Meringue Mushrooms

It took me two attempts to get these little meringue mushrooms right, but I am glad that I persisted because they absolutely completed the presentation of my Buche de Noel cake.  You can serve these sweet treats on their own if you like (without the cake); they look so realistic and people haven’t always seen them before so it is a bit of a talking point!

I would recommend watching Chow’s You Tube clip to see how to actually pipe the meringue.  I found it very helpful!  Allow yourself at least 3 ½ - 4 hours to make the meringues (around 3 hours of this time is when they are in the oven).  The assembly takes around half an hour in addition to this.

What you need

3 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder

50gms chocolate (you can use whatever you like, but I used dark chocolate because I was using it for the bark decoration on my cake)

How to make them

Heat the oven to 100°C and arrange the racks to divide the oven into thirds. Line 2 baking sheets with baking paper or aluminum foil; set aside.

Place the egg whites and cream of tartar in a clean, dry and use an electric mixer to on medium speed to start to whisk the egg whites.  Make sure there is no egg yolk or shell in the whites (I recommend separating them in different bowls to the one you are using to mix them).

Increase the speed to high, gradually add 1/2 cup of the sugar about a tablespoon at a time, and continue to mix until stiff peaks form.

Using a rubber spatula, fold in the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Transfer the meringue to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip.  I recommend using a large tip.  You can buy disposable piping bags from the supermarket and they have 5 tips in the box.  

I used the largest tip from that box even though I have a lovely piping bag set!  I also recommend setting up your pastry bag in a tall glass to fill it so it is easier to fill (you are not actually holding it when you fill it).  Don’t over fill your bag and twist the top of it closed before you start the next step.

Start by piping the stems of the mushrooms by piping half of the meringue into pointed “kisses” about 1 inch high to make the stems on one of the prepared baking sheets. (Don’t worry if the tips bend over or sag.)

Then, to make the caps, pipe the remaining meringue into domes to make mushroom caps on the second baking sheet (make sure you have an equal number of stems and caps).  I would also suggest making a few additional stems in case some of them fall over!

Place the cocoa powder in a fine-mesh strainer (I used a tea strainer) and lightly dust it over the stems and caps. Fan or blow on the cocoa powder vigorously to blur it and give the mushrooms a realistic look.

Place both baking trays in the oven and bake until the meringues are crisp and completely dry, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through (after 1 hour).  Now many recipes suggest cooking the meringues for 1 or 2 hours, but I actually left mine in for 3 hours (this was the main reason I had to make these a second time).  

When the meringues are ready they will feel dry to touch (if they are soft of sticky to touch I would leave them in a bit longer).

Remove the meringues from the over and transfer the baking paper (with all the meringues on them) to wire racks and let them cool completely. If you’re not assembling the mushrooms immediately, store the cooled caps and stems in an airtight container to prevent them from becoming moist and sticky.  I did this a couple of days before I needed them and just assembled them when I was assembling my cake.

To assemble the mushrooms, place the chocolate in a small bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (just half fill the saucepan). Stir the chocolate until it is melted and smooth.  Turn off the heat.

Use a sharp knife to cut the pointy end of the mushroom stems off, making a flat surface to the angle you want to place your mushroom cap.

Using a knife, coat the flat side of a few mushroom caps with melted chocolate. Then fix the stem to the middle of the cap.  Place the mushroom cap down (so upside down) on a flat surface. Continue with the rest of the mushrooms. Set the assembled mushrooms aside until the chocolate has hardened, the caps and stems are firmly attached, and the mushrooms have completely cooled. Store the mushrooms at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 weeks.

The tricky part of this is getting the meringues cooked so just allow the time for this... (don’t start making these at 8pm like I did… particularly if you like to be in bed before midnight!) 

Also, be patient with the beating of the whites – it does take some time to form peaks in them!