In a clean electric mixing bowl or bowl that can handle heat with an electric mixer using a whisk attachment ( the bowl needs to be clean or it will effect your eggs ability to whip into peaks), add your egg whites and begin beating until they get to soft peaks. Soft peaks are when you dip the end of your whisk in and the egg whites form a peak then it quickly slumps to the side or off the whisk.

Once to that stage, set egg whites aside while you make your sugar mixture.

In a sauce pan, add sugar, corn syrup, water, vanilla and a pinch of salt, stir together and bring mixture to a boil.

Attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pot. I also always add a glass of ice water to the side so I can manually check my candy stage, see directions for that below.

Once sugar mixture is to 270 F. or at soft crack stage, remove from stove and bring to mixing bowl. Turn mixer on while you pour the hot sugar towards the inside side of the bowl, that way it won't splash hot sugar around and it won't create sugar art on the whisk but instead goes directly into the egg white mixture.

Let the mixture whisk on high for 5 minutes or until mixture gets shiny and fluffy and cools down to a warm temperature.

Use to frost cakes, frost or fill cookies, add to baked Alaska or any dessert you want to add it too.

*Cold water candy test. You do this by dipping a spoon into hot sugar mixture and pouring a spoonful into the glass of cold water, then feeling the mixture with your fingers. If it quickly falls apart it's thread stage, if it forms a soft squishy ball it's soft ball stage, if it forms a firm ball that's hard ball stage, a really firm ball that only gives way when you pull hard, that soft crack and if it harden immediately and you can break it, that is hard crack stage.