I would like to start a lobbying group that works to get those delicious goodies that only show up in the stores during the holiday season to be available year-round.
I’m looking at you, egg nog, pumpkin-spiced everything and, of course, panettone.
While we wait for my plan to unfold, I hope that you, like me, are using almost every eating opportunity to cook, bake and taste these once-a-year treats. On that note, my last sweet and decadent recipe of 2020 has to highlight candy canes, that elusive peppermint stick shaped like a shepherd’s crook that all but disappears with the new year.
These peppermint meringue cookies are a perfect addition to your Christmas candy baking repertoire.
Peppermint Meringue Cookies
Equipment:
Stand mixer, or very strong arms and wrists
Pastry bag or Ziploc bag
Baking sheet
Silicon baking mat or parchment paper
Ingredients:
4 egg whites, room temperature
1 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup white chocolate
1 teaspoon shortening
5 candy canes
Red food coloring
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
- Using your stand mixer, break your egg whites into the bowl, add the sugar and whip them on high.
- Add in your cream of tartar and salt. Beat the ingredients until you see stiff peaks. This will take about 10 minutes or so.
- Put a few drops of food coloring into a pastry or Ziploc bag with a small corner piece of the bag cut out to form a hole. Gently fold in your meringue mixture into the bag.
- Pipe out small/medium circles of the meringue onto a silicon mat or parchment paper.
- Bake your meringues for about 90 minutes.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the meringues cool to room temperature.
To make the candy cane dip:
- Crush your candy canes inside a small Ziploc bag and pour into a small bowl. Put your chocolate in a microwave proof bowl and add the shortening. Melt the chocolate for about 90 seconds, stirring after it has melted.
- Dip each cookie into the melted chocolate and then into the candy canes. Gently place aside and allow to dry.
You can store your meringues in an air-tight container for up to two weeks!
Enjoy!