There are two basic kinds of cooked meringues. The first (“Italian”) is the syrup-cooked meringue. Sugar is boiled separately with some water to 240 or 250ºF/115–120ºC (the “soft-ball” stage, around 90% sugar, at which fudge and fondant are made), the whites whipped to stiff peaks, and the syrup then streamed and beaten into the whites. The result is a fluffy yet fine-textured, stiff foam. It has enough body to decorate pastries and to hold for a day or two before use, but is also light enough to blend into batters and creams. Because much of the syrup’s heat is lost to the bowl, whisk, and air, the foam mass normally gets no hotter than 130 or 135ºF/55–58ºC, which is insufficient to kill salmonella.