Nutty meringue kisses (p. 771)

After all that candy making, I really wanted some cookies. I know that seems totally bizarre but I don't really like candy (actually, I don't really like cookies either) and I wanted something to snack on. Nutty meringue kisses (p. 771) stood out as a good choice. I made meringue kisses in July and they didn't turn out. I mean, they tasted good, but they weren't "kisses", they were more like "discs". I thought I would give it another go. And almost every dessert is better when you add nuts.

This time, I was really careful about separating the yolks and whites and made absolutely sure there was no yolk. I beat the egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt until the egg whites began to form soft peaks. I then added sugar, vanilla, and almond extract. The only thing that differentiated this recipe from the previous time I made it was adding chopped pecans:




The batter was glossy and delicious-looking:



I felt better about them immediately when I was dishing them out onto the parchment paper. They were kisses!! I used a spoon but they would undoubtedly be more attractive if you used a pastry bag.




They were baked at a low heat for a very long time--I think it's more like drying them out than cooking them:



THEY WERE DELICIOUS! They were so good! I made 36 cookies and ate them ALL within 24 hours, which is not normal for me. The meringue kisses are very light and airy. I think the almond extract really added to the flavor too. I recommend using parchment paper because they peeled right off.

As an aside--I always think of cyanide when I use almond extract because it smells like cherries. Thank you Nancy Drew files for that knowledge!

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