Fruit Punch Meringues

 DISCLAIMER: This is actually my idea, no one elses, but my camera's broken (waaah!) and I still wanted to have a picture for the post. This beautiful photo is from the lovely Gina who shares over at Bon Appetit. She made some Peppermint Meringues,with step by step photos too1 ! Go check out her post! I edited her photos and made them more red and added words, but they're still hers. Go look at her amazing photos!

You know how there's all those food holidays, riiiiight?

Well, if you don't, here's a quick rundown.

Some genius/weirdo (all depends on how you look at it) decided that they loved food and there needed to be a food holiday every single day.

So now there is.

Here's what there is this week . . .

Sunday= Lobster Newburg Day (don't know what that is, and probably don't ever want to)
Monday= National Waffle Day (yum!)
Tuesday=National Nougat Day (let's eat snickers and milky ways)
Wednesday=Spanish Paella Day (no idea what it is)
Thursday=Black Forest Cake Day (definitely celebrating!)
Friday=National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day
Saturday=Turkey Neck Soup Day (who eats turkey necks? gross!)

I still like to look at what day it is on the American Food Holidays Calendar.

I used to always go tell my friends what day it is, taco day, pie day, soft ice cream day.

And in the summers when I had basically nothing to do, I'd actually try to honor the days by making whatever dish it is.

This lasted for about a week when I discovered that no one wants to make 3 layer cakes and tortes everyday.

I'm okay with making pudding mousse and magic bars, but tortes? Not my thing.

I would look at holidays every day. And try to do them.

National Watermelon Day (August 3) went over fine.

National Chocolate Chip Day (Aug. 4) was a breeze as well.

Then came Mustard Day. I hatched up some plans to dip pretzels in honey mustard, of making hot dogs, but all I really did was eat hot dogs with ketchup.

Root Beer Float Day (Aug.6) came and went with no root beer floats in sight. Same with raspberries and cream day on the seventh. I own no cream.

National Frozen Custard Day. August 8th. After failing with root beer floats, mustard and raspberries and cream, I was determined to make this work. I actually made custard! But I was way too impatient to freeze it so I just ate custard.

On Rice Pudding Day (August 9th) I begged my mom to make her rice pudding recipe, same one as my aunt's. But that was a no go. S'mores day was passed over as well.

Then on Raspberry Bombe Day, I made a gallant effort to make a torte.
However, my bombe, was not a bombe. I got a graham cracker pie crust. I poured in cherry jello (there was no raspberry). I added crushed animal crackers in an attempt to make another crust. Knowing that there was no real raspberries in my "torte" I went out into our garden and tried to find raspberries off our bush. I was unsuccessful in finding red juicy ones, but some little hard unripe berries went into the torte. I then added strawberry yogurt. Then topped it all with cool whip in an effort to disguise the mess I'd made.

It was not good.

At all.

So, yeah, don't go making tortes out of jello and animal crackers. (although real bombe kind of is like jello)

Creamsicle day went by with no results.

Then finally, Lemon Meringue Pie Day on the 15th. I decided that I was going to make it. And it would work. Me and my mom made it. I don't suggest doing it just because . . .

OMGosh people, there are so many steps! Not to mention the meringue part.

First, you have to make the homemade pie crust which is basically impossible. Then you have to make the lemon filling. With no lemons in the house, so you use ReaLemon

Then after that, you have to make the meringue. Seperate the egg whites. Whip for eternity. Have stiff peaks. Pour onto lemon. Bake for ever. Cool off in fridge overnight.

And then you eat and discover citrus isn't really your thing.

But one good thing came out of this.

I learned that meringues rock. They're so good, it's like eating air. Except way better.
It's like eating marshmallow air. I'd go through and eat all the meringue leaving lemon and crust left for my siblings.

So yeah, I love meringues.

I decided to make some of the fruit punch variety.

Fruit Punch Meringues
Meringues flavored with Duncan Hines Fruit Punch Frosting Starter
Ingredients: 

• 2 egg whites
• Pinch of Cream of Tartar
• 1/2 cup superfine sugar
• Duncan Hines Fruit Punch Flavor Packet

Directions: Preheat oven to 170° Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Fit a large piping bag with a star tip. Place the egg whites in a "spotlessly" clean mixing bowl and whip them with an electric mixer on medium speed until frothy. Stop the mixer and add cream of tartar. Start mixer again and continue to beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Increase speed to high and gradually add in sugar *this is where I added the flavor packet as well Beat egg whites until they are shiny and hold stiff peaks but are not dry or crumbly, about 7 minutes. Make sure the sugar is dissolved by rubbing a tiny bit of meringue between fingers. If you feel granules of sugar continue to beat until all sugar has dissolved. Spoon the meringue into the piping bag and pipe onto prepared baking sheets. Bake the meringues for 90 minutes turning them halfway through baking. When meringues are done, turn off oven and let them stand for several hours or overnight. The meringues should be hard and dry to touch and you should be able to easily lift them from parchment.


So, I think the reason the meringues in the lemon meringue pie was hard, was just because it was combined with so many other factors.

But meringues alone, that I can handle.

These are reeeeaally good. Like go into your kitchen and make them now good. They're fluffy and airy, bite size and taste like fruit punch.

These photos come from Bon Appetit.