Recipe: Chocolate Meringue Bones

Another bone shaped treat - because, honestly?  I can't find my pastry bags.  And bones are the easiest thing to shape from a clipped off corner of a baggie.  I wanted to do spiders, but without frosting tips, I didn't see it happening.

They would be yummy with almond flavoring, but I have someone coming to my party who is allergic to nuts, so I didn't want to risk even artificial almond flavoring.

If you aren't making them for Halloween, you could always make them just in the classic "kiss" shape.

I did two batches - one batch, I cooked for 1 1/2 hours at 250 F and then removed to wire racks.  The other batch, I cooked for 1 hour at 200 F, then shut the oven off, left it closed, and left them in all night.  I think the 200 F worked better, so that's the instructions I'll put below, but if you are in a hurry, you could use the other method.

Chocolate Meringue Bones

3 egg whites (room temp works best)
dash of salt
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 c sugar
dash cinnamon

Sift together cocoa powder, sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl using your electric mixer, beat egg whites until foamy/frothy. While beating to the frothy stage, add salt, cream of tartar, and vanilla extract. After reaching the frothy stage, add the cocoa/sugar mixture (1 tablespoons at a time) while continuing beating until the egg whites are stiff and glossy.

Place mixture in a piping bag and pipe into desired shape onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone mats.  I did bone shapes.

Preheat oven to 200 F, and bake for 1 hour.  Then, without opening oven, turn the heat off and let the meringues dry out in the oven - I did overnight, about 6 hours.  You could also bake for 1 1/2 hours at 250 F, and place them on wire racks to cool.  Store in an airtight container.