Try Topping A Cake With Meringue To Amp Up Its Texture

Not only can a crowning of meringue elevate your next cake presentation, but the delightful crunchy topping can turn up the dials of texture on your culinary masterpiece. Instead of reserving meringue strictly for pie recipes, invite the snowy-looking aesthetic to your favorite desserts. Airy, whipped egg whites can deliver drama to cake slices, and you may feel like you're enjoying a piece of heaven after tucking into a meringue-topped piece. Plus, baking meringue-topped cakes eliminates the waiting around for cakes to cool before decorating, so you can save time in the kitchen later on.

Prepare a Swiss meringue for your first attempt. This meringue offers a bit more structured stability to experiment with, and you won't fall victim to wrinkled, deflated-looking peaks upon retrieving your cake from the oven. Dust baked cakes with cinnamon or cocoa powder or serve as is. With a light crunch, the crispiness of the meringue will give way to a chewy center, and when paired with the moist texture of a freshly baked cake, this makes for a dessert that will be difficult to back away from. 

Whether you spread meringue across the entire exterior of your cake or pipe pretty uniform dollops across one side of the cake's surface, it is an ideal ingredient to decorate desserts with. Thick, fluffy meringue can be manipulated before baking, so if you'd prefer a cleaner look or want to amplify the fluffiness of the meringue, you can go wild using kitchen tools. Offset spatulas can be used to sculpt the meringue in the type of patterns you see fit.

Once you've tried topping cake with meringue, options are endless when it comes to cake decor. Flavor meringue with different extracts or add color to top your creations with different hues. If you're worried about the potential of charred tips of meringue ruining the appearance of your cake, opt to top your cakes with the kinds of meringues that don't need to be baked. Italian and Swiss meringue recipes are heated by syrup or with a double-boiling method, so you can adorn your baked creations with a thick slather for a fresh take on dessert.