MARVELLOUS MERINGUES 3

Impressive, versatile and low cost, meringues are a must-try. It’s essential to use fresh eggs as they’ll give better volume. French meringues are the simplest to make – my top tip is to ensure the whites are foamy before slowly adding the sugar. Turn into pavlovas or meringue kisses. Italian meringue, made with hot sugar syrup, is a great option as it’s stable and less fragile than French. Use it for buttercreams or as a fruit pie topping.

LEFTOVER WHITES? 4

Aside from meringues, there are many uses for egg whites. If you often have leftover whites, let your bar team know. Egg whites are fantastic in cocktails such as whisky or pisco sours, adding a smoothness and touch of luxury. Combine honey or sugar, nuts and egg whites to make chewy nougat, and stir chunks into cookie dough or ice cream.

Uses For Yolks 5

Yolks’ richness is a key component in many sauces such as hollandaise, béarnaise, custard and mayonnaise. Custard is brilliant for putting your stamp on – flavour with cream liqueurs, citrus or coffee. It can be served as a sauce, set in desserts like crème brûlée or churned into ice cream. One interesting use is in mashed potato – yolks enrich the potato, creating an indulgent side.

MATT’S TOP TIPS

FRESH OR FROZEN?

• Eggs are porous so will pick up strong odours in contained environments such as fridges.

• Room temperature eggs are essential for baking.

• Egg whites freeze well, make sure you label how many are in the container.