Meringue Christmas Tree Cookies

According to the Dictionnaire historique de la langue française, the term meringue first appeared in France in 1691. There are several theories about the origin of the meringue, though nothing reliable.

According to one story a Swiss confectioner of Italian descent named Gasparini, who practiced his art in the small town of Meiringen, may have been the creator of the meringue.

“Others maintain that the word comes from the Polish word marzynka and that the preparation was invented by a chef in the service of King Stanislas I Leszcyński, who later became Duke of Lorraine. “The king passed on the recipe to his daughter, Marie, who introduced it to the French. Queen Marie Antoinette had a great liking for meringues and court lore has it that she made them with her own hands at the Trianon, where she is also said to have made vacherins, which are prepared from a similar mixture,” according to the Larousse Gastronomique, the world’s greatest culinary encyclopedia.

No matter what the origin, meringue cookies have delighted the senses for centuries. When I was little, my grandmother’s sister would always make plain meringue kisses and bring them to us. Whenever I see a meringue kiss, I think of her and my grandma. The recipe below is more exciting and suitable for the Christmas season. It comes from our beloved nanny and my godmother Sandra.

Meringue

The history and science of meringue, from a new book by Linda K. Jackson and Jennifer Evans Gardner

Recipe

Cookie Batter

• 4 egg whites (120-130 g), room temperature

• 180 g granulated sugar

• pinch cream of tartar (optional, but recommended)

• 1/8 tsp orange extract (can be replaced by vanilla extract)

• green or red gel food coloring (do not add liquid food colors as it would affect the consistency)

Decoration

• star sprinkles

• multi color sprinkles

• powdered sugar

• piping bag, open star tip

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 90 C (190 F).

2. Beat the egg whites in a large bowl with an electric mixer until they begin to get foamy.

3. Add a tablespoon of sugar and continue beating. Add orange extract (vanilla extract here). Continue adding sugar by a tablespoon until it has all been beaten in and the mixture is firming up.

Making Christmas Tree Meringues

4. Add the green food coloring while beating to get the color you want and continue beating to form stiff peaks.
5. Transfer the mixture into a piping bag with an open star tip (the size of the cookie will depend on the size of the tip- I prefer smaller cookies).
6. Pipe cookies onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. To make a tree, first pipe one blob, then a slightly smaller one on top of that one and finally the smallest one at the end as depicted in the photographs above.
7. Bake for about 3-4 hours, then turn off the oven and let dry out for an additional few hours. You want the cookies to be completely dry when they’re done. Taste them to make sure they're not gooey. They should not brown! If they do, reduce the temperature next time you make them.

Making Red and White Meringue Kisses

4. To make striped red meringue kisses, take a piping bag and paint red stripes in each with the food coloring as depicted below.
5. Fill the piping bag with the meringue and cut a large opening at the bottom of each bag.
6. Pipe the meringue kisses onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Hold the piping bag upright, squeeze gently and lift away as you stop applying pressure.
7. Repeat over and over again until the whole baking sheet is covered and all the meringue is used up.
8. Bake for about 3-4 hours, then turn off the oven and let dry out for an additional few hours. This is how we always bake meringue cookies and this way they are completely dry when they're done. If you like the interior soft, reduce the amount of time you bake them. The meringue kisses should not brown! If they do, reduce the temperature next time you make them.