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Meringue Mushrooms
These little meringue cookies look just like woodland mushrooms! Use them to decorate a traditional yule log cake, or enjoy them on their own.
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
1 hr 15 mins
Total Time
1 hr 45 mins
Servings: 16 cookies
Calories: 48 kcal
Course:
Dessert
Cuisine:
American
Ingredients
meringue
- 2 egg whites at room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar (for stability)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional) or almond extract
assembly
- 2 ounces dark chocolate chopped
- cocoa powder for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In the (clean and grease free) bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and the cream of tartar until they start to get foamy.
- Then, with the mixer running on medium-high speed, slowly add the sugar, about a spoonful at a time, allowing each spoonful to get mixed in for 30 seconds or so before adding more.
- Continue whipping on high speed until the meringue is glossy and stiff peaks form (about 5-7 minutes)
- Scoop the meringue into a piping bag fitted with a large, plain piping tip. I used a Wilton 1A tip.
- Pipe "stems" by slowly lifting up the piping tip and releasing so that you have a short cylinder, pointy tips are ok.
- Pipe "mushroom caps" by piping small circles and gently flattening down any tips that form with your finger.
- Bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes. The meringues should release from the paper easily and be firm to the touch. Allow to cool before assembling.
- To assemble the mushrooms, melt the chocolate in a double boiler or the microwave using short bursts. Stir until smooth.
- With a small knife, gently carve a small hole into the underside of the meringue mushroom caps, being careful not to poke all the way through the caps.
- Place a little bit of melted chocolate in the hole on the underside of the mushroom caps, and gently spread a little more chocolate over the whole flat underside of the mushroom caps, if desired. Insert the stems into the little holes to create your mushrooms.
- Set the finished cookies upside-down until the chocolate has hardened.
- Finally, lightly dust the mushroom caps with a little bit of cocoa powder.
- Serve on a plate with tea or after dinner coffee, or carefully place in a basket for gift giving. Be careful, the cookies are fragile.
Cup of Yum
Notes
- A large plain piping tip is perfect for this project. You can find the one I used, a Wilton 1A, in craft and cooking stores, or online, here. This is a versatile tip to have in your baking arsenal.
Nutrition Information
Serving
1cookie
Calories
48kcal
(2%)
Carbohydrates
8g
(3%)
Protein
1g
(2%)
Fat
2g
(3%)
Saturated Fat
1g
(5%)
Polyunsaturated Fat
0.04g
Monounsaturated Fat
0.5g
Trans Fat
0.001g
Cholesterol
0.1mg
(0%)
Sodium
7mg
(0%)
Potassium
36mg
(1%)
Fiber
0.4g
(2%)
Sugar
7g
(14%)
Vitamin A
1IU
(0%)
Calcium
3mg
(0%)
Iron
0.4mg
(2%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 16cookies
Amount Per Serving
Calories 48
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1cookie | |
| Calories | 48kcal | 2% |
| Carbohydrates | 8g | 3% |
| Protein | 1g | 2% |
| Fat | 2g | 3% |
| Saturated Fat | 1g | 5% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 0.04g | 0% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 0.5g | 3% |
| Trans Fat | 0.001g | 0% |
| Cholesterol | 0.1mg | 0% |
| Sodium | 7mg | 0% |
| Potassium | 36mg | 1% |
| Fiber | 0.4g | 2% |
| Sugar | 7g | 14% |
| Vitamin A | 1IU | 0% |
| Calcium | 3mg | 0% |
| Iron | 0.4mg | 2% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.