July 20, 2021

Classic Meringue Kisses

Understated, delicate, magical.

This is a classic recipe for meringue kisses that is simple to make, and even simpler to eat. The resulting meringue kisses are light, melt in your mouth and are elegant on any dessert display.

Part of the beauty in making meringues is their versatility. The below recipe is for simple vanilla meringue kisses however you can just as easily adapt the recipe to make cocoa meringues, espresso meringues, or even nutty meringues. Also, as with any good cookie – these vanilla meringues can be dipped in chocolate for an even fancier occasion!

You will only need 4 simple ingredients to make these angelic cookies:

Egg whites
Sugar
Vanilla
Cream of tartar (although often misleading – this is a powder! Often found where you find baking soda/powder, if you don’t have cream of tartar on hand – any small amount of acid, like a drop or two of lemon juice will do)

Let’s make some meringue kisses!

Preheat your oven to 200F.

Thoroughly clean and dry the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl, if using an electric mixer.

You want to make sure that there is no oily residue on the bowl as this will prevent the egg whites from whipping up properly.

Separate egg whites one at a time into a small bowl then transfer each white to the bowl of your stand mixer.

Add the cream of tartar and salt to the egg white containing bowl and begin mixing on low.

Once frothy, gradually increase the speed to high and begin slowly adding in the sugar (1 tablespoon at a time). *this may seem too slow, however this step makes a big difference in how well dissolved the sugar is in the final meringues is*

After all the sugar has been added to the egg whites, add the vanilla.

Continue whisking the meringue mixture until it has a thick marshmallow-y consistency and can hold glossy, stiff peaks.

**A good test to see if the mixture is smooth is to rub a bit of meringue in between your fingers to see if you feel any sugar granules. If so, I continue whisking.**

Add small dollops of meringue to the corners of your baking sheet to secure the parchment paper down. **The meringue acts like glue and gives you a nice stable base to pipe on.**

Pipe your meringues allowing at least an inch of space between each for expansion and airflow.

Bake for 1 hour, then turn off oven and keep meringues inside for an additional 1-2 hours.

The meringue cookies are done when you are be able to lift them off the baking sheet and they feel dry and light.

Meringue Kisses

Understated, delicate, magical. This is a classic recipe for meringue kisses that is simple to make, and even simpler to eat. The resulting meringue kisses are light, melt in your mouth and are elegant on any dessert display.

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 1

resting time in dry oven 1-2 hours 2

Total Time 3 30

Servings depending on the size

Equipment

piping tip (any)
parchment paper/silicone baking sheets
piping bag
electric mixer (preferably stand mixer)

Ingredients

4 Eggs large
1 cup Sugar Granulated or Caster
1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar
1/4 tsp Salt
2 tsp Vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 200F.
In the clean bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg whites (carefully separated from yolks to ensure no oily residue).
Add the cream or tartar and salt to the bowl. Begin mixing on low. Once frothy, gradually increase the speed to high and begin slowly adding in the sugar (1 tablespoon at a time)
After all of the sugar has been incorporated, add the vanilla.
Once a stiff peak consistency has been achieved, turn off mixture.
Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a large star attachment or with a piping tip of your choice.
Add small dollops of meringue to the corners of your baking sheet, to prevent the parchment paper from sliding.
Pipe your meringues allowing at least an inch of space between each.
Bake the meringues on the centre rack of the oven, at 200F for 1 hour.
Turn off the oven and leave the meringues inside for an extra 1-2 hour with the door propped open to allow for continued drying.

Notes

Sofia’s Tips:

Separating your egg whites one at a time, prevents contamination of oily yolks to the entire egg white mixture if anything bad happens.
Don’t forget to slowly incorporate the sugar! This is best done 1 tablespoon at a time, as the mixer runs.
If you are not using a convection oven, I recommend using the centre rack of your oven for the most even bake.
These meringues can be made in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer instead of a stand mixer – just allow for more time for the egg whites to whip up to the right volume.