I made these chocolate meringue over the weekend. I am not a big fan of meringue but these cookies look so pretty in the book. And I really want to pipe those s-shaped swirls. Yes, I know! I want to bake these because I want to pipe the pretty swirls. I am nuts!
The recipe is from Rose's Christmas Cookies. Technically it's supposed to be Swiss Mocha Meringue but I don't have espresso powder on hand.
It is a pretty easy recipe to put together. Whisk the egg whites until foamy, add cream of tartar, add a bit of sugar, and whisk until stiff peaks form. Then boil the sugar and water until it reaches the 240-250 degrees. To be safe, I always took it off the heat when it reaches 230 as I know it will continue cooking and I don't want to have caramel forming. Then add the sugar syrup in 3-4 additions to the meringue. Then add the melted unsweetened chocolate.
Per the recipe Rose recommends adding a few drops of red food coloring to give the cookies a richer chocolate color. I added a few drops too many and they turned out pink, :). I like the color though.
After the batter is piped onto the cookie sheets, it needs to dry out for 2 hours or until the meringue stays intact when touched with a finger.
I ended up letting it dry for 2 1/2 hours. And yet they crack! Rose said in her book that the meringue would crack when it's not dried up properly. I think mine is properly dried so I 'm not sure what happened but every single one of the crack! Oh well, they are still pretty and tasted very good. I love the chocolatey smell and flavor.
They look lovely! Which tip did you use? I too have been wanting to make an S swirl like that :o) As for making things just to try something out, even if you're not crazy about it, I do that too, ha ha.
ReplyDeleteThanks Hanaa! I use the 1 M star tip (I think). It's the largest star tip that Michaels carry.
ReplyDeleteI also like the color on them... I found these tips in cooking Meringue...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.funandfoodcafe.com/2008/08/recipe-meringue-baking-perfect-tips.html
I think there is a bit in there about why they would crack... But who cares... if they taste good - right?
I love the S swirl too! It's a gorgeous piping pattern. You did well!
ReplyDelete