Orange Meringue Cookies are delicious and gorgeous making them the perfect special occasion cookies. They are easy to pipe and easy to color. You can adjust the colors for different holiday or cover with festive sprinkles.
These beautiful Orange Meringue Cookies are as easy to make as they are pretty. You can whip up the batter in less than fifteen minutes. They are pretty as a picture. For 4th of July meringues simply drizzle red and blue food coloring down opposite sides of the piping bag. To make a beautiful Christmas version simply drizzle red and green food coloring down the opposite sides of the bag. For a pretty Easter cookie simply drizzle pastel blue and pink down the sides of the bag.
How do you make Orange Meringue Cookies?
Grab your stand mixer and attach the wire whip. If you do not have a stand mixer use a hand held mixer preferably with the whisk beaters. Add the egg whites, orange extract, salt and cream of tartar to the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on low until the egg whites begin to turn white and frothy. Turn the mixer to high and start adding the sugar very slowly. Add the sugar about 1 tablespoon at a time. Keep adding the sugar slowly and beat until the meringue forms stiff glossy peaks. This can take anywhere from 7-10 minutes.
Attach a large piping tip to a disposable piping bag and place over a large glass for ease in filling the bag. Add about 1/3 cup of meringue to the piping bag. Drizzle about 1/8 teaspoon orange food coloring down one side of the piping bag. Carefully fill the piping bag with meringue trying not to disrupt the food coloring. Pipe the meringue in small cookies about 2 1/2 inches wide. They can be piped fairly close together as they do not spread. Cook at 250 degrees for 35 minutes and shut off the oven. Leave them in there for several hours. Store in airtight containers.
Tips for making Orange Meringue Cookies
- Make sure the bowl, beaters and all utensils are clean and completely dry. Just a little oil can keep the eggs from reaching maximum volume.
- Take your time when separating your eggs as a little egg yolk can cause problems with getting the whites to fluff up. Crack them one at time because if you get any yolk in the egg whites you will need to remove it. If you can not get it all out discard and try again.
- Separate your eggs when they are cold and let the egg whites come to room temperature.
- You can substitute vanilla extract for orange extract.
- Pipe your cookies on to parchment covered baking sheets.
- You can mix red and yellow dye to create orange. Using McCormick food coloring a 1/8 teaspoon is about 11 drops of yellow to 3 drops red.
- If the Meringue Cookies get tacky or sticky place them back in a 250 degree oven for 10 minutes. Then turn the oven off and let them remain in there for about one hour.
- Experiment with different extracts but remember a little extract goes a long way especially with mint or peppermint.
- For fun try different food coloring. For instance for Christmas place red and green on opposite sides of the piping bag. It works every time and makes such beautiful cookies.
Other Cookies you will love!
- Cowboy Cookies
- Small Batch Almond Joy Cookies
- Fresh Blueberry Cookies with an Orange Glaze
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Orange Meringue Cookies
Orange Meringue Cookies are delicious and gorgeous making them the perfect special occasion cookies. They are easy to pipe and easy to color.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes plus drying time
- Yield: 2 dozen 1x
- Category: cookies
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 3 large egg whites
- 1/2 teaspoon orange extract (see notes)
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2 pinches salt
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon orange dye
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250 degrees and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Add the egg whites, orange extract, cream of tartar and salt to the clean bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on low until egg whites turn white and frothy. Turn the mixer to high and add the sugar very slowly; one tablespoon at a time. Keep adding sugar slowly. Beat until meringue forms stiff glossy peaks. The meringue should feel smooth when rubbed between your thumb and index finger. This can take anywhere from 7-10 minutes.
- Attach a large piping tip to a disposable piping bag. Add about 1/3 cup of meringue to piping bag. Drizzle 1/8 teaspoon orange food coloring down one side of the piping bag. Carefully fill the piping bag with meringue trying not to disrupt the food coloring. Pipe the meringue in small cookies about 2 1/2 inches wide. Cook at 250 degrees for 35 minutes and shut off the oven. Leave them in there for 2-3 hours. Store in airtight containers.
Notes
- You can substitute vanilla extract for the orange if desired
- If the Meringue Cookies get tacky or sticky place them back in a 250 degree oven for 10 minutes. Then turn the oven off and let them remain in there for about one hour.
Keywords: meringue cookies, cookies, holiday cookies, recipes using meringue
https://www.smalltownwoman.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Beth-1.pdf
Sara Welch
Whipped up a batch of these this afternoon and they were an instant hit! The perfect mid-day treat that turned out perfectly moist and delicious; loved every bite!
★★★★★
Caitlyn Erhardt
These are so beautiful, I love how the orange and white is swirled together. I can’t wait to make these soon because they sound delicious as well.
★★★★★
Elizabeth
Amazingly light and so delicious! Perfect summer treat!
★★★★★
Heather Johnson
love these cookies – they’re so light!
★★★★★
Jess
My brain is going crazy with all the different color options I am coming up with! These are literally perfect for anytime of the year!
★★★★★
Scott
After baking what should the texture be like? Mine were like marshmallows on the inside and the exterior was not very hard.
Beth Pierce
No the texture will be light airy and solid. Is there a lot moisture in the air where you are?
TBONE Cooks
Made these today for a family members birthday. He dislikes “Birthday Cake”. He loves cookies and enjoys his life on a GF diet. I stole 3 to taste and it has such a balanced taste and a succulent texture. I followed the recipe as written. No need to change a thing. To pipe the meringue I had tips but only had ziplock bags.. works just as good. Thank you.
Beth Pierce
That is awesome! So glad that you liked them and they worked for your family member. They are really a cool cookie and so pretty.
Kristi
These are so beautiful! I will have to make them for my kids soon!
Edyta
This recipe is fantastic. The cookies not only look amazing but also taste great. They remind me of meringue cookies I was buying in a local bakery when I was a kid.
★★★★★
Heidy L. McCallum
Not only are these super cute but they look delish! I love the flavor combo and am so excited to make them! Bookmarking!
★★★★★
cheflolaskitchen
These look so cute! Lovely!
★★★★★
Krissy Allori
These are so cute and they look so delicious. I look forward to trying them.
★★★★★
Goldy
Wow! A scrumptious display. I must try these for my family this holiday. Thanks Beth.
★★★★★
Beth Pierce
Awesome! I hope you enjoy them!!
jade
How awesome are these, so fun and creative, they reminded me of seashells!
★★★★★
Erin @ Texanerin Baking
What a gorgeous color! I’ve never had these but would love to try.
Beth Pierce
Thanks Erin!
Naveen Sohail
OMG, it’s so unique and looks super delicious I’m going to try this now.
Michelle
These are just beautiful! What a fun cookie…thank you for the tip for the 4th of July!
★★★★★
Kim Seghers
Those Orange Meringues look so pretty and delicious! I need to try making some.
★★★★★
Sara Welch
These are some super cute cookies! They look absolutely delicious! My kids will love these, for sure!
★★★★★
Demeter
These are just so perfect! Made these for my neighbors and they immediately asked for the recipe.
★★★★★