Originally Posted by
bkay
Basically, it's a cooked meringue. You whip your whites to a medium peak (preferably in a stand mixer) and add sugar that has been cooked to 235 to 240 degrees in a steady stream. You keep whipping until the whites are room temperature. You can use it anywhere you would use meringue - on a meringue pie, making meringue cups, etc. It is more stable than regular meringue, so it won't weep or break down as quickly as the regular one would.
bkay
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Italian Meringue is a buttercream frosting used on cakes. It is very much like a Swiss Meringue buttercream. Once it is prepared, you cannot bake it. The butter in it would melt and you would have a mess. There is a recipe called Never Fail Meringue (for pies, etc.) which is what you might be thinking of.