CHOCOLATE MERINGUE EASTER NESTS

Chocolate Meringue Easter Nests

Angel Cookies (also known as Meringue Cookies) are one of our favorites, and these crispy and chewy Chocolate Meringue Easter Nests are one of our favorite Easter treats!  Delightfully crisp on the outside with a melt-in-your-mouth texture inside, these naturally gluten-free chocolate meringues are irresistible!  Decorated with piped dark chocolate and topped with miniature milk chocolate eggs, they are perfect for Easter and spring celebrations!

Chocolate Meringue Easter Nests

WHAT EXACTLY ARE MERINGUES?

Though we enjoy meringues throughout the year, meringues are extra special on holiday cookie trays. Made mostly from egg whites and sugar, meringue cookies are piped onto baking sheets and baked at a low temperature for a considerably longer time than most other cookie recipes. The low temperature guarantees the shaped meringues will retain their crisp shapes and edges, and won’t melt.  Rather, they’ll crisp up on the outside while remaining puffy, light, and cloud-like in the centers. 

Although they are delicate, they give you so much flexibility in terms of shapes, colors and flavors, and are so adaptable for any holiday or special occasion!​

TIPS & TRICKS FOR WORKING WITH MERINGUE:

• To avoid stickiness, try to bake meringues on a dry day. 
• As with any meringue, make sure that the bowl and beat that you use is COMPLETELY grease and moisture-free. 
• Crack your eggs in a separate bowl when separating the whites.  Even the tiniest bit of yolk in the whites will ruin your meringue. 
• For best results, make sure to use super fine sugar, rather than granulated sugar for meringues.
• Test to see that the sugar is completely dissolved by rubbing a small amount between your fingers – if it feels gritty, it has not fully dissolved.
• Don’t stop beating until you get STIFF peaks.  You will see the increase in volume and the meringue will become very thick and glossy.  Once you hit stiff peaks, STOP!  Over-beating is just as bad a under-beating – so you’ll need to watch this carefully!
• Dipped meringues keep, layered between sheets of parchment paper or wax paper, in an airtight container at cool room temperature for 1 week.  

CAN I USE PREPACKAGED EGG WHITES TO MAKE MERINGUE?

Prepackaged egg whites from a carton do not work well for meringues. For best results, use fresh whole eggs for light and fluffy meringues, and save the yolks to make ice cream, puddings or fruit curds. 

Chocolate Meringue Easter Nests

MERINGUE FLAVORS & VARIATIONS:

Magnolia Meringues:  Divide meringue in half, adding green leaf gel food coloring (AmeriColor Leaf Green) to one half, and white (AmeriColor White) to the other.  Pipe leaves and then layer petals on top.  Sprinkle with gold luster dust before baking; after baking, sprinkle tops with edible gold glitter.
 
Apple Blossom Meringues:  Follow directions for Magnolia Meringues, but add a few drops of pale pink food coloring (AmeriColor Pale Pink gel food coloring) to the white portion before piping flower petals.  Sprinkle with black sugar beads rather than gold luster dust and glitter.

Watermelon Meringues:  Add ¼ teaspoon Watermelon Extract (I prefer the LorAnn or Get Suckered brands – flavors and tastes just like a Jolly Rancher Watermelon candy).  Divide meringue in half, adding green gel food coloring (AmeriColor Electric Green) to one half, and bright watermelon color (AmeriColor Watermelon) to the other.  Pipe swirls of green meringue onto parchment paper, and top with a swirl of watermelon pink meringue on top. Sprinkle with mini-chocolate chips prior to baking. 

White Marshmallow:  Use pure vanilla extract for flavor.

Chocolate Meringues:  Sift 2 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder through a fine-mesh sieve and whisk together with 2 tablespoons of superfine sugar that has been reserved from the recipe amount.  After your meringue has reached stiff peaks, slowly fold in the remaining sugar & cocoa mixture with a spatula gently but thoroughly. 

Espresso & Dark Chocolate Meringues:  Whisk 1 teaspoon of espresso powder into the superfine sugar before adding to the egg whites.  After baking, dip bottoms in melted dark chocolate.

Mint Chocolate Meringues:  Add ½ teaspoon of Pure Peppermint Extract.  Add ½ teaspoon of Pure Peppermint Extract to dark dipping chocolate too! 

