A classic recipe for meringue cookies! These little meringues only call for 5 ingredients, and at under 25 calories a pop they are easily the lightest recipe on my blog! The technique takes a little bit of practice, and a long time in the oven, but I’ll walk you through the steps in the recipe so that you can make your own perfect meringues!
Sweet & Simple Meringue Cookies
I have another recipe for your holiday cookie tray today — classic meringue cookies!
Meringues only require 5 ingredients to make, but they can be a little bit finicky — even the weather can affect them. Winter is a great time to try them out, as you’re much less likely to have a very humid day this time of year, and humidity is one of the greatest nemesis of meringue cookies.
I’ve been making this recipe over and over again the past few months to make sure that I understood all of the ins and outs of making perfect meringue cookies, and I’m finally ready to share what I’ve learned with you, so that you too can make these addictive little meringue cookies.
If you’ve never had one, meringues are light, airy cookies with crisp interiors. I’m sharing a classic vanilla meringue recipe today (with notes on how to add your own different flavors!). The taste always reminds me of marshmallow 😍.
Making Meringue: Stiff Peaks
This recipe calls for four egg whites and a single cup of sugar. That may not seem like it’s going to yield you very many meringues when you start, but you’ll be surprised by how much these ingredients increase in volume.
As you add the sugar, the mixture will become thick, glossy, and sticky, that’s exactly what you are looking for! You’ll also want the mixture to achieve stiff peaks — that’s how you’ll know that it’s done.
If you’ve made my angel food cake, whipped cream, or Swiss meringue buttercream before, then you’re already familiar with the concept of stiff peaks. It means that when you turn the batter over (like you can see in the image below with the meringue cookie batter), the peak that forms stands tall and does not fold back into itself. I’ve included a video in today’s post so you can see exactly how the meringue should look, in case you haven’t ever made meringue before.
Tips for No-Fail Meringue Cookies
- Make sure that the bowl and beater that you are using to beat your meringue is completely grease and moisture free. Any moisture can ruin your meringues.
- Crack your eggs in a separate bowl when separating the whites. Even a tiny bit of yolk can ruin your meringues, so crack each egg in a small bowl before adding it to the bowl that you will be mixing the meringue batter in.
- Add the sugar gradually, one Tablespoon at a time, and give it a chance to dissolve before adding more.
- You can test that the sugar is completely absorbed by taking a small bit of the batter and rubbing it between your fingers — if it’s not, it’ll feel gritty.
- Don’t stop until you get stiff peaks. The batter will take several minutes, at least, of beating to achieve stiff peaks, but keep going. It will increase in volume and be very thick and glossy — that’s what you’re looking for! See the photo above or the video for a visual.
- Don’t over-beat your batter, either! Once you hit stiff peaks, stop! You can stir in your extract and any food coloring at this point, but don’t push it because over-beating the batter is just as bad as not beating it enough.
- If you’ve found that your meringues have gotten soft after you finished baking them, you can actually pop them back in the oven at 225F for another 10-20 minutes (watch them, if they begin to turn golden brown around the edges turn off the heat immediately) and then let them cool in the oven for another hour, this has always worked for me with meringues that start to get chewy.
Adding Color and Other Flavoring
Once you get the hang of making meringues, feel free to play with lots of different flavors and colors — I made these Peppermint Bark Meringues by adding ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract, striping the piping bag with red food coloring (I used a clean paintbrush that I only use for baking), and dipping the baked, cooled meringue cookies in dark chocolate and crushed peppermint pieces!
Enjoy!
More Christmas Treats You Might Like:
Meringue Cookies
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites room temperature
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract¹
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 225F (105C) and line a large cookie sheet (or two regular-sized cookie sheets -- make sure they will fit in your oven together) with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Combine egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt in a large, completely clean, completely grease-free bowl².4 large egg whites, ½ teaspoon cream of tartar, ⅛ teaspoon salt
- Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer (with either the whisk or paddle attachment), stir on low speed until mixture becomes foamy.
- Increase speed to high.
- With mixer on high, gradually add sugar, about 1 Tablespoon at a time, stirring after each addition until sugar is dissolved (about 15-20 seconds between each addition).1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- Beat until mixture is thick, shiny, and has increased in volume. Mixture should have stiff peaks and sugar should be completely dissolved (you can test this by rubbing a small bit of the mixture between your fingers, if it feels gritty, the sugar isn't dissolved).
- Stir in vanilla extract and any other extract you may like to use. If using food coloring, add the food coloring at this stage, too.1 teaspoon vanilla extract¹
- Fit a large disposable piping bag with a large tip (I used Ateco 846, but any large star tip will work or you can just snip the edge of the piping bag for a “kiss” formation) and transfer meringue to prepared piping bag and pipe onto prepared cookie sheet. The meringue cookies can be pretty close to each other as they won’t spread, and you will want to bake all of the cookies at the same time, so make sure you make enough space.
- Bake on 225F (105C) for 1 hour. Turn off the oven once the baking time has passed, and do not open the oven. Leave the oven door closed and allow cookies to cool completely in the oven (1-2 hours) before removing.
- Meringue cookies should be crisp and can be stored in an airtight container. Keep away from heat and moisture as it can soften your meringues.
