HAZELNUT COFFEE MERINGUE

Have you ever wonder how to get rid of those 'egg whites' in the freezer after certain recipes you did only requires egg yolks? Hehe.....a useful advice would be to make 'meringue' out of it ^-^ this would be the perfect choice as meringue requires nothing but egg whites. I happened to have 2 egg whites left in the freezer after making a tub of Vanilla Ice-Cream the other day (my first ice-cream attempt, that is). I was thinking to myself I gotta make something with these egg whites before it ended up in the bin soon...... and since Ian has been asking me to make meringue for him for about a week already ........and I kept postponing him due to the fact that I don't want to waste the vice versa (egg yolks).........and I promised him that I'll make some for him as soon as I got leftover egg whites from other baking (having to explain to him that wasting is not a good thing and we should utilise everything if we can ^-^) 
The most recent collection of meringue recipe I got was "Hazelnut Coffee Meringue" which I adapted from DailyDelicious . She has never failed me so far.........and I just love her blogs. A promise is a promise, especially to a child, I never break a promise on my kid as I hate to lose that trust they have in me...........I guess all parents practice that too, right? What is a meringue, for some of you who a e not familiar........it is an airy and light cookies and normally people would use a piping bag to pipe out the meringue into a shape of a 'kisses' or you can always drop a dollop of it by using a tablespoon. Oh yes....for coffee lovers, this is another great recipe for you, you'll definitely like it just as much as Angel, Ian and myself love it , LOL.......Happy Meringue Baking ^^

Hazelnut Coffee Meringue
Ingredients 
2 tsp ...............................Instant coffee granules (I used my Nescafe Gold) 
1 tsp ................................Hot water
3 tsp ................................Coffee flavored liqueur (I used Kahlua) 
114 gm ............................Caster sugar
35 gm ..............................Hazelnut, toasted
60 gm ..............................Egg whites (about 2 egg whites)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F . Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick liner.
   
2. Spread the hazelnut on an unlined baking sheet. Place in the oven and toast until golden brown, 7 to 10 minutes. Let cool completely.
   
3. Mix the instant coffee, water and the coffee-flavored liqueur together, set aside.
   
4. Pour water to a depth of about 2 inches into a saucepan, place over medium heat, and bring to a simmer.
   
5. Combine the egg whites and sugar, in a stainless-steel bowl of a stand mixer that will rest securely in the rim of the saucepan, not touching the water. Whisk together the egg whites and sugar, and then place over the saucepan and continue to whisk until the whites are hot to the touch (120°F using a thermometer), about 5 minutes or so.
   
6. Remove the bowl from over the water and place on the mixer stand. Fit the mixer with the whisk attachment and mix high speed until the mixture is very thick and holds glossy, stiff peaks when you lift the beater. Fold in the coffee mixture with a spatula.
   
7. Immediately scoop the meringue into a pastry bag fitted with a ½ inch star tip and pipe onto the prepared baking sheet, forming "kisses" about 1½  inches in diameter and spacing them about 1½  inches apart. Or, you can drop the meringue by tablespoonfuls onto the baking sheet. Place the roasted hazelnut on top of each cookie.
   
8. Place the baking sheet in the oven and keep the oven door ajar with the handle of a wooden spoon to allow moisture to escape. Bake the cookies until they puff slightly, crack along the sides, and feel dry on the outside but soft to the touch, roughly about 40 – 50 minutes (as individual oven's temperature does varies). Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool. They will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks (that is if there are still some left.......haha)

Tip # 1 :  Egg whites will break down in the presence of egg yolk or anything oily, so please make sure that you clean or rinse the bowl and beater with hot water and air-dry thoroughly before starting.

  Happy Meringue Baking !