Greetings and Happy New Year 2026! May health, prosperity, and joy fill each of your lives. Today I return to my beloved Foodies Bee Hive community to share a recipe for a very popular Venezuelan sweet known as Suspiros or Meringues. I've already shared a recipe tutorial for this, but today I wanted to give it a twist by coloring them with a concentrated hibiscus infusion. It was an experiment I need to perfect. If you'd like to see my previous post, where you'll find very useful tips for making excellent meringues (suspiros), here it is.

Saludos y feliz año 2026, que la salud, prosperidad y alegría plene la vida de cada uno de ustedes. Hoy regreso a mi amada comunidad Foodies Bee Hive, para compartir una receta de un dulce muy popular en Venezuela, conocido como SUSPIROS o MERENGUES. Ya he compartido una receta-tutorial de esta preparación, pero hoy quise darle una vuelta de tuerca, coloreándolos con una infusión concentrada de hibisco, pero fue un experimento que debo perfeccionar. Si quieres ver mi post anterior, en donde encontrarás tips muy útiles para hacer unos suspiros excelentes, aquí lo tienes.

As I've said before, I don't like to use artificial colorings in my recipes, so I usually make the meringues white or off-white; however, I've seen on various social media platforms meringues that are colored with a very concentrated hibiscus infusion, obtaining a very pretty pink color, so I tried to emulate this effect.

Hibiscus is an ingredient that I always have in my pantry, as I use it in many ways, and being a natural ingredient, I have no qualms about incorporating it into my recipes, so I was excited to do this experiment, which didn't turn out entirely well. That said, let's get to the recipe!

• Preparation time: The process of beating the mixture and distributing it into the molds takes approximately 15 minutes; however, baking time may vary depending on the oven. In my case, each batch or tray required 25 minutes of baking time: the first 10 minutes at 180°C (350°F), and then 15 minutes at 160°C (325°F). This may vary depending on the size of the mold and the oven's performance.

• Servings: This time I obtained 126 small meringues (1.5 cm (0.5 in) in diameter at the base) and 65 medium meringues (approximately 3.5 cm (1.5 in) in diameter at the base). The exact number of servings will depend on the size of the molds.

I won't say here that the quantities of ingredients I present below can vary according to your taste and availability; because this is a precise recipe, both in proportions and conditions (temperature, beating speed, bowl size, etc.). Obviously, each of you should know your oven's performance to adjust the baking temperatures accordingly.

• 300 grams of egg whites at room temperature (approximately equivalent to the whites of 6 large eggs).

• 500 grams of refined white sugar that is 100% cane sugar. Do not use sugars containing corn syrup, as the result will be very poor. The ratio of egg whites to sugar is 1 gram of egg white to 1.66 grams of sugar.

• 1 pinch of salt.

• ½ teaspoon of lime zest (just the green part).

• 5 grams of dried hibiscus flowers.

• 40 ml of water (to boil the hibiscus). Boiling the hibiscus will reduce to 30 ml of concentrated hibiscus tea.

• 2 level teaspoons of cornstarch (to give the mixture more firmness).

• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract.

• Electric or hand mixer, bowl between 18 and 20 centimeters in diameter (preferably tempered glass or stainless steel), grater, spoon, measuring cups, piping bag or plastic bag, pastry nozzle, etc.

• Tiempo de preparación: El proceso de batir la mezcla y distribuirla en los moldes, requiere aproximadamente 15 minutos; sin embargo, el tiempo de horneado puede variar de acuerdo al horno. En mi caso, cada tanda o bandeja requirió 25 minutos de horneado, los primeros 10 minutos a 180 °C, y luego 15 minutos a 160 °C. Esto puede variar en función al tamaño del molde y el rendimiento del horno.

• Raciones: En esta ocasión obtuve 126 merengues pequeños (1.5 cm de diámetro en la base) y 65 medianos (aproximadamente 3.5 cm de diámetro en la base), todo dependerá del tamaño de estos.

