Festive Meringue Cookies

Last week I needed a gluten-free cookie for a Christmas party. I wanted a cookie that was easy and fast to whip up, but I also wanted something that looked fun, festive, and pretty.

I came across a recipe in my files that I had made for my daughter’s wedding. I remembered that is was indeed easy, and it turned out so pretty. I made the cookie in yellow for the wedding, but I figured that it wouldn’t be hard at all to make it white or red for Christmas. As a matter of fact, you could make this cookie any color you wish, and you can make a variety of shapes as well.

I used a star tip and piped some meringue out to look like a star. I have also seen a cute meringue cookie that was just dropped on the cookie sheet with a swirl of a spoon, and I have also seen a wreath looking cookie as well as a rose. They are all very pretty and taste delicious. So depending on how much work and effort you want to put into making your cookies, you can decide what you want them to look like. For these cookies, I went really simple.

You can also  sprinkle small chopped nuts or candies on top right after you pipe them out., and if you’re really ambitious – after you bake and cool the cookies you can drizzle  chocolate on them. This is a fun cookies that you can easily make your own.

Meringue Cookies

Ingredients:

• 4 Egg Whites
• ½ tsp. Cream of Tartar
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1 tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
• Food Coloring (or any color you want) or leave white.
• Large star tip and Piping bag

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

• In a bowl (or stand mixer), beat the egg whites on medium-low speed until frothy, about 3-4 minutes.
• Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks begin to form, again about 3-4 minutes.
• Increase the speed to medium and gradually add the sugar.
• Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until stiff peaks form, about 4-5 minutes.
• Add the food coloring (if desired) and beat until fully incorporated.

Transfer the beaten egg white mixture to a piping bag, fitted with a large star tip.

If you don’t have a large star tip then you can of course you any other tip that you have on hand.

You can use a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off if you don’t have a piping bag. Either put the tip in the baggie, or use it without a tip. (this also makes a cute design)

If you don’t have a piping tip or a piping bag, you can use a spoon to drop the meringue on the baking sheet. Swirl the spoon off the meringue as you lift the spoon up. This will leave a cute swirl on top of the cookie.

There are a few fun ways to make these cookies for Christmas. You can either pipe a rose, a star,  or a wreath. Leave about 1 inch between each meringue cookie. To create the rose effect, start in the center and slowly move your tip in a circle around the center – You can go around either once or twice. (I usually go around twice.)

If you want the wreath, make a single circle, or oblong shape. You can quickly drop candy sprinkles on the cookies, or small chopped nuts. After the cookies have baked and completely cooled you can drizzle with chocolate if desired.

Bake the meringue cookies for exactly 45 minutes. Then turn off the oven and leave the meringues inside the oven for at least 2-3  hours. DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR!

A VERY IMPORTANT TIP! Once the cookies are done cooling in the oven, place them immediately in a sealed bag. Once the cookies receive oxygen they start to get soft and lose their crunch – they will also start to stick to each other. It’s best to keep them covered and sealed until you eat them.

Check out my blog at Gluten Free Flower Girl for more gluten free recipes.

–Happy Baking!