How to bake the easiest cookie ever.
The kids wanted to bake meringues, and I made them let me take pictures in exchange for separating the eggs. Then, we had a discussion over whether a meringue is actually a cookie. Google says it is, indeed, a cookie. So, now you know.
They wanted to try to make lemon meringues, but also make vanilla, because, two kids. So, we divided the recipe in half, and made lemon from one half and vanilla from the other. The lemon was a huge success.
Here’s our recipe. It’s been well-used over the years, because it’s so simple and can be changed up so easily. If you want to get fancy, you can make a huge meringue and layer it in a cake, or make round flat meringues and serve them with berries on top. Layer meringue and ice cream with berries or chocolate…. The options are endless.
For a larger sized meringue, just draw a circle the size you want on parchment paper and spoon or pipe the meringue in place, then bake. You can trace a cake pan or a drinking glass, among other things, to get the size you want. The drinking glass works great, because you can make several meringues of the same size.
You can make more (or less) with this recipe: for each egg white, use 1/3 cup of sugar and 1/4 tsp of vanilla.
Meringues work best with fresh eggs- the egg whites whip up easier and quicker.
If you don’t have a piping bag, place the meringue mixture in a gallon ziploc bag, cut a corner a bit smaller than you think you should, and there you go.
The biggest tip I know is to make sure all your equipment is squeaky clean- any little bit of grease or even water will totally mess up your egg white’s ability to form stiff peaks. The best way I know to separate egg whites from yolks is with my hands, so if you separate eggs that way, make sure your hands are squeaky clean, as well.
Try to get the meringues a consistent size, as that matters in the cooking. We had a newly trained piper piping them out today, so some of the meringues had to come out of the oven sooner than others. Definitely not the end of the world, but you don’t want the small ones to burn while waiting for the larger ones to cook through.
Check them in the oven starting at about 15 minutes. You want them cooked, but not burned. If you like them dryer, you can lower the heat to 250, and cook them for 30-45 minutes- just keep an eye on them. All ovens are a little bit different, and while that doesn’t matter for many things, scorched or raw meringues are pretty gross.
Our eggs make fantastic meringues, and you can save the yolks to make eggnog or throw them in your scrambled eggs the next morning.
Vanilla meringue cookies
Ingredients
- 2 egg whites
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 2/3 cup sugar
Instructions
- Preheat stove to 325°
- Separate whites from yolks- save the yolks to make eggnog!
- Beat egg whites and vanilla until soft peaks form- when you remove the beater, the eggs will stay in a peak, but the peak will fall over.
- Add sugar a spoonful at a time, beating after each spoonful.
- Beat until stiff peaks form- the egg whites will be glossy and the peaks will stay upright when you remove the beater.
- Pipe in 3/4 inch circles onto a parchment lined cookie sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes at 325° This will depend on the size you make them, so start checking at about 15 minutes- you want them toasty and cooked, but not dark brown on the edges.
