Meringues

For various and sundry reasons, I happened to have a few extra egg whites in the fridge. I don't mind separating eggs, but am sometimes at a loss for what to do with the un-called-for portion of the egg. You know, like when you make an angel food cake using a dozen egg whites - what do you do with a dozen egg yolks? Well, this week, I had the opposite situation - I needed three egg yolks for my recipe, and was thus left with three egg whites. Which were just calling out to me to be made into meringue cookies.

I have made meringues a couple of times, and always enjoy them, but the recipe that I use calls for two egg whites, and I had three. Rather than adjust the recipe up by 50% (I know, not tough...), I took the opportunity to look for a new recipe. Because I am silly like that.

The thing I found, when looking at meringue recipes, is that they are all pretty similar, and that the main differences have to do with flavorings and scale. I wanted simple, so I chose this recipe.

This is yet another time when I love my KitchenAid mixer. Using the whisk attachment, making these cookies was a breeze. I chose vanilla extract, rather than almond, since I love vanilla. I also don't have a pastry bag or any of the fancy tips that go along with it, so I just spooned the meringues onto my baking sheet, so the shapes aren't quite as pretty as those in the link, but they turned out really well. They are seriously addictive, and everyone in the family loves them. It's a good thing I have three more egg whites now, just waiting to be used!

Meringue Cookies

(only slightly adapted from All That Splatters)

3 large egg whites

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

3/4 cup superfine or caster sugar (or granulated sugar, given about 30 seconds in the blender or food processor)

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 200 degrees and place the rack in the center position. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium-low speed until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and continue to beat the whites until they hold soft peaks. Add the sugar, a little at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue holds very stiff peaks. Beat in the vanilla extract.

Shape the cookies with a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4 inch star tip or with a plastic zip top bag with the corner snipped off, or you can use a teaspoon to spoon the batter onto the prepared pan.

Bake for 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 hours, rotating the pan halfway through. The meringues are done when they are pale in color and fairly crisp. Turn off the oven and open the door just a crack. Leave the meringues in the oven to dry fully, a few hours to overnight.

Enjoy!