Aquí no diré que las cantidades de ingredientes que a continuación presento pueden variar de acuerdo al gusto y disponibilidad de cada uno de ustedes; porque esta es una receta exacta, tanto en proporciones como en condiciones, (temperatura, velocidad de batido, tamaño del bol, etc.). Obviamente, cada uno de ustedes debe conocer el rendimiento de sus hornos, para poder jugar con las temperaturas de horneado.

• 300 gramos de claras de huevo a temperatura ambiente (aproximadamente equivale a las claras de 6 huevos grandes).

• 500 gramos de azúcar blanca refinada que sea 100% derivada de la caña. No pueden usarse azúcares que incluyan en su composición melaza de maíz, porque el resultado es pésimo. La proporción de claras de huevo con respecto al azúcar, es de 1 gramo de clara por cada 1,66 gramos de azúcar.

• 1 pizca de sal.

• ½ cucharadita de ralladura de lima, sólo el verdín.

• 5 gramos de flor de hibisco deshidratada.

• 40 ml de agua (para hervir el hibisco). Al hervir el hibisco, se reduce a 30 ml de té concentrado de hibisco.

• 2 cucharaditas rasas de fécula de maíz (para darle más firmeza a la mezcla).

• 2 cucharaditas de esencia de vainilla.

• Batidora eléctrica o manual, bol de entre 18 y 20 centímetros de diámetro, (preferiblemente de vidrio templado o acero inoxidable, rallador, cucharilla, tazas medidoras, manga o bolsa plástica, boquilla repostera, etc.

It's necessary to start by making a strong hibiscus tea, for which the flowers are boiled in water over medium heat for approximately 7 minutes. Remove from heat, wait for it to cool, strain and set aside. This time I already had the egg whites at room temperature, served in a stainless steel bowl. This is because I had some left over from my Eggnog recipe, so I added the salt and lime zest.

Es necesario comenzar haciendo el té bien concentrado de hibisco, para lo cual se hierven a fuego medio las flores en el agua, por aproximadamente 7 minutos. Retirar el fuego, esperar a que enfríe, colar y reservar. En esta ocasión ya tenía las claras a temperatura ambiente, servidas en un bol de acero. Esto se debe a que me sobraron de mi receta de Ponche Crema, así que añadí la sal y la ralladura de lima.

Next, beat the eggs at high speed, and in a clockwise direction, for approximately 4 minutes or until stiff peaks form, that is, until they look like firm little clouds, as in the photo. Add the vanilla extract and the concentrated hibiscus tea (in this case, I added it in two parts). Beat at medium speed until both ingredients are well combined. During this step, I noticed that the hibiscus didn't turn the mixture pink, but rather a bluish-gray color. I attribute this to its interaction with the lime zest and vanilla; this is the explanation I find for this result.

As you can see, the mixture is quite firm and consistent. Place it in a piping bag or plastic bag to form the meringues, and pipe them onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. I first made small meringues (two batches), and then I changed the piping tip and made medium-sized ones. It's important to keep an eye on the baking times, as they are initially baked for 10 minutes at a high temperature to allow them to rise, but then the temperature is lowered, and they are baked for another 15 minutes to ensure they are cooked through and firm.

Once the baking time is up, remove them from the oven, let them cool slightly, and then peel them off the parchment paper. These meringues, while having a somewhat unusual color, have an excellent flavor, as the hibiscus, although it didn't turn them pink, did give them a delicious tangy note. You can store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days; after that, they will begin to lose their freshness. They are ideal for giving as gifts, especially now that Three Kings Day is approaching.

• These photos are my own, and were taken with a Xiaomi REDMI NOTE 9A phone / Estas fotos son de mi propiedad, y las tomé con un smarthone Xiaomi REDMI NOTE 9A

• This time I'm using a divider that Hive account@doriangel gave me. Thank you very much for this beautiful gift. / En esta ocasión estoy usando un divisor que me obsequió Hive account@doriangel. Muchas gracias por este bello regalo.

Todo el contenido es de mi propiedad y está sujeto a derechos de autor // All content is my property and subject to copyrigh

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