It's a versatile, if somewhat simple sweet. It's really about the thin layer of **dark** chocolate, which you give more room to with a meringue. You can flavour the meringue and you can add a little bit of jam as an accent point. * The meringue and piping is easy, also filling with marmelade is not too hard. * Just coat it with tempered chocolate. ===With gelatine=== * I use Oblatne wafers for the base. The less flavour, the better (unless you want to make it a part of the composition). Cut out to 2 cm ⌀. 🔥 Make sure they are crisp! If needed, toast them again in the oven! * Italian meringue (for about 42 small pieces): * 80 gr sugar, 30 gr water, 40 gr glucose syrup for the syrup. Heat to 118° to 121° C. Brush down the pan to prevent crystals or put a lid on. This takes only a few minutes. * 2 egg whites, beaten. Start beating when the sugar is ~114°. * Pour into egg whites in a thin stream while whisking (avoid the whisk) and continue to beat on medium speed until warm and glossy (about 6'). * When done, fill the sugar pot with water and boil: This is the easiest way to clean it, and you'll need the bain marie for the gelatine. * **1 sheet** of gelatine: hydrate in cold water, then melt in bain marie. Mix 3 Tsbp. of meringue into it, then mix the mix into the rest of the meringue. * Pipe out while still warm, the gelatine will stiffen and make it a bit harder to get the perfect shape, chill. ⚠️ It's tempting to use a fancy spout, but round is best. Under the glaze, it always looks a bit tacky and irregular (in a bad way) otherwise. 🤙 Next time, I want to try shaping them after piping to make them look neater still. * Cover in tempered chocolate (for 42 pieces, you need about 400 gr). I find it easiest to just glaze sideways, roll them around and then tap the bottom in it; all the other methods are quite wasteful. I tried cake glaze, and that works well, but lacks the sheen and snap of a true chocolate. * I tried a white chocolate fat glaze, but that really didn't work; nor did, of course, the 2:1 chocolate-cream ganache (which never fully hardened). In fact, even perfectly tempered white chocolate tasted too sweet and looks unpleasantly yellowish. ===Without gelatine=== This recipe tastes very meringue-y and lacks the juiciness of a "true" Schaumkuss: * Make an Italian meringue: * Bring 100 gr sugar and 25 gr water to between 118° to 121° C. Brush down the pan to prevent crystals or put a lid on. This takes only a few minutes. * When the sugar is at ~114°, beat 50 gr of egg whites into stiffs. (In copper, of course, if you have it.) * Pour into egg whites in a thin stream while whisking (avoid the whisk) and continue to beat on medium speed until warm and glossy (about 10'). * Pipe out, chill and cover in //fat glaze// (150 gr couverture and 15 gr fat, coconut, for example). I find it easiest to just dip them in the glaze, all the other methods are quite wasteful. ===Ideas=== * Add some 焙じ茶 powder (1gr per 80 gr of meringue) and apricot jam in the middle, that was quite tasty! * 桜 powder is nice, too. Works well with dark chocolate, and doesn't need the jam that I added last time. {{ ::schokokuss.jpeg?400 |}}