Meringue Ghosts

Meringue Ghosts…swoooping in just in time for Halloween! These sweet cookies are spooky, adorable and delicious! This easy recipe makes the perfect fall trick and/or treat!

What’s Halloween without tricks and treats?! I love seeing Halloween decorations this time of the year. These Meringue Ghosts are the perfect, yet unexpected edible decoration for Halloween!

THESE MERINGUE GHOSTS ARE:

• FUN: Fun to make and eat and to see people’s reactions to them!
• EASY TO MAKE: I know meringues might not be something you make every day, but it’s truly a simple recipe.
• DIFFERENT: Classic treats like monster filled Peanut Butter Cup Brownies and sugar cookies like these Halloween Sugar Cookies from the Food Network are great, but it’s fun to make a treat something different!
• DELICIOUS: Everyone will love their sweet taste and signature crispy meringue texture that melts in your mouth!
• SUPER KID FRIENDLY: Piping these reminded me a little of my Poop Emoji Cupcakes. I was thinking about how much kids would like these.

WHAT DO I NEED TO MAKE THESE HALLOWEEN TREATS?

• Egg whites: Egg whites whip up best at room temperature. It’s easiest to separate them when they’re cold. It’s best to separate them when they’re cold then use them once they reach room temperature.
• Caster sugar or granulated sugar
• Cream of tartar
• Candy eyes: For the eyes, of course. (If you don’t have candy eyes, or if you run out, you can use mini chocolate chips. Just tick the pointy side in so that the circles are showing).
• Mini chocolate chips: For the mouth.

HOW TO MAKE MERINGUE GHOSTS

1. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and preheat oven to 225 F. You might be able to get away with one baking sheet because they won’t spread while they bake. I prefer two because it makes it easier to pipe them.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer using the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium until frothy. 
3. Add the cream of tartar and beat on medium until soft peaks form. Add the sugar a tablespoon at a time until all the sugar has been added. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue mixing until stiff, glossy peaks form. 

PIPING AND BAKING THE MERINGUE

Spoon the meringue into a pastry bag and pipe the ghosts onto the baking sheet. Mine came out a little funky and snowmen-like at first. I had to do a few test runs and scraped the meringue off and started again. It can help to look at a picture of a ghost and think about how you’ll pipe it before or while you’re piping them.

Once piped, add the candy eyes and/or mini chocolate chips and bake them for 30 minutes. Turn the oven off and leave the meringues in the oven for an additional 1-2 hours. 

HOW TO KNOW WHEN THEY’RE FINISHED

The important thing to check for with these Ghost Meringues to that they are not sticky on the outside. They should feel dry to the touch and they should be pretty easy to lift them off the parchment paper.

A FEW MORE TIPS BEFORE YOU MAKE MERINGUE GHOSTS

• I already mentioned using room temperature egg whites.
• Another thing about the egg whites is to make sure you don’t get any yolk in with the whites. I crack each egg into a separate, smaller bowl before adding them to the mixing bowl. This helps me make sure I don’t end up with any yolk.
• Make sure your bowl is clean and free of any grease.
• Keep beating the egg whites until you get stiff peaks.  This will take several minutes and you’ll want to stop a few times to check. To see that you achieved stiff peaks, just stop the mixer and detach the whisk attachment. Flip the beater upside down and if the peak peak and it holds its shape, you have stiff peaks. For more how to pictures and info on stiff peaks, check out this post Master the Meringue: How to Whip Egg Whites to Soft or Stiff Peaks from Taste of Home.

These Meringue Ghosts are the crispy, sweet, slighty gooey spooky treat you need this time of the year! They’re fun to make and fun to decorate. Make them today and watch your friends’ and family’s faces light up when they see and taste them!

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