The Best Peppermint Meringue Cookie Recipe
The best Peppermint Meringue Cookie Recipe – super quick and easy to make, these yummy cookies are great for Christmas time! The crushed candy canes and chocolate add the perfect touch to these festive treats.
Too busy to make this right away? Pin it for later! Pin this easy recipe to your favorite board on Pinterest and it will be waiting there when you’re ready.
Inspired by this Christmas tree meringue recipe, these cookies are sure to become a favorite! Delicious peppermint meringues, dipped in chocolate and sprinkled with crushed candy canes.
Why use meringue?
Meringue is super easy to prepare and bake and is simple to add extract and color to. As a busy mom, I like to find quick recipes like this during the crazy holiday season.
This holiday cookie recipe is so much fun for kids of all ages to make and take to holiday parties or events. These candy cane cookies look amazing on a holiday cookie plate.
I love, love, love how pretty these meringue cookies turned out, perfect for peppermint lovers! They would be fun to pack up individually, wrap with a bit of baker’s twine and gift to friends and family.
How to make Peppermint Meringue Cookies:
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Ingredients:
- 3 large egg whites, room temperature
- ¾ cup superfine sugar
- 1 tsp peppermint extract
- ¼ tsp cream of tartar
- pinch of salt
- red food coloring
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips or melting wafers
- 1/4 cup crushed candy canes
Tip: blend regular white sugar in a food processor to create superfine sugar for this recipe if needed.
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Place egg whites and salt into a stand mixer with whisk attachment (or electric mixer and mixing bowl) and mix at medium speed until soft peaks form.
4. Add cream of tartar and mix at medium-high speed.
5. Beat in sugar, 1 tbsp at a time. Tip: this step is very important, do not add all the sugar at one time, add it in slowly.
6. Add in peppermint extract and mix.
The meringue will start to become stiff with peaks. To check if it is ready, roll a pinch of the meringue mixture between your thumb and finger and feel for any gritty sugar. If there is any present, continue to beat the meringue until it is gone and stiff peaks form.
7. Add several drops of red food coloring until you reach the desired peppermint-like color.
8. Prep a large piping bag by snipping the end and inserting a large star tip. Fold the pastry bag over and place inside of a glass or jar. Fill the bag with the pink meringue.
Tip: I like to use a 1M piping tip to get the best shape.
9. Squeeze out any air bubbles and twist the top of the bag.
10. Hold the pastry bag straight up and down and on the prepared baking sheets, pipe out about 1 Tbsp of meringue, gently pulling away when you have reached your desired height and size.
Meringue tip:
Meringues don’t spread however, you don’t want to place them too close as they need proper air flow during baking and dry time.
11. Bake for 1 hour and let stand as the oven cools to dry 2 hours or over night. Alternatively you can move the festive cookies to wire racks or large cookie sheets to speed up the cooling process.
12. For decorating, melt the chocolate in a double boiler or a small bowl in the microwave. Dip each meringue half way into the chocolate and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
13. Finally, sprinkle crushed peppermint candy canes onto each cookie.
14. Place the peppermint flavor meringues into the fridge to allow the chocolate to completley harden before serving.
These will keep for a few days and are pretty good frozen. Store them in a non humid area as they will absorb the moisture and be less crisp…but still a delicious treat!
How to store these meringue treats:
Store these sweet treats in a large freezer bag or airtight container for a week or in the freezer for up to three months. They are a fun addition to a holiday cookie exchange!
How darling are these peppermint meringue cookies?! They are fairly easy to make into sugar free cookies too. Just follow my keto meringue recipe and dip them in dark chocolate instead.
You could totally have fun experimenting with melted chocolate red stripes, white chocolate, peppermint candies and all sorts of festive holiday add-ons!
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Some of my kitchen essentials:
- I love using this non-stick bakeware for all of my baking.
- These silicone mitts are perfect for grasping hot pans and baking dishes.
- This Henckel Knife is my favorite for slicing and dicing in the kitchen.
- These parchment paper bags are perfect for packaging and these large Rubbermaid food storage containers are great for storing baking in the freezer.
These easy meringue cookies are perfect for this time of year! They are the perfect treat for your next holiday party or event.
If you love this peppermint merigue cookie recipe, please give it a five star review and help me share it on Facebook or Pinterest so that others can enjoy it too!
Peppermint Meringue Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 large egg whites room temperature
- ¾ cup superfine sugar
- 1 tsp peppermint extract
- ¼ tsp cream of tartar
- pinch of salt
- red food coloring
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips or melting wafers
- 1/4 cup crushed candy canes
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.
- 2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- 3. Place egg whites and salt in the stand mixer and mix at medium speed until frothy.
- 4. Add cream of tartar and mix at medium high speed.
- 5. Beat in sugar, 1 tbsp at a time. Tip: this step is very important, do not add all the sugar at one time, add it in slowly.
- 6. Add in peppermint extract and mix.
- The meringue will start to become stiff with peaks. To check if it is ready, roll a pinch of the meringue mixture between your thumb and finger and feel for any gritty sugar. If there is any present, continue to beat the meringue until it is gone and stiff peaks form.
- 7. Add several drops of red food coloring until you reach the desired peppermint-like color.
- 8. Prep a large piping bag by snipping the end and inserting a large star tip. Fold the pastry bag over and place inside of a glass or jar. Fill the bag with the pink meringue.
- Tip: I like to use a 1M piping tip to get the best shape.
- 9. Squeeze out any air bubbles and twist the top of the bag.
- 10. Hold the pastry bag straight up and down on the pastry sheet, pipe out about 2 Tbsp of meringue, gently pulling away when you have reached your desired height and size.
Meringue tip:
- Meringues don't spread however, you don't want to place them too close as they need proper air flow during baking and dry time.
- 11. Bake for 1 hour and let stand as the oven cools to dry 2 hours or over night. Alternatively you can move the festive cookies to wire racks to cool.
- 12. For decorating melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave. Dip each meringue half way into the chocolate and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
- 13. Finally, sprinkle crushed candy cane onto each cookie.
Nutrition
