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| Black Forest Cake with Fluffy Vanilla Buttercrem |
Did I just forget I had this blog? Sometimes I wonder and marvel at the other oh-so-prolific bloggers. The past few weeks have been indeed busy — writing and filming episodes of Miyoko’s Kitchen, teaching two week-long vegan intensive courses, working on my vegan cheese book. And then suddenly, it’s been six weeks since the last post.
The intensives were fun and intense. Guess the name says it all. Not only I, but all of the students were tired at the end of each day. The first week was vegan baking. My approach is classic, so we made a lot of European-style pastries – Black Forest Cake, Tiramisu, Gateau des Crepes. The desserts were also made without any palm oil, which has become a vegan favorite these days, but a fat I prefer to avoid not only because it is highly saturated but because the jury is still out about the environmental impact of palm plantations. Liquid oils, or sometimes even no oil, can yield fabulous results that do not fall short in flavor or appearance. One of the biggest hits was the Fluffy Vanilla Buttercreme, the base for most of our icings, which has no powdered sugar or palm margarine. The students also got a sneak peak into my vegan cheesebook (slated for publication in March 2012) when they learned to make recipes like vegan mascarpone and cream cheese, from which we made tiramisu and a rich, dense cheesecake. Here are a few more pictures to tempt you…
But I think the star of the week was my flaxseed meringue, which is an omega-3 packed mound of white fluff that can be folded into mousses and terrines and piled on top of pies, just like the stuff made from eggwhites. This is just plain fun and amazing, sort of like a science experiment. Basically, flaxseeds are simmered for 20 – 30 minutes, strained, and the resulting goop chilled. Afterwards, it whips up just like meringue. Here’s a photo:
Light, fluffy, airy, and wonderful for lightening up tofu-based puddings. The only shortfall is that it doesn’t hold up to heat, so you can’t bake it. But I’m working on it! And just because I can’t hold back, here’s the recipe:
Fascinating! How much sweetener can you add before the meringue loses its body? I’m surprised that this technique hasn’t made its way into mainstream vegan cuisine yet. It seems like a blank canvas for experimentation.
Jeanie, you can add enough sweetener to make it sweet enough, although a liquid sweetener should be used with a bit more discretion. However, unless you are going to serve it by itself as a topping, it’s better not to sweeten it but to fold it into something else (like a pudding) that is already sweet but needs lightening up.
I have made this a few times and I love it! Blogged about it today – you are my meringue hero!
Thank you, River!
I have so failed at this, if I cook for 20 minutes, the gel won’t strain….I can only strain the gel after 5-7 minutes of cooking and I get 1 cup of gel instead of the 1/2 cup per the instructions Will not whip as shown…please help!!
Will this work in almond macaroons?
Terry, it sounds like the heat is too high. Clearly, if you get 1 cup of gel, then it hasn’t reduced enough after 5 – 7 minutes, but too much after 20. Try something in between, or use lower heat. What type of sieve are you using? The strained liquid should be very goopy and thick. No, it won’t work in macaroons. Unfortunately, it is only good in cold applications, such as mousse or whipped toppings (you can whisk into whipped coconut whipped cream, cutting down on the fat and calories!). It has a neutral flavor profile.
I also have the same problem. I boiled to achieve the thick goo but then I had a terrible time trying to strain the seeds out. What kind of strainer did you use and what method?
Mindy, just like Terry, there is a happy medium between the 5-7 minutes she mentions and 20 minutes. I use a sieve, and I keep checking in other words, I pour it through the sieve and measure it a few times as it gets close to looking like a half cup.
This is fascinating, thank you for this recipe! Meringue has always been something I’ve missed. I was wondering if you had to use whole flaxseeds or if cold milled flaxseeds would work?
Whole flax seeds. Ground are too fine and would go through the sieve.
I assume you would have to use ground flaxseed? Or does it really blend up with whole, boiled flaxseeds?! I’m intrigued, and everyone is buzzing about this!
No, you use whole flaxseeds. The idea is to separate the goop from the seeds. Usually, what’s called flax seed goop is a mixture of ground seeds with water. Cooking them gets the mucilaginous material out of the seed without any of the actual seed so that you get a clear goop.
I think I understand now. You have to actually push the goo through a sieve to leave the hulls behind, right?
Yes, but you don’t need to push it through. It will drain on its own, but sometimes requires a little stirring to make it go down.
This is an exciting development!
Any idea as to how many egg whites this recipe is equal to?
Wow–this is such a cool idea. Now I just need a use-case so I can try it out at home!
I get a cup of gooey liquid… should I let it simmer longer? It’s more than 20 minutes already…
Yes. You want a half cup.
Hi Miyoko,
I tried the flax meringue twice, and it becomes white and airy but still liquid-y when I whip it. I am using a hand held immersion blender. Is that why? Or do i need to chill the mixture more?
Veggie Wedgie, you need to incorporate air into it, not puree it. In other words, you need a beater, not a blender. In other words, something like a Kitchen Aid electric mixer, or electric whisk-type of device (hand held will work, too). The immersion blender doesn’t whip. I’ve whipped it at room temperature, so it’s not the chilling.
Great! I will try it again with my mum’s electric whisk! thank you for the rapid response
Is it possible that this “meringue” would stabilize if something like cornstarch were added as it’s whipped? Enough that it might be possible to cook with it? Also, do you suppose a similar goop made from white chia seeds would whip?
For using cold the meringue could probably be stabilized by adding some vegan gelatin as it’s whipped.
Has anyone tried with the cornstarch or gelatin yet?
You wouldn’t want to use gelatin, as it’s not vegan, but I’ve added agar, which works. You can also whip with sugar and dry it out in the oven, no higher than 250 or 300, to make baked meringues. It falls at higher heat.
Is it possible to add any flavour? Chocolate or peanut butter even?
Yes, I add cocoa powder to make a no-oil icing or mousse, as well as flavoring with extracts such as lemon.
can you bake with this (eg. lemon meringue pie)? i made the flax meringue, and it was truly incredible!!! i then tried to bake with it, and it turned out a lot like souffle humor from the 70s
it rose like a balloon, and when i took it out of the oven, went completely flat. the only thing is, i ended up whipping it twice, cause i’d had it in the fridge all day (stupid, i know), so it was never as stiff as it was initially. any thoughts??
Did you add sugar? Whip it with sugar, and it will hold up. But use a low temperature, no higher than 250 – 300.