Chocolate Chip Meringues:  After your meringue has reached stiff peaks, slowly fold in 1/3 cup mini-chocolate chips.

Candy Cane Meringues:  Add ¼ teaspoon Pure Peppermint Extract, paint stripes in your piping bag with streaks of red gel food coloring.  Optional:  Dip the baked and cooled meringues in dark chocolate and then immediately dip in crushed peppermint candy canes. 

Champagne Meringues:  Replace vanilla extract with 2 teaspoons of fresh champagne before adding your superfine sugar.  Before baking, sprinkle tops of meringue cookies with gold or silver sparkles or sparkling sugar.  These are really cute if you drop one into a glass of champagne just before serving on New Year’s Eve!

​Christmas Tree Meringues:  Add 6 to 8 drops of green food coloring.  Using a star tip, pipe straight up into a tree shape.  Sprinkle top and edges of each meringue with colorful non-pareils sprinkles before baking.  

Chocolate Meringue Easter Nests

CHOCOLATE MERINGUE EASTER NESTS

Angel Cookies (also known as Meringue Cookies) are one of our favorites, and these crispy and chewy Chocolate Meringue Easter Nests are one of our favorite Easter treats!  Delightfully crisp on the outside with a melt-in-your-mouth texture inside, these naturally gluten-free chocolate meringues are irresistible!  Decorated with piped dark chocolate and topped with miniature milk chocolate eggs, they are perfect for Easter and spring celebrations!
​

Chocolate Meringue Easter Nests

INGREDIENTS:
MERINGUES:
6 large egg whites (room temperature)
4 ounces (113.5g) dark chocolate bar (for cookies)
2 tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 pinch of salt
1-1/2 cups (300g) superfine sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon chocolate extract
 
FOR DECORATING:
4 ounces (113.5g) dark chocolate bar (for drizzle)
1 (10 ounce) bag Cadbury Mini Eggs
 
HOW I MAKE THESE:

1. Remove eggs from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature.
2. Place oven racks in upper, middle and lower thirds of oven.  Preheat oven to 225F (or to 200F if using a convection oven) and line two or three large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. 
3. Fit a large disposable piping bag with a large open star tip (I use 12-inch disposable bags fitted with a 1M piping tip); place bag inside a large cup that is at least 8 inches high and 4 inches across at the top) with the top of the bag pulled down over the top of the cup; set aside.
4. Finely grate the dark chocolate bar and place in a small bowl.  Add cocoa powder and stir gently until grated chocolate is evenly coated.
5. Combine egg whites, cream of tartar, salt, pure vanilla extract in a large, completely clean, completely grease-free bowl. 
6. Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer (with the whisk attachment), stir on medium-low speed until mixture becomes foamy and holds soft peaks.  Slowly increase speed to high.
7. With mixer on high, slowly and gradually pour in 1 tablespoon of superfine sugar at a time, beating for at least 1 minute after each addition and scraping down the bowl as necessary, until the sugar is dissolved.
8. Beat until mixture is thick, shiny, and has increased in volume. Mixture should have stiff peaks and sugar should be completely dissolved (you can test this by rubbing a small bit of the mixture between your fingers, if it feels gritty, keep on beating until the sugar is completely dissolved).
9. Fold the grated chocolate and cocoa powder mix into the meringue. 
10. Transfer meringue to prepared piping bag and pipe onto prepared baking sheets and pipe into nest shapes.  Start by piping a circle, then pipe a ring on top of the circle.  If you don’t have a piping tip, you can also dollop the meringue onto the baking tray and use the back of a spoon to create a dent in the center of each nest. 
11. The meringue cookies won’t spread, so they can be piped pretty close to each other - you will want to bake all of the cookies at the same time, so make sure you make enough space.
12. Bake on 225F for 75 minutes (or if baking in convection oven at 200F for 60 minutes) – the meringues are done when they release easily from the parchment paper – test by trying to lift a single cookie from the edge of the pan).  Turn off the oven once the baking time has passed, and do not open the oven to prevent the meringues from cracking. Leave the oven door closed and allow cookies to cool completely in the oven (1-2 hours) before removing.
13. After cookies are cool, melt chocolate and spoon into a small piping bag.  Cut just the tip (about 1/8-inch) from the tip to leave a very small opening.
14. Create the chocolate meringue nests by piping the melted chocolate over the meringue nests in a circular pattern, to look like sticks and branches.
15. Add three small chocolate eggs into the center of each nest – I pipe a small amount of melted chocolate underneath each egg to hold them in place.    
16. Meringue cookies should be crisp and can be stored in an airtight container. Keep away from heat and moisture as it can soften your meringues.

