Almond Meringue Cookies With Chocolate Food

MANDELMAKRONEN (ALMOND MERINGUES)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Beat egg whites in a glass, metal, or ceramic bowl until stiff peaks form. Gradually add sugar, 1 teaspoon at a time, while continuing to beat at high speed. Combine ground almonds and cinnamon in a bowl and fold into the egg white mixture with a spatula. Add more ground almonds if mixture is too runny.
• Use 2 teaspoons to place little mounds of almond mixture 2 inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned and baked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully remove from baking sheets and cool on wire racks.

DUTCH BOKKENPOOTJES - GOAT'S FEET

Steps:

• Beat egg whites until foamy in a large glass or metal mixing bowl. Gradually add the white sugar, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form. Lift your beater or whisk straight up: the egg whites should form a sharp peak that holds its shape. Fold in the almond meal, cinnamon, lemon zest, and vanilla.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer the meringue to a piping bag with a large plain tip (or a gallon-sized plastic zipper bag with the corner snipped off). Pipe the meringue into ladyfingers about 3 inches long. Set the pan aside and let the meringues dry at room temperature for 2 hours.
• Preheat an oven to 320 degrees F (160 degrees C).
• Bake the cookies on the middle oven rack until dried but not yet brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Allow them to cool completely.
• Make the filling by creaming the butter and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Stir in the vanilla. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over just-barely simmering water, stirring frequently and scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula to avoid scorching.
• To assemble the cookies, spread buttercream on the back of a cookie, sandwich it together with another cookie, and dip both ends in the melted chocolate. Let the dipped cookies dry on waxed paper or parchment.

COCOA-ALMOND MERINGUE COOKIES

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Add the extracts, cream of tartar and salt; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, on high until stiff peaks form and sugar is dissolved. , Fold in 1/4 cup cocoa. Place mixture in a pastry bag; cut a small hole in the corner of bag. Pipe meringue in 2-in. circles onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake at 250° for 50-60 minutes or until set and dry. Turn off oven; leave cookies in oven for 1-1/2 hours. , Dust cookies with remaining cocoa. Carefully remove from parchment. Store in an airtight container.

CRISPY ALMOND MERINGUE COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (330 degrees Fan, or 175 degrees Celsius) while preparing the egg whites.
• Using two small bowls, separate the egg whites from the yolks while the eggs are cold. Cover the yolks and refrigerate them to reserve them for another purpose.
• Allow the egg whites to warm to room temperature for 30 minutes before whipping.
• Place the room temperature egg whites in an exceptionally clean glass or stainless bowl and whip the whites, slowly at first, and increasing the speed as the egg whites increase in volume.
• As the egg whites are whipping, add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, to the whipping egg whites, beating after each addition. Continue this process until all the sugar has been beaten into the whites, and the meringue has achieved a glossy white appearance and soft peaks form when the whip is lifted from the bowl.
• Add the corn starch, cream of tartar, "whip it" (if using), and the almond extract to the bowl and whip again until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
• Use a spatula to transfer the meringue to a large piping bag fit with a large piping tip of your choice. Gently squeeze the meringue mixture into the piping tip of the bag, and gently twist the top of the bag closed.
• Pipe the meringue onto parchment lined baking sheets in the a design of your choosing. *Note - the meringue will not spread as it bakes, but do allow about 1" or space between each cookie. Sprinkle the meringues with colored sugar after piping, if desired.
• Before adding the meringues to the oven, reduce the heat in the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit (280 degrees Fan, or 130 degrees Celsius) and place the baking sheets into the oven on the middle and top racks Bake the meringues for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, turn the heat of the oven off and allow the meringues to stay inside the oven for an additional 60 minutes until they are fully baked and cool.
• Remove the almond meringue cookies from the oven and gently lift them from the parchment paper. Arrange the cookies on a platter for serving and enjoy!
• Serve alone or with a fruit-flavored Greek yogurt for dipping if desired.

ALMOND MERINGUE COOKIES WITH CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 150°C (approximately 300°F).
• For the meringues: Whip the egg whites with the salt and lemon juice until very stiff. Stream in the powdered sugar and beat until the mixture is stiff and glossy. Fold the almonds into the egg whites. Fill a pastry bag with a star tip and pipe 6 cm (approximately 2 inches) long strips on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. Remove and let cool.
• For the garnish: Chop the chocolate coarsely and melt over a pot of simmering water.
• Dip each end of the meringue cookies in the chocolate. Shake excess chocolate off and let dry on a wire rack. To serve: Serve in cups with tea or coffee.

CHOCOLATE MERINGUE STARS

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Add vanilla; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time, beating until stiff peaks form and sugar is dissolved. Gently fold in cocoa. , Insert a large open star tip into a pastry bag; fill half full with meringue. Pipe stars, about 1-1/4 in. in diameter, or drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto parchment-lined baking sheets. , Bake at 300° for 30-35 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from paper; cool on wire racks., In a microwave, melt chocolate and shortening; stir until smooth. Dip cookies halfway into glaze; allow excess to drip off. Place on waxed paper; let stand until set.

ALMOND MERINGUE COOKIES

Steps:

• Prehat oven to 250 degrees F.
• Line a cookie sheet (or two) with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
• Place egg whites in a totally grease free bowl and beat until frothy (medium speed) Add cream of tartar, beat at high speed until soft peaks form.
• Beat in the almond extract and the sugar, 1 tbsp at a time.
• Continue to beat until the meringue is shiny& stiff.
• Gently fold in the almonds.
• Drop by tbsp onto the parchment covered cookie sheet.
• Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, then turn the oven off, do not open the oven door and let the cookies sit for another 30 minutes Remove from the oven and cool ON THE BAKING SHEETS before trying to remove.
• Keep in tighly closed tins.

ALMOND MERINGUE COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and lightly flour cookie sheets.
• In a large bowl, whip egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually sprinkle in the sugar and keep whipping until the egg whites can hold a stiff peak, this will take about 5 minutes. Set aside about 1/2 cup of the egg whites. Add the lemon zest and cinnamon to the rest of the meringue, and fold in the almonds until everything is evenly blended.
• Drop mounds by spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets. Top each cookie with a smaller dollop of the reserved meringue.
• Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Remove cookies from the baking sheets to cool on wire racks.