Читать книгу Baking Favorites - Williams Sonoma - Страница 27
Оглавление7 large egg whites
2 cups (1 lb/500 g) sugar
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
5 tablespoons (1 oz/30 g) Dutch-
process cocoa powder, sifted
¼ lb (125 g) bittersweet chocolate,
finely chopped
¼ lb (125 g) cacao nibs
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Minty Chocolate Meringues
These pretty cookies use a Swiss meringue, which calls for heating the egg whites and sugar
together before beating. It yields a denser, smoother, and more stable meringue than a French
meringue, which incorporates the sugar as the whites are beaten. Don’t adjust the amount
of sugar, as the structure of any meringue depends on the correct ratio of egg whites to sugar.
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a heatproof bowl, whisk together the egg whites and sugar until combined. Set the
bowl over but not touching barely simmering water in a saucepan and whisk constantly
until the sugar is completely dissolved, about 3 minutes. Remove the bowl from the
heat and whisk in the peppermint extract.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg white
mixture on high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 8 minutes. Stop the mixer
and add the cocoa powder, chocolate, and cacao nibs. Gently fold into the meringue
until just combined.
Drop the meringue by heaping tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing
the cookies about 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart.
Bake until the cookies are dry to the touch and begin to crack, 8–10 minutes. Transfer
the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes, then
transfer the cookies to the rack and let cool completely.
TIP For showstopping Christmas cookies, let the meringues cool completely, then dip in
melted chocolate and sprinkle with crushed candy canes. You can also transfer the
meringue to a piping bag fitted with a large decorating tip and pipe out intricately
shaped cookies.
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COOKIES, BARS & BROWNIES