Lunar New Year Cow Meringue Tartlets
Tea infused custard tartlets topped with a heavenly cloud of chantilly cream and meringue cookies - a whimsically dreamy midnight snack.
Counting Sheep…or Cows?
We’ve all been there - laying in bed wide awake, counting sheep in hopes of lulling our minds into blissful sleep. One such night, I was counting sheep to fall asleep when inspiration struck. A whimsical tart of sleepy sheep floating on clouds. Needless to say, sleep eluded me for the next few hours, as I brainstormed the concept and flavors for the baking project. It just so happened, however, that Lunar New Year was coming up, and it was going to be the year of the ox (this was a few years back). With that in my sleep deprived mind, I made the executive decision to swap out sheep for cows to fit in with the ox theme. I rationalized that both sheep and cows were in the realm of barnyard animals, so it was close enough for me!
Meringue - a Temperamental Little Cookie
The trickiest part of this baking project was the cow meringue cookie. Meringue cookies can be a little temperamental for a few reasons: cracking, weeping, deflating, just to name a few. With that in mind, it’s important to bake the cookies at a very low temperature to prevent any cracking or browning. The goal is not for the white meringue to take on any color, but rather the cookies are essentially being dehydrated low and slow until they are crisp and dry. If the cookies are properly and thoroughly dry, this will also prevent any moisture from weeping out as well. It is very important to leave the oven door CLOSED after they are done baking for another two hours, since rapid temperature changes cause cracking. By leaving the cookies in the oven while it’s turned off, they can gradually cool to room temperature. Meringue also deflates over time, so it is important to work fast when piping to beat this - saggy cow puddles aren’t cute, in my humblest of opinions. In general, piping these are a bit tedious and requires some technique for the little features, so saddle up for some intricate piping work.
Fashionably Late, It’s a Personality Trait
Lunar New Year is right around the corner, with 2024 being the year of the Dragon. As someone who is chronically prone to procrastination and being late, it’s only fitting that this blog post come out a wee bit late (the year of the ox was three years ago for those wondering…oops?) However, as they say, better late than never. These little cow tarts were too adorable not to share, so despite it being a few years in the making, the spotlight is finally upon them just in time for this year’s LNY. I’m thinking that posts should be acceptable within a ballpark of three or so years? Stay tuned for my dragon themed bake in 2027! Sorry, not sorry. Wishing you all a happy and healthy Lunar New Year :)
Lunar New Year Cow Meringue Tartlets
Milk Tea Custard:
Ingredients:
- 1 cup whole milk
- 5 black tea bags
- 1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 egg yolks
- 1⁄8 cup + 1 tbsp sugar
- 1⁄8 cup cornstarch
- 1⁄2 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions:
- In a small saucepan, heat the milk over low-medium heat until just simmering. Turn off the heat and add in tea bags. Cover and allow to infuse for around 15 minutes.
- In a medium mixing bowl, vigorously whisk together egg yolks, vanilla extract, and sugar until pale yellow and fluffy (around 3 minutes) Add in the cornstarch and whisk until smooth.
- Slowly stream in about ½ cup of the warm milk tea into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Do this gradually so as to not scramble the egg yolks. Pour the egg/milk mixture back into the remaining ½ cup milk in the saucepan. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, until very thick and able to coat the back of a wooden spoon (5-10 minutes). Turn off the heat and stir in the butter, letting the residual heat melt it down.
- Strain the custard through a fine mesh sieve into a container. Cover with plastic wrap, allowing the plastic to make contact with the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming.
- Chill in the refrigerator until cool and ready to use, at least an hour.
Tart Shell Crust:
Ingredients:
- 3⁄4 cup all-purpose flour
- Pinch of salt
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed
- 1 egg yolk
- 1⁄4 cup powdered sugar
- 1⁄4 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions:
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the cubed butter, sugar, salt and vanilla. Mix on medium for a few minutes until well combined. Add in the egg yolk and continue to mix until incorporated. Add the flour in last and mix until a homogeneous dough has formed.
- Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. Press the dough down flat, then lightly flour the surface. Place another sheet of parchment paper over top and roll out the dough to about an ⅛ inch thick. Chill in the freezer for half an hour.
- Peel off the top layer of parchment paper and cut out circles using a 3 inch cookie cutter. Press the dough circles into mini tart molds (I used dan tat molds) Trim the excess dough off the top with a sharp knife, so that it is flush with the tops of the molds. Dock the bottoms and sides of the tart with a fork. Chill the formed tarts in the freezer for another half an hour before baking.
- Bake at 325 F for about 15-18 minutes or until just golden. Let cool for 15 minutes on the baking tray before unmolding the tart shells and transferring to a cooling rack. Allow to completely come to room temperature for around an hour.
Cow Meringues:
Ingredients:
- 2 egg whites (about 70 grams)
- 11⁄4 cup powdered sugar (about 140 grams)
- 1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1⁄4 tsp cream of tartar
- Food coloring
Instructions:
- In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add in egg whites and cream of tartar and whisk on medium speed until frothy. Add in vanilla extract. While whisking, gradually pour in powdered sugar until well incorporated and no lumps remain. Turn the mixer up to high and whisk until stiff, glossy peaks.
- In 3 small bowls, divide up small quantities of meringue batter to be dyed different colors for the cows’ features, reserving most of the batter (about 75%) in the stand mixer bowl. Color one portion with black food coloring, another portion with pink, and leave the third as its original white. Transfer the small portions of black, pink, and white batter into individual piping bags and snip off the bottoms to create tiny openings. Transfer the remaining majority of the white batter into a piping bag fitted with a large round piping tip. You should have 4 piping bags of batter at this point (2 white, 1 black, 1 pink).
- Preheat the oven to 180 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using the white bag with the round tip, pipe domed mounds (~1.5 inch diameter) spaced about 2 inches apart from one another. Dip your finger into some water and gently dab to smooth out any imperfections. Next, use the smaller piping bags of colored batter to create the cows’ features. Use the white batter for the ears and feet, pink for the nose, and black for the eyes, nostrils, horns, and spots.
- Bake the meringues for 2 hours at 180 F. Turn off the heat and allow them to rest in the oven for another 2 hours, without opening the oven door. After that, the meringues may be removed and stored in an airtight container at room temp, until ready to use.
Candied Lemon Peel:
Ingredients:
- 1-2 lemons
- 1⁄8 cup sugar
- 1⁄8 cup water
- 1 tsp lemon juice
Instructions:
- Using a mandoline, slice lemons into ⅛ inch thick slices. Cut out stars and crescent moon shapes with kitchen scissors.
- In a small saucepan, combine sugar, water, and lemon juice. Heat over low heat until sugar is fully dissolved. Bring the mixture up to a gentle simmer and add in lemon pieces. Simmer for 15 minutes, flipping the pieces over occasionally.
- Transfer candied lemon pieces onto a parchment lined baking sheet and allow to come to room temperature.
Vanilla Whipped Cream:
Ingredients:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1⁄8 cup powdered sugar
- 1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
- Food coloring (optional)
Instructions:
- In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip cream at low-medium speed until soft peaks. Add in powdered sugar, food coloring (I did a light, dusty lavender), and vanilla and continue whipping until stiff peaks are achieved. Transfer into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip.
Assembly:
Instructions:
- Fill tart shell crusts with milk tea custard.
- Pipe whipped cream into a cloud shape on top of the custard.
- Gently place a cow meringue onto the whipped cream cloud and decorate with candied lemon stars and crescent moons.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
