Christmas Meringue Trees

 

Any edible Christmas tree? Come on....you can't pass these up! They are light and fluffy, as a meringue should be, with that great crunch on the outside. There is also a slight hint of almond from the extract that sends these trees over the edge!

Ingredients:

4 egg whites, room temperature
1 c. sugar
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar
2 "dots" green food coloring
1/8 tsp. almond extract
Sprinkles (and stars for a tree topper)

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. With the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in an electric mixer for around 5 minutes until peaks start to form. Add the almond extract and green coloring and whip for another minute or so.

 Using a star tip, pipe the mini trees using a piping bag, about two inches high. Make sure they are an inch apart (they don't grow as they bake). Add your sprinkles and stars and bake for two hours. Turn the oven off and let them sit for another two hours with cracking the door just slightly. Serve or store in an airtight container.

Strawberry Heart Meringues

 

Ingredients:

3 egg whites
1/4 tsp. salt
1 package Strawberry Kool-Aid mix
3/4 c. sugar
1 Tbs. white distilled vinegar

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. In an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites and salt together until foamy. Add in the Kool-Aid mix and then the sugar, a small amount at a time. Whisk on high speed until stiff peaks form, and then add in the vinegar and continue to mix for another minute or so. Spoon into a piping bag with your choice of tip. For Valentines day, I piped most of the meringue batter into heart shapes. Bake for 25 minutes in the oven, and then turn the oven off and keep in the oven for another 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer the parchment with meringues to a wire rack to cool fully. Peel off and store in a container that has venting.

Pink Raspberry Meringues

Ingredients:

3 egg whites
1/8 tsp. salt
1 small pkg. raspberry Jell-o mix, sugar free fat free
3/4 c. sugar
1 Tbs. white distilled vinegar
Sprinkles

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Beat the egg whites and salt together with an electric mixer on high speed until foaming. Add the Jell-O and sugar, and beat until the mixture forms stiff peaks. Add vinegar on slow speed until well incorporated. Pipe by the tablespoon full on a parchment lined baking sheet. Add sprinkles to the top, and bake for 25 minutes. Turn the oven off and let sit another 20 minutes before removing from the oven and cooling fully on a wire rack. Store  in a container that has venting. If you store in an air tight container, the moisture will cause the meringues to disintegrate.

Multi Berry Meringues

Ingredients:

3 egg whites
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 pkg. Berry Blue (or any multi berry) Jell-o mix, sugar and fat free
3/4 c. sugar
1 Tbs. white distilled vinegar
Sprinkles

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Beat the egg whites in an electric mixer  with the salt until foamy. Add the remaining ingredients, minus the sprinkles, and mix on low speed until everything is well combined. Pipe the mixture by tablespoons into a parchment lined baking sheet. Add multi colored sprinkles on top. Bake for 25 minutes in the oven. Turn the oven off and leave the meringues in the oven to sit for 20 more minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.