What do the perfect Mini Meringues look like? Well, they need to have that perfect little piping drip, be crispy on the outside while slightly chewy on the inside, and these babies need to stay white!
This is a simple recipe to follow using only a handful of ingredients. I love making these mini meringues to use as decorations on cakes, cupcakes, and other desserts.
If you love all things meringue, then you need to try out this recipe for Lemon Meringue Pie, these Chocolate Meringues, or this recipe for Mango Mini Pavlovas.
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When recipe testing for these mini meringues I had so many fails! I tried all the meringue techniques I could. Swiss to Italian and even heating the sugar before adding it to the egg whites. But none of these recipes worked every single time, and that is what I was looking for. A meringue recipe that would work every single time I made it and one that was super easy! And strangely enough, the simplest method, when followed correctly gave the perfect results.
In theory, making mini meringues should be pretty simple. After all, it is basically only two ingredients (in this case I have also added an acid) that have been whipped together to form stiff peaks, piped, and baked to perfection. But often the simplest things are the most difficult to perfect.
From experience, most of what can go wrong goes wrong in the oven. Not understanding your oven and the actual temperature inside it is what leads to overbaked, bumpy, and sad-looking meringues. But keep reading and those days will be over for you too!
Ingredients
To make these gorgeous mini meringue cookies, you will need the simple ingredients listed below.
- Egg whites
- Caster sugar
- White vinegar
Egg whites - I like separating my eggs carefully when they are straight from the fridge. I then allow the fresh egg whites to come to room temperature before beating for the best volume.
Castor sugar - use a superfine white sugar for this recipe.
White vinegar - use white grape vinegar for this recipe. If you don't have vinegar you can also use lemon juice.
This recipe is pretty simple in that the egg whites are half the weight of the castor sugar; this is a basic ratio that I use when making most of my meringue recipes. If you have leftover whites and are not sure what to do with them, weigh the egg whites and double this weight to determine how much sugar should be added, and then adjust the vinegar accordingly. This way you can use up all of your leftover whites from other recipes.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions for Mini Meringues
To make these perfect mini meringues, follow the easy steps outlined below.
STEP 1: Preheat oven. Set the oven temperature to 100°C (210°F) fan-forced, and line two large baking trays with parchment paper.
STEP 2: Separate eggs. Start by separating the egg whites from the egg yolks. Make sure there are no traces of egg yolk in the egg whites.
STEP 3: Beat whites. Add the whites to a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat at a low speed until little bubbles have formed.
Step 4: Add vinegar and sugar. Once the whites are frothy and white, add the vinegar and then add the sugar gradually, a tablespoon at a time with the mixer running at medium speed.
STEP 5: Beat. Once all the sugar has been added, increase the speed to high speed and beat for 10 minutes until the mixture looks like smooth, white, marshmallow fluff with stiff peaks.
STEP 5: Check the peaks. When you lift the whisk out of the mixture you want a very sturdy peak to form, this is when the meringue mixture is ready. If you do not mix the meringue for long enough you will have issues when baking. You need to look for these peaks when whisking and when piping, this is the best indication that your meringue has been whisked enough.
STEP 6: Pipe. Add the whipped meringue mixture to a piping bag fitted with your chosen nozzle. Pipe the meringues onto the prepared baking trays.
STEP 7: Bake. Bake the meringues in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the bottom of the mini meringues lifts easily off the parchment paper.
STEP 8: Cool. Switch off the oven and allow the meringues to dry out in the oven, for about 2 hours or overnight. Store in an airtight container until needed.
Hint: Make sure there are no traces of egg yolks in the egg whites and also make sure there are no traces of fat on the whisk or in the mixing bowl.
Variations
This recipe is for classic white mini meringues, but you can add food coloring to the mixture to create an assortment of colorful meringues. Choose to add the food coloring once the meringue has reached stiff peaks, and beat again briefly until the mixture is colored.
Having mini meringues on hand makes decorating cakes, cupcakes, and desserts so simple and pretty! I love using mini meringues to top a perfectly swirled cupcake. Another way I like using mini meringues is to decorate the top and sides of a celebration cake, keeping them in place with a little melted white chocolate.
The options are endless for these perfect mini meringues, from a deconstructed pavlova to using them as layers of an Eton mess. So perfect this recipe and get creative with how you can use these little guys.
You can also choose to pipe the mixture into meringue nests and fill them with whipped cream, lemon curd, and fresh strawberries for the ultimate summer treat. See this recipe for Mini Mango Pavlovas for some inspiration.
