Rose Meringue Cookies

I made meringues for the first time since my Baked Alaska disaster last week,and was succesful. It was really a practice session for these beautiful cookies. If I couldn't make regular meringues, there was no way I could make roses. But I could, and I did! Look:

They turned out great, especially for my first time trying it! I first saw the idea at Haniela's Blog. I unfortunately didn't have the tip size I wanted on hand so the rose buds aren't quite what I was looking for but they still turned out well. I also tried to do an open rose, but the meringue wasn't stiff enough to hold the shape so they ended up looking a little flat. I'll try the recipie again sometime to see if I can improve. The closed roses weren't hard to do, they just took a little practice, and with the right tip they'll look much better than mine! Here's the recipie I used:

<3 Meringues <3

4 large egg whites
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon meringue powder
pinch of salt
1 t Vanilla extract
desired food coloring

Preheat oven to 180*

Directions:
1) Use a whisk to combine the egg whites, pinch of salt, sugar and meringue powder in a heat proof bowl.
2) Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water (the bowl should not touch the water and whisk constantly, until sugar dissolves and the mixture is hot to the touch, about 6-8 minutes or so.
4) Remove the bowl from the double broiler and beat with mixer gradually from low to high until stiff peaks form. About 8-10 minutes.
5) Add the flavorings and mix for a minute or so to incorporate the extract. Then add the food coloring and beat till the meringue is no longer streaky
5) Make roses!
6) Bake in a 180* oven on a baking sheet for 2.5-3 hours, or until dried through. Baking times will vary depending on the size of the rose. Leave them in the oven to cool.

Now, if you want to make them look like roses you will need:
A piping bag
A wilton tip # 125 (I used a much smaller one, but would recommend this one!)
parchment paper cut into 1" squares
a flower nail (or you can use a meat themometer with a flat surface)

Wilton has a written tutorial available here that looks more like my roses, and Haniela has a video tutorial here with, I think, more realistic looking roses.

Give it a try if you want to try something new that looks pretty and tastes good too!

One last thing, that box they're in? It's a paper plate! I made it in less than 5 minutes when I realized I didn't have a cute way to give them to my friend, Heather, who I was meeting for dinner. I saw the idea at Sarah Hearts, she has a great video tutorial there. I made a few changes by rubber stamping hearts on the top of the plate before I started, and since I didn't have any washi tape I just used regular scoth tape and tied a ribbon around the box to make it a little fancier.

I was extreamly pleased with how it all turned out. It would make a fantastic Valentine, Mother's Day, or really any day present. Hopefully you'll give it a try!

Shared at Blue Cricket Design