Peppermint Meringues

As I mentioned the other day, I love the chocolate and peppermint combination. I need to start baking with it more often throughout the year instead of just at the holidays.

These cookies are very easy to make. The hardest part is probably the piping since meringue is very sticky. I made sure I had everything ready to go before I started. I used a small paintbrush to paint 3 stripes into my piping bag using Wiltons Christmas Red coloring gel. I used my big fat star tip too. The first few came out all white but those will be the taste test cookies. The rest came out with beautiful red stripes.

It also took me a while to get the hang of piping kisses. My piping skills only go as far as piping big swirls on cupcakes. I looked around the Internet and found this site with information about piping various shapes. I somewhat followed what they said for stars. Basically, I started with my tip a little above the cookie sheet. Then I squeezed some and stopped squeezing before pulling the tip straight up from the kiss. I think they turned out pretty good looking.

Chocolate Peppermint Meringue Kisses - from Better Homes and Gardens - I got around 100
4 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
1-1/3 cups sugar
1 cup milk chocolate pieces - I used a mix of dark, bittersweet, and semisweet chips
1 teaspoon shortening
1-1/4 cups crushed striped round peppermint candies* (about 50 candies) - I used 1 box of candy canes

Place egg whites in a large bowl. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line two very large baking sheets with parchment paper or foil; set aside.

For meringue: Add salt, vinegar, and peppermint extract to egg whites. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form (tips curl). Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high speed until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight) and sugar is nearly dissolved. Be sure to be patient and add the sugar slowly. I wasn't patient enough so my meringue had a somewhat gritty texture. You can see it in the pictures of the final product if you look closely.

Transfer meringue to a decorating bag fitted with a 1/2-inch star tip. Pipe 1-inch kisses 1 inch apart onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake all of the meringue kisses at the same time on separate oven racks for 7 minutes. Turn off oven; let meringues dry in oven with door closed for 1 hour. Lift meringues off paper or foil. Transfer to wire racks; cool completely.

In a small saucepan, combine chocolate pieces and shortening. Cook and stir over low heat just until melted. Remove from heat. Spread crushed candy in a shallow dish. Dip bottoms of meringues in chocolate, then dip in crushed candies. Place on waxed paper and let stand until chocolate is set. Makes about 192 meringue kisses.