Equipment
To make these meringues, you will need an electric stand mixer or hand-held electric beaters and a large bowl. You will also need a large baking sheet, a disposable piping bag, and a nozzle.
The oven plays a big role in the success of this recipe, so to set your oven properly for meringues, an oven thermometer is absolutely necessary. The reason for this is that some ovens when set run at higher or lower temperatures than what is on the dial. And because mini meringues are so temperature sensitive you need to make sure that your oven is set properly.
My ideal temperature setting is 100°C (210°F) in a fan-forced oven. When using these settings, the mini meringues bake perfectly. When the mini meringues have finished baking, switch off the oven and allow them to dry out further in the oven as it cools.
Storage
If stored correctly, these easy cookies can be kept for up to 2 weeks.
Store your perfect mini meringues in an airtight container at room temperature. Be delicate when handling your baked meringues so as not to break off those perfect peaks you worked so hard to achieve.
Top tips
For the best results, these are my top tips to follow when making mini meringues.
- Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks carefully. If you get traces of egg yolks in your whites, the whites will not whip properly.
- Be sure that the mixing bowl and the whisk are properly cleaned and that they have no traces of fat on either of them. To be safe you can cut a lemon in half and use this to rub on the inside of the bowl and along the whisk and then rinse under very hot water.
- Start whipping the egg whites slowly, once there are little bubbles throughout the whites you can increase the speed of the electric mixer.
- Add the sugar one tablespoon at a time, do not rush this process.
- Once the sugar and vinegar have been added set a timer and whip the whites for a further 7 to 10 minutes to ensure that the whites are whipped properly.
- If you aren't sure if your whites are properly whipped, remove the whisk attachment swirl it through the mixture, and then lift it. A stiff peak should form on the whisk and this is how you know that you have whipped the mixture sufficiently.
- Another way to test if you have whisked the mixture properly is when piping look for the little peaks on each mini meringue, if you don't have then you have not mixed the meringue properly.
- Do not let the whipped meringues sit for too long before piping them. Otherwise, the texture will change and you will risk all of your hard work.
FAQ
This is because the egg white mixture wasn't beaten for long enough, you need to make sure the mixture reaches stiff peaks before piping.
The oven is too hot and the meringues are baking too quickly. Use an oven thermometer to help set the oven properly.
More Easy Meringue Recipes
I hope you give this recipe for mini meringues a go, and that you follow all the tips! Following these tips will ensure you bake perfect mini meringues every time. If you're ready to level up from this recipe, try out a pavlova recipe next! Like this Christmas Wreath Pavlova.
If you give this recipe a try, please leave a comment and star review below - I love hearing from all of you! Let me know if you used these sweet treats to fill up your cookie jars, decorate a dessert table, or make a summer dessert.
Don't forget to follow along @with_love_kitty and sign up for the weekly newsletter to make sure that you never miss a recipe.
Happy Baking
With Love,
Kitty
📖 Recipe
Mini Meringues
Ingredients
- 80 grams egg whites
- 160 grams castor sugar
- 1 tsp white grape vinegar
- food coloring optional
Instructions
- Set the oven temperature to 100°C (210°F) fan-forced, and line two large baking trays with parchment paper.
- Start by separating the egg whites from the egg yolks. Make sure there are no traces of egg yolk in the egg whites.
- Add the whites to a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat at a low speed until little bubbles have formed.
- Increase the speed of the mixer to medium-high and whisk until the egg whites are white and frothy. Add the vinegar while the mixer running.
- With the mixer running at high speed add the castor sugar one tablespoon at a time. Waiting about 45 sec between each addition.
- Once all of the sugar has been added, continue whipping the meringue for a further 10 minutes at high speed. At this stage, your meringue should have more than doubled in size and stiff peaks should have formed. If you'd like to color the meringue mixture, you can do this now.
- Place the meringue mixture into a piping bag fitted with your chosen piping nozzle. Pipe the mini meringues onto your prepared trays.
- Bake the meringues in a preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the bottom of the mini meringues lifts easily off the parchment paper.
- Switch off the oven and allow the meringues to dry out in the oven, for about 2 hours or overnight. Store in an airtight container until needed.
RG says
Crisp on outside gooey inside- perfect!
They needed a good half hour in the oven though
Cat Spiller says
Hi Rebecca, thanks so much for your comment I am so glad you liked this recipe!
Astrid Furger says
it was very good.I succeed this time.thks
withlovekitty2020 says
Hi Astrid, I am so glad that they were a success! Thank you for your feedback 🙂
Alex says
This recipe really helped me improve my meringues! Thank you!
Julia Mack says
Thanks for all these tips! So helpful!