1

I've been trying to make Pastila from the following blog post.

However, I can't eat egg whites, so based on a conversation I had in the comments, I was suggested to use aquafaba as a substitute.

Here's my progress:

Peeled some granny Smith apples and cored them

Baked with a quarter inch of water for an hour, and then extracted the applesauce.

Mixed in aquafaba in a ratio of 1 apple to one tablespoon.

Whipped it for 20 minutes in my stand mixer (didn't turn out white as in the guide, but still was foamy)

Poured into a pan and have been baking for 8 hours at 180 F

However, it's still very loose. Any ideas?

Rushabh Mehta
  • 113
  • 5
  • Hi. I see on the recipe they describe it as "marshmallow", but looks more like a kind of soft meringue concoction which probably relies on the fact that the proteins in egg white sets when cooked. So I think you might need to add something which actually sets when cooked, perhaps a little cornflour (aka cornstarch)? – Billy Kerr Dec 24 '21 at 22:07
  • @BillyKerr Ah that would make sense. Oh welp – Rushabh Mehta Dec 24 '21 at 22:22
  • This is just an idea though! Maybe experiment before you make a whole batch and find out it doesn't work and waste all your ingredients. – Billy Kerr Dec 24 '21 at 22:36
  • 3
    I don't think that's it - aquafaba sets to produce fine meringues (I did this the other day while I was making vegan pastila, in fact!) I think the issue is more likely (a) the amount of water left in the apple sauce - I cooked this down on the hob for about twenty minutes - (b) the consistency of the sauce - did you blend the sauce or leave it fairly chunky? I think it needs blended - or (c) the ratio of aquafaba to liquid. – Rdd Dec 24 '21 at 22:36
  • 1
    @Rdd - yeah that would make sense too. Maybe the juice is diluting it too much. – Billy Kerr Dec 24 '21 at 22:38
  • @Rdd It was pretty smooth, but yea, pretty wet too. Good to know – Rushabh Mehta Dec 24 '21 at 22:40
  • pretty sure that's your problem. Cook about half the water off and give it another try - it's a lot of effort but worth making! – Rdd Dec 24 '21 at 23:04
  • 2
    @Rdd could you please post this as an answer instead of commenting? Remember that answers in comments are discouraged and that comments can (and will) be removed at some point. – Stephie Dec 25 '21 at 07:15
  • Could also be an acidity problem; perhaps your apples were more acidic and this resulted in the proteins not setting "properly" with the substitution of the aquafaba. – bob1 Dec 25 '21 at 19:50
  • @bob1 Huh, the recipe specifically asked for really acidic apples, and I got these accordingly. I'll make sure not to do that next time. – Rushabh Mehta Dec 25 '21 at 21:05
  • @DonThousand if the recipe called for extra acidity, then it should work - perhaps yours weren't acidic enough? pH can play a role in these sorts of things. – bob1 Dec 27 '21 at 03:04
  • @bob1 The recipe is similar to a meringue, and meringues (including aquafaba meringues) are generally improved by the addition of (acidic) cream of tartar. – Rdd Dec 28 '21 at 23:11

1 Answers1

2

As Billy Kerr commented, pastila is really quite similar to a meringue. Aquafaba sets to produce fine meringues (I did this the other day while I was making vegan pastila, in fact!) so this substitution itself likely isn't the problem.

I think the issue is more likely (a) the amount of water left in the apple sauce affecting the ratio of water to aquafaba (I cooked the puree down on the hob for about twenty minutes) or (b) the consistency of the sauce - did you blend the sauce or leave it fairly chunky? I think it needs blended. My guess would be option (a).

Rdd
  • 685
  • 5
  • 7