Meringues are one of those simple, delicious, delicate airy chomps! Crispy on the outside, sometimes chewy on the inside. It pairs wonderfully with fruit compotes, whipped cream, or by itself. This recipe calls for finely grated semi sweet chocolate. It creates a delicate speckled pattern and gently creates a cream-looking meringue.
This recipe calls for both cream of tartar and cornstarch for fool proof meringue. Cream of tartar helps to stabilize the egg whites and prevent cracking. The cornstarch mixed with the sugar helps to absorb any liquid left in the meringue so it’s puddle-free. Using cornstarch is especially helpful on a hot, humid day. You won’t see the benefits of using cornstarch until after it is baked.
We are baking at lower oven temperature because higher temperatures can cause meringues to crack and brown. A longer bake at a low temperature leaves you with a smooth, shiny, crisp meringue that blissfully melts in your mouth. If meringues over brown, they may taste burnt and gross.
Tips & Tricks
Egg whites should be room temperature (68-72 degrees). Cold egg whites will take longer to stiffen and will loose volume.
Place cookie sheets on the middle or upper middle racks of oven. If meringues are smaller and lower on rack, they will burn and the taste will suffer.
If you’re making very small meringues, lower oven temperature to 225-250 degrees to avoid burning.
Using Meringue Cookies to Decorate
If you have a lot of leftover meringue cookies, you can use them as decorations on your cakes. I made these chocolate meringues to go with this chocolate cake because I had 5 egg whites leftover from the batter. I think it’s important to make sure you don’t waste ingredients.. especially since egg prices are so astronomical!
Chocolate Meringue Cookies
Equipment
- Piping Bag
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup / 5 egg whites room temperature
- 1 1/4 cup Superfine sugar substitute: regular sugar
- 2 oz Semi sweet chocolate finely grated
- 3/4 tsp Cream of tartar
- 1/4 tsp Cornstarch
- pinch Salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 250°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Whisk the egg whites in a grease-free bowl on high until soft peaks form, approximately 4 minutes. Then gradually whisk in sugar, scraping down bowl a couple times. Continue whisking until the mixture is very stiff and glossy.
- Carefully fold in the remaining sugar, the cornstarch, cream of tartar, salt and grated chocolate with a spatula.
- Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a large star or plain tip. Pipe 20 large rosettes or mounds onto the prepared cookie sheets.
- Bake in preheated oven for about 1 hour, changing the position of the cookie sheets after 30 minutes. Without opening the oven door, turn off the oven and let the meringues cool in the oven for at least 1 hour. Once cold, carefully peel off the parchment paper.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