 
YIELD:  about 4 dozen cookies

FLAVORS & VARIATIONS:
Magnolia Meringues:  Divide meringue in half, adding green leaf gel food coloring (AmeriColor Leaf Green) to one half, and white (AmeriColor White) to the other.  Pipe leaves and then layer petals on top.  Sprinkle with gold luster dust before baking; after baking, sprinkle tops with edible gold glitter.  

Apple Blossom Meringues:  Follow directions for Magnolia Meringues, but add a few drops of pale pink food coloring (AmeriColor Pale Pink gel food coloring) to the white portion before piping flower petals.  Sprinkle with black sugar beads rather than gold luster dust and glitter.

Watermelon Meringues:  Add ¼ teaspoon Watermelon Extract (I prefer the LorAnn or Get Suckered brands – flavors and tastes just like a Jolly Rancher Watermelon candy).  Divide meringue in half, adding green gel food coloring (AmeriColor Electric Green) to one half, and bright watermelon color (AmeriColor Watermelon) to the other.  Pipe swirls of green meringue onto parchment paper, and top with a swirl of watermelon pink meringue on top. Sprinkle with mini-chocolate chips prior to baking. 

White Marshmallow:  Use pure vanilla extract for flavor.

Chocolate Meringues:  Sift 2 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder through a fine-mesh sieve and whisk together with 2 tablespoons of superfine sugar that has been reserved from the recipe amount.  After your meringue has reached stiff peaks, slowly fold in the remaining sugar & cocoa mixture with a spatula gently but thoroughly. 

Espresso & Dark Chocolate Meringues:  Whisk 1 teaspoon of espresso powder into the superfine sugar before adding to the egg whites.  After baking, dip bottoms in melted dark chocolate.

Mint Chocolate Meringues:  Add ½ teaspoon of Pure Peppermint Extract.  Add ½ teaspoon of Pure Peppermint Extract to dark dipping chocolate too! 

Chocolate Chip Meringues:  After your meringue has reached stiff peaks, slowly fold in 1/3 cup mini-chocolate chips.

Candy Cane Meringues:  Add ¼ teaspoon Pure Peppermint Extract, paint stripes in your piping bag with streaks of red gel food coloring.  Optional:  Dip the baked and cooled meringues in dark chocolate and then immediately dip in crushed peppermint candy canes. 

Champagne Meringues:  Replace vanilla extract with 2 teaspoons of fresh champagne before adding your superfine sugar.  Before baking, sprinkle tops of meringue cookies with gold or silver sparkles or sparkling sugar.  These are really cute if you drop one into a glass of champagne just before serving on New Year’s Eve!

Christmas Tree Meringues:  Add 6 to 8 drops of green food coloring.  Using a star tip, pipe straight up into a tree shape.  Sprinkle top and edges of each meringue with colorful non-pareils sprinkles before baking. 
 
RECIPE TIPS & TRICKS:

• To avoid stickiness, try to bake meringues on a dry day. 
• Prepackaged egg whites from a carton do not work well for meringues. For best results, use fresh whole eggs for light and fluffy meringues, and save the yolks to make ice cream, puddings or fruit curds. 
• As with any meringue, make sure that the bowl and beat that you use is COMPLETELY grease and moisture-free. 
• Crack your eggs in a separate bowl when separating the whites.  Even the tiniest bit of yolk in the whites will ruin your meringue. 
• For best results, make sure to use super fine sugar rather than granulated sugar for meringues.  Super fine sugar dissolves easily into the egg whites and will give you the best meringues.
• Test to see that the sugar is completely dissolved by rubbing a small amount between your fingers – if it feels gritty, it has not fully dissolved.
• Don’t stop beating until you get STIFF peaks.  You will see the increase in volume and the meringue will become very thick and glossy.  Once you hit stiff peaks, STOP!  Over-beating is just as bad a under-beating – so you’ll need to watch this carefully!
• Dipped meringues keep, layered between sheets of parchment paper or wax paper, in an airtight container at cool room temperature for 1 week.  

Original recipe created by Snowflakes & Coffeecakes; published April 2022.

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