Notes
Recipes to use those leftover egg yolks:
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Diane
I love making these. Vanilla is my favorite and I really love when I have vanilla bean paste (Makes me feel like of fancy) 🙂 I make these whenever I feel like having something old fashioned. The recipe makes quite a few so my sweet tooth is satisfied for a few days even when I share with friends or neighbors. They’re really good using raspberry extract (like you suggested by cutting the vanilla to a half tsp) or even cherry extract (hard to find).
Marte Connelly
I’d like to use caramel flavoring and add pumpkin spice. Would that deflate the meringue if I added 1 teaspoon of spice near the end of whipping?
Also, could I use Splenda for all or part of the sugar?.
Sam
Hi Marte! I think you could get away with the pumpkin spice but if the flavoring contains oil it will likely deflate your meringue unfortunately. I am not familiar with using splenda so I can’t say about that, I’m sorry (maybe someone else who has tried it can chime in)! Would love to know how it turns out for you!
Connie Reading
I’m gonna use swerve powdered sugar. I’ll let u know how it does. swerve measures the same as sugar but the granules don’t seem to melt as good as regular sugar so then I think I’m going to use the powdered
Ceejay
Fake sugar does not work in meringue. even a little. it will burn.
Sam
Thanks Ceejay!
Tracy
I have a gas stove, are instructions the same for gas stoves? Thank you!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Tracy! Because of the pilot light, they may dry out faster after baking. We would still leave them in the oven, but check them sooner (maybe after 1 hour). Hope that helps!
Jessica
Hello! I don’t have a piping bag and parchment paper so I was wondering if putting the mixture into a ziploc bag, cutting the tip and piping circles onto foil would work as well?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
The ziploc will work, but we would just bake them directly on the cookie sheet vs using the aluminum foil 🙂
B1ur
Hello! I was wondering about why the recipe calls for room temp egg whites. Would refrigerated work?
Sam
Room temperature egg whites will whip to stiff peaks better so I recommend using them at room temperature. I do have a guide on how to quickly bring eggs to room temperature. Just be sure to dry them well before cracking.
Alexis
I always use eggs out of the fridge and my meringues always turn out! But that’s just my experience 🙂
Madi
Hello!
Mine deflated when I stuck them in the oven, and it took a very long time when mixing for them to start peaking.
Any suggestions?
Sam
Hi Madi, did they fully whip to stiff peaks? It sounds like maybe some moisture or egg yolk got in with the egg whites 🙁
Lauri Howard
I always wipe down my mixer bowl and whisking blade with white vinegar before I make meringues. Also, I never try to separate my eggs directly into the mixing bowl. I always use two small bowls, one for the yolks and one for the whites. If I break a yolk, I don’t use that egg in my meringues.
Shannon MT Huang
hi
is the oven temperature for convention or convection oven?
roughly how long can they be kept exposed on the countertop without going chewy/soft?
can i reheat them repeatedly if they are not eaten up?
Sam
Hi Shannon! This is a conventional oven temperature. As far as leaving them out and exposed, that is completely dependent on your environment. Too much humidity and it won’t take long for them to soften, or if you have a drier air they could last longer. You can reheat them. I have instructions on how to do it in the post. 🙂
Makayla
I read online that you can substitute cream of tartar for lemon juice or vinegar. Is this true?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Makayla! Some people have substituted vinegar or lemon juice with success. Hope that helps!
Juliana
Excellent recipe it’s my first time making them and I didn’t expect the texture to come out, but they were perfectly fluffy. I added some peppermint extract and green food coloring to half the batch and they turned out great.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yum! We’re so happy you enjoyed them, Juliana ❤️
Nonni
Perfect! Best merengue cookies I’ve ever eaten. I did use the vanilla extract. They were much easier to make than I thought they would be!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so glad you gave them a try, Nonni! Enjoy ☺️
Bruce
I was disappointed that you don’t give the grams for egg whites in your recipes. Usually that would be OK, because you just crack four eggs, but I had a dozen whites left from two batches of creme brulee, so I can’t just measure out four. According to America’s Test Kitchen, 4 large egg whites weigh 135 grams, in case anyone else need to know.
Excellent meringues, and your video, as always, is very informative. I added mini chocolate chips to make what are called Soldier’s Kisses (which could also be made with brown sugar, but the meringue doesn’t get as stiff).
Susan Cullen
Can I halve the recipe?
Sam
Sure thing! 🙂
Tanner Bannon
How much unsweetened cocoa powder should I add if I want to make chocolate Meringues?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Tanner! We’d recommend you follow our recipe for chocolate meringues instead 😊
Bliss
This was such a fun and experimental project to do with my family.I love this Recipe
ACT
Can you freeze these for later enjoyment after they are baked?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Freezing these can be risky. You have to be very careful that there isn’t any moisture for the meringues to absorb while thawing, which can prove to be a bit tricky. 🙁
Richard
hi. how long can my mixture stay firm even if I will not bake it yet? can I frozen my mixture if I’m not going to bake it or what will I do to keep it? thank you.
Sam
Hi Richard! I wouldn’t recommend storing the uncooked batter. It starts to deflate rather quickly. 🙁
Isa
Awesome cookies! Great no-fail recipe.
Abby
I love these soo much! I make them almost every Wednesday for my group! I have this recipe in my recipe book!
Cindy Utz
Do you store in the refrigerator? How long will they stay fresh? I think I’m going to try some for my daughters baby shower and would like to make them ahead of time if that’s possible.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Cindy! These cookies will stay fresh for about 2 weeks stored in an airtight container at room temperature. We hope you love them!