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Monts Blancs
If using sweetened chestnut purée,
omit the sugar in the filling.
Method
1 Preheat the oven to the lowest setting,
around 250°F (120°C).
2 Put the egg whites into a large, clean
metal bowl and whisk them until they are
stiff and leave peaks when the whisk is
removed from the egg whites. Gradually
add the sugar 2 tablespoons at a time,
whisking well between each addition, until
you have added at least half. Gently fold
the remaining sugar into the egg whites,
trying to lose as little air as possible.
3 Lightly grease the pastry cutter. Line 2
baking sheets with parchment paper. Place
the pastry cutter on the sheets, and spoon
the meringue mixture into the ring, to a
depth of 1^1 ⁄ 4 in (3cm). Smooth over the top and
gently remove the ring. Repeat until there are
4 meringue bases on each baking sheet.
4 Bake the meringues in the center of the
oven for 45 minutes if you like them chewy,
otherwise bake for 1 hour. Turn off the oven
and leave the meringues to cool inside,
to prevent them from cracking. Transfer to
a wire rack to cool completely.
5 Put the chestnut purée in a bowl with the
sugar (if using), vanilla, and 4 tablespoons
Special equipment
large metal mixing bowl
4in (10cm) pastry cutter
Ingredients
4 egg whites, at room temperature
about 1 cup sugar, see page 134, step 3
sunflower oil, for greasing
For the filling
14oz (435g) can unsweetened chestnut puree,
or sweetened½ cup sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups heavy cream
confectioner’s sugar, to dust
MAKES
820
MINS45–60
MINSof heavy cream, and beat together untilsmooth. Push through a fine sieve to makea really light, fluffy filling. In a separate bowlwhisk the remaining heavy cream until firm.6 Gently smooth 1 tablespoon chestnutfilling over the top of the meringues, usinga palette knife to smooth the surface. Topeach meringue with a spoonful of whippedcream, smoothed with a palette knife togive the appearance of soft peaks. Dustwith confectioner’s sugar and serve.PREPARE AHEAD The meringue bases canbe prepared 5 days ahead and stored inan airtight container.BAKER’S TIP
Make sure that the bowl you are using to
whisk the egg whites in is completely clean
and dry. For absolute accuracy, it is best to
weigh the egg whites. You will need precisely
double the weight of sugar to egg whites.
An electronic scale is best.