Strawberry and chocolate are a great combination, especially for Valentine's Day. I love playing with these flavors and creating cookies that fit the occasion. So, in honor of Valentine's Day, I made strawberry and chocolate meringue cookies.
Meringues can come in two types chewy or dry on the inside. Of course it is said that meringue is not to be chewy but I like them that way also. As long as the outsides are dry and crunchy I will take either for the inside. Chewy on the inside just means that when you baked them they did not have enough drying time.
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Ingredients
- Egg whites
- Cream of tarter
- Sugar white
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Freeze-dried strawberry (Amazon link)
- Strawberry extract
- Coloring gel
Making Great Meringue Cookies
Let's take the mystery out of meringue. First, start with a clean, dry mixing bowl that you will use on a stand mixer or handheld to whip your egg whites. Just so you know, you will need the whipping attachment for your mixer. My vote is a stand mixer; getting the egg whites to a stiff peak takes quite a while.
I get as much ready as I can before I start. Grab two sheet pans and parchment paper, two bowls for the two flavors, and have two piping bags ready. My one tip is a little smaller than the other one (by accident), but they are both French Open Star tips. It comes in all sizes, but I prefer the large.
Weigh or measure the sugar and set it aside.
Freeze-Dried Strawberries
Since I am flavoring my meringue, I want to get that ready first. Take the freeze-dried strawberries and pulse to powder in a food processor. That is the easiest to get them to a dust state.
After you pulse the freeze-dried strawberries, you will have some bigger pieces in the bottom of the bowl.
Add all the strawberries from the food processor to a strainer and sift to filter out any big pieces.
The chocolate is already in powder form, so you are good to go for the chocolate flavor.
Separating Eggs for Meringue
Now the eggs, you want them room temperature. I start with three bowls. Number 1 bowl is for the clean egg whites, number 2 bowl for the egg yolks and number 3 bowl is to separate the yolk from the white part.
Having a separate bowl (1) for egg whites is beneficial when separating them. If the yolk breaks in bowl 3 while separating a single egg, it won't spoil the other whites that you have in bowl 1. Egg whites can't be used if mixed with yolk (not even a speck). So, if a yolk breaks, you'll only lose one egg, not all.
The Whipping of Egg Whites
Add the egg whites to your mixer bowl and, on medium speed, get the egg whites to a frothy state.
Once it is frothy, add the cream of tartar and turn the mixer on high.
Next, add the sugar one tablespoon at a time. It will not be smooth but very grainy if you rush the sugar.
Whip on high for a good 15 minutes. You want stiff peaks. I scrape down the sides and test the meringue. Is the meringue stiff if I turn it upside down? Is it shiny? If you run a little meringue between your fingers, is it silky, or can you feel grains of sugar?
Usually, you will get stiff peaks first. But it may not be shiny, and you can still feel grains of sugar. Put the whip attachment back on the mixer, turn the mixer on high, whip the meringue for another 3 minutes, and try testing again.
Once you have gotten to the right consistency, it is on to add the flavors.
Adding Flavor Piping and Baking
Preheat your oven to 225°F (110°C) and line two sheet pans with parchment paper. The trick with meringue is not to let it sit too long before baking. So, I have everything prepared to get the flavoring into the egg whites and then into the piping bags so I can pipe the cookies and pop them into the oven as soon as possible.
Divide the mixer bowl whipped egg whites into two bowls.
Add the freeze-dried strawberry powder, the strawberry extract, and 1 to 2 drops of red coloring gel into one bowl and gently fold it into the stiff egg whites. Add the cocoa powder and 1 to 2 drops of the brown coloring gel in the other bowl. Then, gently fold that into the stiff egg whites.
Fill one piping bag with the strawberry meringue and the other piping bag with the chocolate meringue.
I pipe chocolate on one and the strawberry on the other. When piping you might want to weigh down the corners. Piping onto parchment paper it has a tendency to pull the parchment paper up when you pull the piping bag up.
Since the bake time is 45 minutes and it takes a while for the meringue to dry out, I tilt the one pan a little to get both sheet pans in the oven. As you can see, the sheet pan on top is not touching the cookies on the lower pan.
Bake at 225°F (110°C) for 45 minutes, then turn the oven off and do not open the door. Let them sit in the oven for 2 hours. Do not open the oven door! If you peak, the middle may collapse. The cookies need this time to dry.
The cookies are done when they pull off the parchment paper with no resistance, and they are as light as a feather.
Enjoy!
FAQ's
Yes they are!
The freeze-dried strawberries are the best way to flavor the meringue. I would not mix fresh strawberries into my stiff egg whites.
They say you can use a small amount of white vinegar or lemon juice, but this is iffy. Nothing works better to stabilize egg whites than cream of tarter.
Try a Few Other Meringue Cookies
Recipe
Strawberry and Chocolate Meringue Cookies
Barbara HallWould you like to save this recipe?
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Ingredients
- 4 (4) Egg whites room temperature
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) Cream of tarter
- 1 cup (200 g) Sugar white
- 2 Tablespoon (2 Tablespoon) Unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 Tablespoon (2 Tablespoon) Freeze dried strawberry ground
- ¼ teaspoon (0.25 teaspoon) Strawberry extract
- 1 to 2 drops (1 to 2 drops) Coloring gel red and brown
Instructions
- In a food processor, pulse the freeze-dried strawberries. You want as much of the strawberries to be dust in consistency. Add the strawberries to a strainer and sift out the large pieces. Next, weigh or measure the sugar and set it aside.
- Separate four eggs so you have the whites. I start with three bowls. One is for the egg whites, one is to separate the yolk from the whites, and the third bowl is for the egg yolks. The reason to separate the yolk from the whites in a separate bowl is that if any of the yolks would leak into the egg white, you can not use the egg white. This way, you do not contaminate any already separated egg whites.
- Add the four egg whites to a stand mixer (using the whisk beater) and beat on medium speed until they are frothy. Next, add the cream of tartar and turn the mixer to high.
- Continue beating the egg whites at high speed. IMPORTANT STEP - SLOWLY add one tablespoon of the sugar at a time. You want the sugar to be incorporated into the egg white. After you have added all the sugar, continue on high until you get stiff peaks. This could take 15 minutes or a little longer if necessary.
- You should be able to take the whisk beater, and if you turn it up, the peaks should not droop. If you touch the meringue, it should feel stiff and look shiny. Also, rub a little of the meringue between your fingers, and it should feel smooth, not grainy. If it is still grainy, whip it for another three minutes and test it again.
- Split the meringue into two bowls. Add the cocoa powder and the brown coloring gel in one and mix gently. Add the strawberry powder, strawberry extract, and red coloring gel to the other bowl. Fill the two piping bags that have large French open star tips. Pipe them onto two cookie sheet pans lined with parchment paper. You may want to weigh the corners down since the parchment paper tends to pull up when you lift the piping bag to start a new cookie.
- Place both pans into the oven and bake at 225°F (110°C) for 45 minutes. Then, turn the oven off and let them sit in the oven for 2 hours. Do not open the oven door; if you do and the cool air hits the cookies, they will sink into themselves and not dry. They are good when there is no resistance when taking them off the parchment paper, and they are light as a feather. Once you open the oven door, you can not close it again and continue baking.
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NUTRITION DISCLAIMER
I am not a certified Dietitian or Nutritionist. The nutrition amounts given below are provided through a program and are only a guideline.
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