Vegan Meringues with Cacao Drizzle

Suitable for Vegans & Gluten-free
Difficulty rating Medium
Makes Approx. 20 (dependant on size)
Prep time 25 minutes
Cook time 1hr 15 minutes (+ 1 hour cooling)

Ingredients

For the meringues:

• 100ml aquafaba from unsalted chickpeas (chilled in fridge overnight)
• ½ tsp apple cider vinegar *


• ¼ tsp xantham gum *
• 120g caster sugar

For the decoration:

• 4 tbsp melted coconut oil *


• 2 tbsp organic maple syrup *


• 3 tbsp cacao powder *
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 tbsp chopped nuts *

Method

Step 1
Pop the chickpeas in the can overnight to chill – this will help the aquafaba form.

Step 2
When it comes to baking time, preheat the oven to 90°C and prepare the baking tray by lining it with baking paper. Pour the chilled aquafaba into a bowl or mixer and start to whisk until a foam starts to form.

Step 3
Add the apple cider vinegar and xantham gum, and continue to mix until it starts to thicken. Aquafaba is impossible to over-whip (unlike eggs) so make sure it’s nice and thick before adding in the sugar bit by bit as the mixture is beaten. As with traditional meringue, you’ll know it’s done when peaks form (and you can hold the bowl over your head if you’re feeling brave!)

Step 4
Fit the piping bag with a round nozzle, fill the bag with the mixture and pipe into your desired shape. They’ll need to cook in the oven for 1 hour 15 minutes and once the timer’s up, turn the oven off and leave them to cool down slowly for another hour.

Step 5
To make the sauce, whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl until they’re completely smooth – if it looks a little thin then you can add more coconut oil which will thicken it up.

Step 6
Put the mixture into a pouring bottle and chill in the fridge for 10 minutes to thicken up. When it’s ready, simply take it out and drizzle over the cool meringues and sprinkle the chopped nuts over the top too!

Step 7
If your sauce is too cold and you’re having trouble drizzling, place the closed bottle into a bowl of hot water until it melts slightly.

Serve & enjoy!

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