French Vanilla Meringue
- Preheat the oven to 130°C / 300°F
- Beat the egg whites while adding four times the initial weight of sugar.
- Split the vanilla bean in half (lengthwise) to extract the small black seeds.
- Add them to the meringue.
- Once the whites have peaked, fold in the second load of sugar with the help a spatula by hand.
- Using a pastry bag (n°10), pipe 5cm diameter meringue balls on a sheet of baking paper.
- This recipe allows one to make more of them than is necessary, before storing them to dry in an airtight container.
- Put them into the oven for 1 hour at 130°C, then lower the oven setting to 100°C for another hour.
- The secret to cooking lies in leaving the oven door ajar every 15 minutes in order to let the steam escape.
Chestnut Cream
- Using a beater or by hand with a spatula, mix the mashed chestnut cream, then add the cognac.
- Store in a cool airtight place for a few hours.
Chantilly Cream
- Melt the granulated sugar in the cream.
- Add the vanilla seeds.
- Add it to the Chantilly while whisking it.
Assemble
- Fill one No.6 pastry bag with the crème marron and a No.8 pastry bag with the Chantilly.
- Place the meringue on a plate and top with the whipped cream and chestnut cream vermicelli.
- Finally, dust with icing sugar.