Forget-It Meringue Torte Recipe (2024)

Silly me! Not everyone has 9-11 egg whites in the fridge, unless you've been making Spanish custards all week... So I bought a carton of egg whites at the market. Well, those don't beat into stiff glossy peaks--in fact, they don't beat into much of anything! So, don't bother trying that shortcut.

I have been making this delicious, light meringue torte for many years, since the recipe first appeared in the Times. It is a great Passover dessert, as well as a fabulous dinner party end of meal "statement." Everyone raves about it. OK to vary the berries and the liqueur.

This is an amazing "cake". It's fun to make (like a science experiment) and is usually something no one has ever tasted. The combination of whipped cream with crunchy meringue is unusual and decadent. I always serve it with a home made fudge sauce for even more wow factor.

A traditional Pavlova from long ago cookbooks, (Betty Crocker 1950's) doesn't not require the Angel Food cake pan. I made these when I was a kid and simply used a clean piece of brown paper (i.e. the inside of a used grocery bag, worked well). Lots of info. on web for Pavlova, even Wikipedia. I found that the mini variety (just making small meringue cups often worked better than the larger variety if you wanted to ensure a crispy result. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pavlova_(food)

I halved the recipe and cut the sugar back to 1c, used a springform pan. Light, delicious dessert.

My mom, Molly, used to leave it out... of course many of us nibbled on it so in the morning it never quite looked the same... sometimes she would put fresh whip cream all over it just to hide the areas we had picked at and enjoyed! (That was one of the problem of having six kids)

I did not actually make this but my sister did and it was amazing! I don't eat desserts (a low-carb eater from way back) but had 2 slices of this amazing cake yesterday! I can't wait to make it for myself now!

Something went wrong for you. Most likely, you did not beat the egg whites enough. They have to become VERY stiff. The outcome should be similar to a meringue cookie that is light, but crunchy and airy. The fact that you had liquid in your oven tells me that you may also have added the sugar too quickly and didn't beat the mixture enough to dissolve the sugar, too.

We’ve been making this from a paper recipe saved from NYT years ago, handed down from MIL. Everyone loves it. Everyone. My husband usually prepares this recipe for the fam as is. Delish but a little too sweet for me. I would cut down on the sugar and also make smaller meringues rather than the Big Cake. That’s what we did growing up. Also, you can skip the whip cream if you don’t want the dairy/fat. Still a great dessert. Any soft fruit liquor (optional) will do for the sauce.

It was a little too sweet for me, i will reduce sugar next time. It was a simple and great recipe for egg whites, no fuss.

Julia Child's tip: Eggwhites freeze perfectly. I have a zip-lock bag or two in the freezer and add whites to those frozen, marking the amounts as they change.

Give this plenty of room to rise!

Not sure what went wrong (eggs or oven?) but I had the same troubles some other folks did. Weeping sugar syrup, uncooked finished product. If I try this again I will bake it at 250 for hours rather than the 425/shut off method, which left everything uncooked after 5 hours.

This is one of the best recipes I have tried. I love how it came out -- I used a springform pan and halved the recipe cut back a bit on the sugar. I added vanilla and a small amount of rose water -- one of the best desserts I have every made. Although it burned a bit on top in my oven so next time I will try 400 instead of 425.

Sixty-five years ago my family knew this as "Forgotten Dessert." Just as delicious today.

I halved the recipe and cut the sugar back to 1c, used a springform pan. Light, delicious dessert.

We’ve been making this from a paper recipe saved from NYT years ago, handed down from MIL. Everyone loves it. Everyone. My husband usually prepares this recipe for the fam as is. Delish but a little too sweet for me. I would cut down on the sugar and also make smaller meringues rather than the Big Cake. That’s what we did growing up. Also, you can skip the whip cream if you don’t want the dairy/fat. Still a great dessert. Any soft fruit liquor (optional) will do for the sauce.

Trying to use up eggs whites but only enough for a half recipe, and it was fantastic. Used an 8" cake pan and it rose quite a bit over the top, not the most elegant turnout but no one minded with the whipped cream and berries. I thought the meringue was very sweet, would cut back sugar next time. Did sliced strawberries with no added sugar and thought it was perfect.

I have made this several times and it’s always amazing. This method with the high cake pan yields a crisp crust and an almost cloud-like center. The sauce is a must but is flexible, just make sure it’s a bit tart to combat the sweetness. Always a huge hit.

At the last minute, I realized I had no almond extract, so I threw in some sesame oil. Obviously, the result tasted different, but it was a very good different! What a strange little cake.

Is it possible to over-beat the egg whites? I beat them until they were very stiff, and followed directions exactly, but in the morning, I had pretty much raw, weeping meringue. It was impossible to salvage as the liquid that weeped out was sugary and would have caramelized the meringue to the pan if reintroduced to heat. Maybe I should have just tried baking it at temperature for 10-15 minutes rather than placing it in a turned-off hot oven.

How do you use all the leftover egg yolks? I'd like to make this for Easter.

My angel-food cake pan only can withstand up to 410 F.Has any one tried making the torte at this temperature?When I try it, I will provide an update.

One tip, two observations. The tip: use a BIG bowl. I started in a 2.5 L pyrex bowl, but the volume of egg white overwhelmed the beaters. Shifted to my mega-sized bowl & that worked. Observation 1: i cut back a bit on the sugar and the pavlova still worked fine. It is very, very sweet, so next time might try cutting back a bit more. Observation 2: i never got to stiff peaks, not like when whipping egg whites alone. But it was thick, glossy, and the tracks of the beater stayed.