This Gorgeous Vegan Meringue Is Made from the Most Surprising Ingredient!

We’ve written about vegan substitutes for eggs in the past, but I’ve never seen something quite like this before. See that gorgeous looking meringue up there? It’s totally vegan, and it’s made from an ingredient I would never, in my wildest dreams, have guessed.

The answer: Chickpea liquid. You know, that stuff you pour down the drain after you open a can of chickpeas? That weird, smelly liquid that covers the beans? This liquid can replace whipped egg whites in your vegan baked goods, including meringues.

I’m not kidding. You have to see this.

In the above video you’ll see that chickpea liquid from a can, called Aquafaba, can be treated just like egg whites to create meringues. Yup, that’s right. You take the liquid, whip it up in a stand mixer, and you have something that looks just like egg whites. Sounds insane, right?

French chef Joël Roessel is believed to have discovered the magical powers of Aquafaba in baking. As of right now, there’s no chemical explanation as to why, exactly, chickpea brine behaves as egg whites when it’s whipped. But there’s a whole website, Aquafaba.com, to help fund the research.

Want to try your hand at making the meringues shown in the video? Make sure to check out the super-simple recipe on Slate. And if you want to get really into the whole idea, there’s an entire Facebook page dedicated to baking with Aquafaba. And if you want the recipe to that awesome pie up above, check out the blog Veganosity:

→ Get the recipe: Vegan Lime Tarts with Meringue

→ Read more: Stop Pouring Your Chickpea Liquid Down the Drain. It’s a Magical Ingredient. from Slate