Orange Meringues

Mirj's Note:

Delicate and delicious. The long cooking time is for leaving the meringues in the turned-off oven overnight.

• Total Time: 8 hrs 10 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 8 hrs

Ingredients:

Yield: 2 dozen

• 3 egg whites
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1⁄8; teaspoon salt
• 1⁄8; teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 ½ ounces packages orange flavor gelatin
• 4 -6 ounces chocolate chips (Preheat) or 4 -6 ounces chopped nuts (, Optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 475F degrees.
2. Cover 2 baking sheets with foil.
3. Beat egg whites until foamy.
4. Add salt and cream of tartar.
5. Mix the orange gelatin and sugar together, then add the mixture to the egg whites gradually, a tablespoon at a time, while beating.
6. Beat to stiff peaks.
7. Carefully fold in the chocolate chips and nuts, if desired.
8. Drop batter by teaspoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets.
9. Place the baking sheets into the hot oven quickly, then close the oven door, and turn the oven off.
10. Leave the cookies in the oven overnight (8 hours).
11. Store in an airtight container.

Reviews

[Chef #48136]

These were good: very intense and orangy. Less crispy and more chewy than my usual meringues (which aren't left in the oven overnight). Easy to make. I didn't use the optional chocolate chips or nuts, but either one would probably have been a nice addition. I got 37 meringues out of this recipe. A nice, light, fatfree "cookie"!

[Random Rachel]

These turned out very nice- they almost tasted like fruit loops. I didn't have any cream of tarter so I used baking soda instead, and it worked well. The overnight baking time was really nice too.