From Colombia: Merengón with Fruits

Updated recipe in 2022 with clearer instructions and more options

I love meringue. I got to love meringue at a very late stage. Maybe because I feel meringue doesn’t play a very important role in the baking industry. But even though it was late love, merengón from Colombia is the best. It consists of three layers, meringue, whipped cream and a layer of fruit sauce. Easy to prepare, wonderful to look at and once you take the first bite, you will be in heaven, melts in your mouth and has a nice tangy aftertaste due to the fruits. Really a fairy dream!

I love the fact that meringue can also be found in Colombian desserts. This is important as my husband is Colombian. I love to try desserts from his country. The idea for this recipe actually was created when we spent our holidays in Colombia. Meringue is “merengue” in Spanish. If topped off with fruits and whipped cream, you will get the dessert “merengón”. When we visited the beautiful colonial village Villa de Leyva in Colombia, I was fortunate enough to eat a fancy “merengón”. The one you see on the picture below was created by the café  Mercado Municipal. I can highly recommend this café to everybody visiting Villa de Leyva in Colombia. I have been told that also the main courses are amazing as it is also a restaurant. However, when we went, I was very happy to try the dessert section (with some Colombian coffee, of course). I was fortunate enough to have the chance to speak to the pastry cook (mind you, in the pastry kitchen!) and I could tell, yes, food is most definitely prepared with a lot of love and passion. I was determined to create the merengón as I got to eat in the café Mercado Municipal at home.

Merengón with berries as found in the café Mercado Municipal in Villa de Layva in Colombia

So when we returned, I tried creating this several different ways. First I simply spooned on the meringue on parchment paper, creating large rectangles. You will see a picture below. Then I wanted to pipe. I first tried piping into muffin tins, but this turned out to be a horrible idea, they got stuck. So I ended up using a piping bag and piping circles directly on parchment paper. Afterwards I stacked the circles with whipping cream and berries. Regardless of the form you choose, this fairy dream consists of three layers, the meringue, the fruity sauce, which is made of beeries, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch, and a slightly sweetened whipped cream. I love the fact that this dessert is classy, yet super simple and easy. Those are the best, don’t you think?

So let’s get started and prepare this fairy dream!

Print Recipe

Colombian Merengón

Serves: Depending on size between 2-3 layers

Cooking Time: 30min preparation + 90min baking + assembling

Colombian merengón is baked meringue topped with whipped cream and fruit, similar to pavlova.

Ingredients

• Meringue
• 4 egg whites
• A pinch of salt
• 200 grams of regular sugar
• 
  
• Fruits
• 300 grams of frozen or fresh fruit, fully prepared
• 50 grams of regular sugar
• Jucie of one small lemon
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 
  
• Whipped Cream
• 250 grams of heavy cream
• 50 grams of regular sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, see here how to make your own
• Fresh fruits for garnish

Instructions

1

For the meringue clean your bowl and your mixer thoroughly. You don't want any grease on any of your utensils for this. You can also take a slice of lemon and rub your bowl with it or put a little bit of vinegar on a paper towel and wipe everything off. Don't worry, the smell vanishes quickly. Separate the eggs, making sure no egg yolk accidently mixes with the egg whites. Remember, no grease for the egg whites. Beat the egg whites on medium high speed, add a pinch of salt and beat until soft peaks form. This takes about 2-3 minutes. Now slowly add the sugar while you continue mixing. Change to high speed. Slowly the meringue should start looking glossy and should become stiffer. Continue beating until very stiff. This should take about seven minutes total. There are several tests to know when you are done. Either you can turn the bowl upside down and the meringue does not get out and you can also take some meringue between your fingers and check whether you feel any sugar crumbs. If you don't, the meringue is ready for use, the sugar dissolved. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. You can either make circles of about 20cm (just wing it) oder you can also make a rectangle, see one picture. I would recommend making at least two shapes of the same size, you may also do three smaller ones. Bake meringue at 100 degrees Celsius for 90 minutes. They should easily come off the parchment paper. If they don't, dry them longer. I have even left them in the oven over night. Meringue can be kept in an airtight container for one week. No need to refrigerate.

2

For the fruits place prepared fruits with sugar and lemon juice into a pot and simmer for a few minutes. In a mug, mix the cornstarch with about three tablespoons of cold water until you don’t see any lumps. Bring fruits to a boil again and add the cornstarch. Stir and let boil for about a minute, then let cool off.

3

For the whipped cream place all ingredients into a bowl and beat until you have the right consistency, this takes a few minutes.

4

To assemble the meringue, spoon first whipping cream and fruits on each layer and stack on top of each other. Finish with fresh fruit. Serve immediately.

Notes

No idea what to do with the leftover egg yolks? Check out see this blog post including how to freeze them properly.