Hi everyone and welcome back to my channel
Today we’re making Christmas tree mirages.
These have a few different uses, A dessert, a last minute edible gift, or table decorations
that you can also eat.
They’re very easy to make so if you would like to learn how to make these then let’s
get started.
To make these little Christmas trees we’re using a classic meringue recipe.
If you have a favourite meringue recipe you’ve used before you could definitely just use
that, but here is the one that I like to use.
This recipe makes about 12 medium sized Christmas trees so double, triple, or even halve the
recipe depending on how many you would like to make.
The first thing we need to do is separate 4 good quality free range eggs, keeping the
whites and reserving the yolks to use for something else.
They’ll last for a few days in the fridge so add them to an omelette, or scrambled eggs,
or make this creme brûlée recipe.
For making meringues it’s best to use old eggs, not fresh, as the proteins are loser
and more easily whipped.
Make sure your eggs are also at room temperature, as they should be with most baking recipes.
Place the whites into a large mixing bowl and set aside.
When making meringues it’s best to have all of your ingredients set out and ready
so when it comes time for beating the egg whites, all the other ingredients can be easily
added.
This recipe requires two different type of sugar, caster sugar which is a fine sugar,
and icing sugar, otherwise known as powdered sugar.
These sugars tend to be more easily dissolved than regular sugar as the grains are much
smaller.
Add both of the sugars into a clean bowl and use a whisk to evenly combine.
Either using a hand mixer or a stand mixer start to beat the egg whites until they form
stiff peaks.
It’s pretty hard to do this by hand, you’ll be whisking for hours so try and get your
hands on an electric mixer.
Once the egg whites have gained volume and formed stiff peaks the sugar can be added
slowly.
Use a spoon and add a small amount at a time, beating until the sugar has disappeared, then
adding more.
The meringue should turn from foamy to smooth and glossy with the more sugar that is added.
It’s up to you what you add next, depending on the colour and flavour you would like you
Christmas tree meringues to be.
I’m adding green food colouring to turn the trees green, peppermint essence for some
flavour and also a small amount of vinegar to stabilise the meringue.
Mix your liquid ingredients together in a small bowl before adding to the meringue.
Pour into the mixing bowl and beat until everything is evenly combined.
To make the Christmas tree shapes we need to use a piping bag as well as a star piping
tip.
I am using a disposable piping bag and a Wilton 2D tip which I will have both linked in the
information box if you are interested.
Spoon the meringue into the piping bag until two thirds full and start to pipe Christmas
tree shapes onto a baking sheet with non-stick paper.
Try to make all of the trees even sizes so they will cook evenly.
Follow up with any type of decorations you would like to add to your tree, I’m using
these silver balls that look like bulbuls.
Place into a warm oven and bake for 2 and a half hours.
Once finished baking, turn the oven off and let the Christmas trees cool for another hour.
The meringues can be served like this or you can add a few more finishing touches, like
a tree topper, and some snow.
I’ve melted some dark chocolate and piped a few stars for the tops of the trees.
To attach them I’m piping a small amount of melted chocolate to the top of the tree
and using it as a glue to stick on the chocolate star.
And finally dusting some icing sugar to create a snowy look over the trees.
I hope you enjoyed this video, let me know if you make them and how they turned out.
These are great little edible gifts or even table decorations.
For more edible Christmas gift take a look at this peppermint bark recipe.
Thank you for watching and have a great Christmas.
I will see you in my next video, Bye!