Zefir (food)

Zefír

Alternative names	Zephyr, zephir
Type	Meringue
Course	Confectionery
Serving temperature	Room temperature
Main ingredients	fruit purée, egg whites, sugar
Variations	Food coloring, filling
Food energy (per 100 g serving)	329 kcal (1377 kJ)
Nutritional value (per 100 g serving)	Protein 0.7 g Fat 0.1 g Carbohydrate 81.5 g
Glycemic index	65 (medium)
Similar dishes	Krembo
Media: Zefír

Zefir (Russian: зефир [zʲɪˈfʲir], Ukrainian: зефір [zeˈfʲir], Lithuanian: zefyras, may also be spelled zephyr or zephir) is a type of soft confectionery made by whipping fruit and berry purée (mostly apple puree) with sugar and egg whites with subsequent addition of a gelling agent like pectin, carrageenan, agar, or gelatine.^[1] It is produced in the countries of the former Soviet Union.^[2] The name given after the Greek god of the light west wind Zephyr symbolizes its delicate airy consistency.^[3]

Zefir is derived from the traditional Russian^[4] pastila confectionery, but with added egg white foam and a gelling agent.^[5] An addition of unwhipped egg whites to the recipe originated in the town of Kolomna sometime during the 15th century,^[6] and in the 19th century the zefir dessert most likely emerged in its modern form with whipped egg whites due to a French adaptation on the recipe that was later brought back to Russia.^[7]

The form typically resembles traditional meringue.^[8] However, in contrast to commercial-grade meringue, zefir is never crispy. In contrast to most chocolate-coated marshmallow-like confectioneries, zefirs normally come without layers of cookies/biscuits included.

Zefir is usually milky white, but also comes in rose-colored varieties for flavors containing berries and cherries, or may be colored green if it is flavored with apples. Zefir are also commonly sold with a thin, chocolate outer shell, and on occasion, contain berry-flavored jam on the inside.

Zefir is comparable in its consistency to marshmallows or krembo.^[9]

Zefir is traditionally made with a purée base, with sugar and egg whites being added before refrigeration. The mixture is subsequently combined with a heated thickening agent (such as agar or pectin), and then whisked (or in modern times, mixed with an electric mixture), until it is of a tacky consistency that can form peaks. It is then piped out of a starred tip and left to dry out. Although the outside will become more firm with a dry consistency, the inside will remain fluffy and sticky.^[7]

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  A chocolate-coated zefir
• 
  Clamshell design with mixture of pink and white zefir
• 
  Zefir (top shelf) on sale at store in Kharkiv

• List of chocolate-covered foods
• List of Russian desserts

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Zefir (confectionery).