Gros Bisous
“C’est très chic!” exclaims Parisienne Maud Rabin mid flow in Hôtel Meurice Paris. We are of course discussing Aux Merveilleux de Fred. That bakery. It’s the ultimate Franco British style signifier: you know when Frédéric comes to your postcode you haven’t just made it, you’ve arrived, you’re at home. So if whippin’ up a frenzy is your thing, stay tuned. We’re about to give away a half a century or so old secret recipe. Cancel the lawyers Fréd, we’re off to speak to the 21st century Mrs Beeton of Ireland. She’s more than ready to spill the beans or at least count the ounces of castor sugar. It’s the alternative Irish recipe for meringues.
It’s all yours Mrs B: “When you put all your egg whites in a deep bowl you have to whisk those up until they are literally standing in stiff and dry peaks. It’s worth doubling the recipe – three egg whites – to make enough meringues, especially when the oven has to be so low. You fold the three ounces of granulated sugar into the stiff eggs that you’ve just whisked up. Keep whisking them until they are as firm as before. You’re then left with the three ounces of castor sugar. Fold in the castor sugar but just give it one whisk – don’t whisk away up like before. Use two spoons to ladle out into separate meringues on a paper lined baking tray.” Like a good photograph the rule of thirds applies to meringue making. As Frédéric would no doubt murmur, “C’est incroyable!” Or as Maud puts it, “In Paris we always say c’est la vie! It means ‘this is destiny’. We always say it in a positive way.”
