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Sweet, soft, pillowy clouds are words that come to mind when I think of these delightful melt-in-your-mouth Chocolate Chip Meringue Cookies. These delicate treats have a lovely crisp outside and an airy confectionary center.
Meringue cookies require just a few simple ingredients; egg whites, cream of tartar, sugar and vanilla. If you’re making chocolate chip meringue cookies, then just add 3/4 cup of either chocolate chips or roughly chopped chocolate.
While meringue cookies require few ingredients, sometimes the challenge is knowing how long to whip the egg whites before adding in the other ingredients. What I’ve found works best is to whip the egg whites until they are foamy, then add in the cream of tartar and continue to whip them. As they stiffen, add the sugar in very tiny increments, whipping continuously. The key is to add the sugar in slowly and give the egg whites a chance to fully absorb it. Continue whipping the mixture until it is glossy and fold in the chocolate bits at the very end. Using a spoon, softly place small scoops of the mixture onto a cookie sheet.
You don’t even have to sit by the oven, afraid to venture too far off for fear of burning the cookies. These little gems “bake” in an oven that has been preheated and then turned off. That’s right, you place your baking sheet full of meringue cookies in the oven and then turn off the heat. I leave mine in the oven for about two hours. I’ve even left meringues in the oven for longer periods of time when I’ve been out running errands. They’re very forgiving.
As you might expect, the creamy surprise of chocolate is perhaps my favorite part of these cookies. It sort of takes you by surprise. You don’t really see the chocolate from the outside, it’s well hidden and quite unexpected. As the cookie melts in your mouth, that’s when the chocolate surprises you, in a delightfully, wonderful way.
Chocolate Chip Meringue Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 large egg whites at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup chocolate roughly chopped or mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until fluffy.
- Add the sugar very slowly, about 1 tablespoon at a time while still beating.
- Add the vanilla extract and continue beating until the meringue is shiny.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Drop by heaping teaspoons onto cookie sheet and place about 1-inch apart.
- Place baking sheets in the preheated oven and turn the oven off.
- Leave the cookies undisturbed in the oven for at least 2 hours.
