Walnut Meringue Cookies Recipes

AUNT GRETA'S WALNUT MERINGUES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 300 degrees F.
• Whip the egg white with a whip attachment until stiff.
• Add the sugar, cinnamon, and salt and continue whipping until stiff and glossy. Fold in the walnuts.
• Drop by spoonfuls onto a parchment lined sheet pan and bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool and remove from the pan. Store in an airtight container.

WALNUT MERINGUE COOKIES

Steps:

• Grind walnuts (medium grind--not as fine as flour but not as coarse as whole sesame seeds). Purists say that a nut grinder needs to be used, but for this recipe, I find that a food processor works fine. Whip egg whites. (Alternatively, if you're in a great hurry, you don't even need to bother whipping the egg whites, in which case the cookie will be flat and smooth and chewier, and will need a bit less time to bake.) Thoroughly fold in ground nuts and sugar. Place heaping spoonfuls of mixture on 11" by 18" cookie sheet (parchment paper lined, or use a Teflon-coated one that has been lightly buttered and floured, as the batter is sticky). Space them at least 1 inch apart, as they spread when baking. There will be 24 cookies. (You can also make 48 small cookies, in which case cut the baking time about in half.) Bake in pre-heated 350F oven until golden (perhaps 20 minutes). They will still look a bit moist and raw inside-do not be dismayed! (If you bake them until they look baked inside, they will be dry and hard.) Cool 10 to 15 minutes, and remove from baking sheet. Cool another 10 to 15 minutes, then store in air-tight container, at room temperature. (If you're cautious about egg whites, store cookies in fridge but let come to room temperature before eating.) Will keep 7 to 10 days perfectly; also freeze well. They can be eaten when still warm, or when cool.

MERINGUES, CHOCOLATE WALNUT

Steps:

• Directions
• 1. Preheat oven to 275°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• 2. In a medium, clean, grease-free bowl with an electric mixer on high speed, whip egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar and whip until soft peaks form. Add sugar gradually, whipping until stiff but not dry peaks form. Beat in vanilla. Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts. Drop by generously rounded teaspoon 2 inches apart on cookie sheets.
• 3. Bake until completely firm and dry, but still white, about 25 minutes; you should be able to lift cookies from pan. Slide parchment onto racks to cool cookies completely.