 1/2 | c | Red currant jelly |
| 1/4 | c | Granulated sugar (depending upon sweetness of berries) (up to 1/2) |
| 2 | tb | Water |
| 1 | qt | (20 ounces) strawberries, hulled and halved |
| 1 1/2 | c | (3/4 pint) heavy cream, cold |
| 3 | tb | Powdered sugar (preferably 10X) |
INSTRUCTIONS
This is delicious and impressive, yet very easy and fail-safe to prepare. Although mocha buttercream is more traditional (and can obviously be substituted), this is the filling most popular with my family and friends. I hope that you will enjoy it as much as everyone else does. 1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Spread 1 tablespoon butter over each of 2 cookie sheets. Sprinkle each with 2 tablespoonsful flour. Using knife with an 8-inch round cake pan as a guide, trace two circles onto each cookie sheet. Set aside. 2. Spread almonds in ungreased 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Place on center shelf of oven and bake until golden (about 15 minutes). Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Stir in cornstarch and 1/4 cup of the superfine sugar. Set aside. Lower oven temperature to 250 degrees F. 3. Pour egg whites into small mixing bowl. Using electric mixer or wire whisk, beat until frothy. Add cream of tartar and salt. Continue beating until soft peaks form when beaters are lifted. 4. Add remaining 3/4 cup superfine sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Continue beating until mixture is stiff but not dry (about 5 minutes with mixer). Stir in almond extract and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla. Gently fold in almond mixture, 1/4 cup at a time. 5. Using a rubber spatula, spread meringue 1/8-inch thick onto the 4 circles you traced on the cookie sheets. Place cookie sheets on center shelf of oven and bake until firm, dry, and pale golden (about 1 hour). IMMEDIATELY loosen each meringue with a spatula and transfer it to a wire rack. Set aside. 6. Pour jelly, granulated sugar, and water into a small saucepan. Cook over low heat until melted. Cool slightly. Gently stir in berries. Set aside. 7. In small mixing bowl, beat together cream, powdered sugar, and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla until consistency of whipped cream. 8. Place one meringue on a cake plate. Spread with 1/4 of the whipped cream. Spread 1/4 of the berries over the cream. Repeat with remaining layers, ending with top meringue, spread with whipped cream, topped with circle of berries. (Serves 8 - 10) N. B. Superfine or verifine sugar is sold in most American supermarkets (at least here in the northeast). It comes in boxes very similar to those for powdered sugar. If you cannot find it (or prefer not to purchase it), you could either blend granulated sugar for a second or two in the blender (until it looks like very fine granulated sugar), or substitute granulated sugar. I, myself, prefer to use the superfine sugar, since it is easier to incorporate into the meringue. However, this is by now means essential. Posted to EAT-L Digest 01 Apr 97 by Teasel <teasel@JUNO.COM> on Apr 2, 1997
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