Patriotic Meringue Kisses (Printable Version)
Airy, crisp meringue kisses in red, white, and blue—pipe, bake low, and cool for melt-in-your-mouth shells.
# What You Need:
→ Meringue Base
01 - 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
02 - 1 cup granulated sugar
03 - 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
04 - 1/4 teaspoon salt
05 - 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
→ Food Coloring
06 - Red gel food coloring
07 - Blue gel food coloring
# How To Make:
01 - Preheat oven to 200°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
02 - In a clean, grease-free mixing bowl, combine egg whites and cream of tartar. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form.
03 - Gradually add sugar, about one tablespoon at a time, and continue beating on high speed until the meringue reaches stiff, glossy peaks, approximately 5 to 7 minutes.
04 - Beat in salt and vanilla extract until just combined.
05 - Fit a piping bag with a large star or round tip. Using a clean food-safe brush, paint three stripes inside the bag: one with red gel food coloring, one with blue, and leave one section plain for white.
06 - Gently spoon the meringue mixture into the prepared piping bag, keeping the painted stripes intact.
07 - Pipe small mound-shaped kisses, approximately 1 to 1.5 inches wide, onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing each about 1 inch apart.
08 - Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes until the kisses are dry and crisp. Turn the oven off and allow meringues to cool inside with the door closed for 1 hour to further dry.
09 - Carefully peel meringues from the parchment and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- These meringue kisses melt as soon as they hit your tongue and look impossibly festive on any spread.
- They’re light, crisp, and surprisingly easy to pull off, even if you’re a self-confessed non-baker.
02 -
- Any trace of grease in your bowl or on your beaters is the mortal enemy of fluffy meringue—wipe everything down just in case.
- Over-mixing at the end will turn your glossy mountains into grainy craters, so stop as soon as everything's just combined.
03 -
- If a yolk breaks and gets into your whites, start over—just a speck will ruin the batch.
- A little patience with low heat is the true secret to candy-shell perfection.