Written by Kayla Hoffman (Features Writer)
Around this time last year, we went into lockdown due to the outbreak of Covid-19. For a full year, we have been in online learning, which, for most of us, can be really hard to look back on. So, in an effort to brighten the thoughts of students of SLV, I’m going to be referring to a recipe for a certain food that was trending about a year ago.
About a year ago, all over TikTok, I had briefly seen many people making cloud bread. This treat is essentially a giant baked meringue. If you are not familiar with what meringue is, it’s a dessert made with egg whites and sugar. Sometimes, to give the merengue more form or body, cornstarch will be added. Essentially, cloud bread just has a greater amount of all three of those ingredients.
Ingredients:
- 3 large egg whites (should be about 6 tbsp)
- 2 ½ tbsp of sugar or ¼ cups (see the end of this article to determine your preference)
- 1 tbsp of cornstarch
- Food coloring (optional)
- Flavoring (optional)
Materials:
- A stand mixer (whip attachment)
- Small bowl
- Measuring tools (spoons and cups)
- Sifter
- Parchment paper
- Baking sheet
To start, preheat your oven to 300℉. While preheating, get out your mixer with the whip attachment. Take a small bowl to help separate egg whites. Take your 3 eggs and separate the yolks. Once you have your egg whites, pour them into the mixer and begin mixing until frothy. Discard or set aside your egg yolks, you won’t need them for this recipe.
Once the eggs are frothy, add your sugar one tablespoon at a time or gradually. This will change the texture a little bit. Whip on high until bubbles start to form. When the bubbles form, this is when you sift in cornstarch and continue to whip on high until the mixture forms stiff peaks. This means that when you raise the whip attachment, the mixture will form a peak and remain peaked. To get this, it may take 5-6 minutes. If you’d like to add in any flavoring or food coloring, do this while sifting the cornstarch. A popular color with the cloud bread is pastel pink, purple, or blue; you can use whatever color you’d like.
Take your baking sheet and line it with parchment paper. Scoop the cloud bread mixture onto the sheet and form a dome of cloud shape. You are welcome to have fun with the shape! Once it’s in the desired form, put it in the oven and let bake for 20-25 minutes. The outside of the bread should be a golden brown. Once cut open, if you put food coloring in, it should be the color you selected. If no color was put in, the inside will be a bright white.
When serving cloud bread, it’s best to eat fresh out of the oven. If you wait too long, the bread will actually shrivel. Cooler temperatures will take the texture away from it. The cloud bread will taste very eggy naturally due to the fact that its main ingredient is eggs. If you do not want it to taste too eggy, you can add ¼ cups of sugar. This may change the texture and take away from its fluffiness. Other than that, enjoy the cloud bread and all the endless possibilities in its creation!
The Claw 