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Fluffy Frosting
1 cup brown sugar 1 cup white sugar 1 tablespoon white corn syrup 1 cup water 2 egg whites 1/2 teaspoon vanilla Mix brown and white sugar with syrup and water and boil until the mixture spins a permanent thread. Beat egg whites stiff, then gradually add the syrup, stirring constantly until mixture holds its shape. Add flavoring.
A boiled-syrup meringue frosting of the type once called sea foam or seven-minute icing. Everything depends on getting the syrup to the right stage, so a candy thermometer earns its keep here.
- Thread stage, in numbersA syrup that "spins a permanent thread" is usually put at about 230-235F, though boiled frostings are often taken a few degrees higher. Below thread stage the frosting stays soupy; a syrup boiled well past soft-ball will set hard and grainy on the beaters.
- A full cup of water is a long boilTwo cups of sugar in one cup of water takes 10-15 minutes of steady boiling to concentrate. Use a heavy pan with room to climb, and do not stir once it boils or you invite crystals.
- Egg safetySyrup at thread stage is at the low end for cooking the whites through. Use pasteurized whites if the frosting is for children, older guests, or anyone with a compromised immune system.
- Pour thin and steadyAdd the hot syrup down the side of the bowl in a slow stream with the mixer running, not into the beaters, or it will spin threads of candy onto the sides of the bowl.
- Brown sugarBrown sugar of the period is often said to have run closer to today's light brown, though grades varied. Dark brown works but gives a much stronger molasses note and a greyer color.
- What the corn syrup doesThe tablespoon of glucose is there to interfere with crystallization and help keep the frosting smooth.
- HumidityBoiled meringue frostings weep and stay tacky on a damp day. Make it in dry weather, or boil the syrup two or three degrees higher to compensate.
- Yield and keepingEnough to fill and frost a two-layer 9-inch cake generously. It crusts within a few hours and is best the day it is made; refrigeration makes it seep.