Thursday, March 26, 2009

Kisses from Grammie



Kisses? Ok, here is another recipe that seems out of character for Grammie. Sis remarked to me the other day that She and Uncle Phil lived together, cooked together argued and seemed to have their own little marriage. There are a number of recipes in this book that are hand written. I know they were not in my mother's hand, so the only culprit I can think of would be Uncle Phil. (I would love to have a file of his recipes.Even with his game leg, he would climb to the eaves of the house to get the baby pidgeons to cook in some mysterious way.) Perhaps I have a few in this unknown hand and will have to be satisfied with them. Well,"Kisses" to them both for feeding us so well over the years.

Merigue kisses really are easy, so you should try them at least once. Just one warning...Do Not Try These On A Damp Day! Sunny, dry days are good, and Winter even better.

White of one egg beaten stiffly.
Add one cup of fine granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vinegar scant,
a few drops of essence of almond

Convetional recipes call for a pinch of salt and 1/8 of a teaspoon of cream of tartar added to the beaten egg white before the sugar. Also, they do not have the vinegar, so that must be a substitute. The salt will brighten the taste no matter what method you use.

Drop by spoonfuls in buttered tins.(Conventional recipes use parchment paper in the tins rather than butter. If you remember these by some quirk of fate, you may wish to use the butter so the taste will be the same.)(I might pipe these onto the sheet with a pastry bag and star tip.)

Sprinkle with chopped almonds and a few grains of pink sugar. I wonder why pink? You can find sanding sugar these days, if not in the grocers, then perhaps in specialty stores. You could do these in any color for the season.

The end. No method was written. I expect that these were baked like meringues, so I will add that method for you.

Place in a 375 degree preheated oven. Turn the oven off, and leave the kisses in the oven unopened for five hours.

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