Meringue Kisses
Light as a cloud, these little kisses are just
the thing when the sweet tooth bites.
Preparation: 15 to 20 minutes, plus
baking and resting times.
Makes 36 kisses
1 tablespoon butter, melted
2 tablespoons confectioners’
sugar
4 large egg whites
¹/
8
teaspoon cream of tartar
¾ cup granulated sugar
(superfine is best)
1 teaspoon vanilla or almond
extract
2 ounces chopped semisweet or
bittersweet chocolate
(¹/
8
-inch chop)
Preheat oven to 225°F. Line 2 baking
sheets with parchment paper. Brush the
parchment lightly with the melted
butter, then dust with confectioners’
sugar, shaking off excess sugar.
Place the egg whites and cream of
tartar in a medium mixing bowl. Start
mixing the egg whites and cream of
tartar on speed 1/Low, increasing
gently to speed 5/High. Whip until soft
peaks form, 1½ to 2 minutes
(depending on temperature of egg
whites). Sprinkle sugar 1 tablespoon at
a time over egg whites and beat on
speed 5/High after each addition, until
stiff peaks form and mixture is shiny
but not dry, about 4 minutes total. Add
the vanilla and beat on speed 1/Low to
blend in, 10 seconds.
Using a clean rubber spatula, fold in
chopped chocolate. Drop meringue
mixture by rounded tablespoons onto
prepared baking sheets, or gently place
mixture in a large pastry bag fitted with
a
3
/
8
-inch plain tip and pipe out
“kisses”. Bake in preheated oven for
1½ hours; do not open oven. Turn off
oven and let sit in warm oven for an
additional 1½ hours to dry out. Transfer
to a wire rack to cool completely. Store
in an airtight container.
Nutritional information per “kiss”:
Calories 26 (19 from fat) • carb. 5g • pro. 0g
• fat 1g • sat. fat. 0g • chol. 0mg • sod. 8mg
• calc. 1mg • fiber 0g
Tip:
Meringues are best when made on
a dry day.
To make “nests” for mousse:
Draw 3-inch circles on the underside of
parchment sheet. On the cookie side,
butter and dust circles with
confectioners’ sugar. Pipe concentric
circles of meringue into the 3-inch
rounds to form the base. Pipe another
2 circles on top of the outermost edge
of the meringues. Bake as directed, but
increase both the baking and resting
time to 2 hours. Makes 4.
Apple Cranberry
Coffee Cake
This versatile cake can be served as a
breakfast or brunch cake, or warmed for
dessert and topped with a scoop of vanilla
ice cream or softly whipped cream.
Preparation: 15 minutes, plus baking
time. Makes 18–24 servings
cooking spray
3 cups sliced apples*
(peel, core, quarter apples, cut
into ¹/
8
-inch slices)
juice of 1 lemon
¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup dried cranberries
(may substitute dried cherries,
blueberries or raisins)
3 cups unbleached, all-purpose
flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into
½-inch pieces
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
