Meringue Problems: Weeping, Grittiness,
Stickiness Meringues can go wrong in a
number of ways. Under- or overbeaten foams
may weep syrup into unsightly beads or
puddles. Beads also form when the sugar
hasn’t been completely dissolved; residual
crystals attract water from their surroundings
and make pockets of concentrated syrup.
Undissolved sugar (including invisibly small
particles present in an undercooked syrup that
then slowly grow at room temperature) will
give a gritty texture to a meringue. Too high
an oven temperature can squeeze water from
the coagulating proteins faster than it can
evaporate and produce syrup beads; it can also
cause the foam to rise and crack, and turn its
surface an unappealing yellow.
Royal Icing
A given weight of egg whites can’t
dissolve more than about double that
weight in sugar. Yet royal icing, a