Leche (milk) Merengada

Name: Leche (milk) Merengada
Prep time: 2 h
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 135 min
Yield: 1
Ingredients: – 4 cups milk; – 1/2 – 3/4 cup of sugar (depending on how much of a sweet tooth you have); – 1 large stick cinnamon; – powdered cinnamon (just a pinch to sprinkle on the top); – 1/4 lemon peel; – 2 egg whites

by Joy of Spanish Cooking

1 drink

2 hr 15 min

Holaaaaa!!!

While its not sure summer in Maryland... I just thought that it would be nice to share this recipe with all of you. When it’s this warm, I really like to have some refreshing cold drinks in the refrigerator; lemonade, ice tea… When I’m in Spain, I like to have a cold drink called leche merengada. The literal translation is meringue milk. It is common to find it in the ice cream shops during the summer months.

This drink became very popular in Madrid at the end of the XVIII century. Some of the classic Spanish literature novels such as Fortunata y Jacinta by Benito Perez talk about the drink. There is also a very famous children’s song that talks about the cow and the leche merengada:

Tengo una vaca lechera

No es una vaca cualquiera

Me da leche merengada

¡Hay que vaca tan salada!

Tolón, tolón

I translated it in English;

I have a dairy cow

It’s no ordinary cow,

It gives me meringue milk.

Oh! What a nice cow!

Tolon, tolon. (No translation! Just a silly saying)

The drink is the easiest ever to make. It is sweetened milk sprinkled with cinnamon and topped with whipped white egg. Sounds good right?! Everyone likes it, kids and adults. So let’s get into the recipe!

Leche merengada

If you enjoy this recipe you should visit my blog Joy Of Spanish Cooking and read some of my other delicious shares

Leche (milk) Merengada

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Recipe details

Yield 1 drink
Time spent: Prep time: 2 Hours Cook time: 15 Minutes Total time: 2 hr 15 min

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% Daily value

Instructions

In a sauce pan, mix the milk, sugar, lemon peel and cinnamon stick over medium heat. Stir constantly until it just boils, then turn off the heat.
Remove the lemon peel and cinnamon stick, then pour the mixture into a bowl.
Let it cool at room temperature and then place it into the freezer for a couple of hours.
You just want it to be very cold to serve, not frozen. (You can make it at night for the next day. Instead of placing it in the freezer, place it into the refrigerator).
In a separate bowl, whip the 2 egg whites into a meringue. Until the egg whites thicken and get light and airy. Pour the whipped egg whites into the icy cold milk mixture and stir.
I like to sprinkle a little bit of cinnamon on top of the drink. Ready to serve!
Yuuuuummm!! I love it!
Bon profit!

Comments

Kathy on Feb 03, 2022

With a quart of milk as the first ingredient, is this tray one serving?

Like Reply
Nanfree on Feb 04, 2022

What about the fact we have been told not to eat (drink) raw eggs?

5 Reply
- See 1 previous
- Rini on Aug 11, 2022
  
  The sugar cooks those raw eggs, so if it makes you nervous to eat them like that, you could add the sugar to the egg whites while beating them into an actual meringue and skip the sugar in the milk, or... add half the sugar to the milk and the other half to the egg whites. Personally, I don't mind the raw eggs... I ate them like that a million times, before, and never got sick but I totally understand your concern.🙂
  
  2
- Marcia whitney on Aug 10, 2023
  
  I believe it is the egg yolks that we are advised not to eat unciooked.
  
  Like