Swiss Meringue Cookies & Pops

I think I fell in love with meringue cookies when I was in middle school.  My brothers and I spent our summers walking to the grocery store and Blockbuster to score sweet treats (donuts and meringue cookies, holla!) and binge worthy movies.  But until now, I’ve never tried to make meringue cookies myself. Let me tell you, these cookies are as easy to make as they are delicious!

 

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This recipe was originally published on April 25, 2019.  It was republished on June 5, 2025 with updates.

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Meringue Cookies = Bliss

 

If you’ve never had a meringue cookie, I don’t know how to describe what you are missing, but let me try.  Meringue cookies are light as air, naturally gluten free, and dissolve into tasty goodness in your mouth. You can easily color them fun, vibrant colors and flavor them with any extract.  They are the perfect sweet treat when you’re looking to keep things light.

Meringue cookies are egg whites and sugar whipped up to stiff peaks, flavored, colored and piped onto a baking sheet in any number of designs.  You can do the normal cookie, or pipe letters, numbers, swirls, flowers, and the list goes on! Besides being a great treat, you can also decorate cakes and cupcakes with them.  But be careful. Moisture is the meringue’s biggest enemy, so don’t decorate until you are ready to serve.

 

 

Let’s Talk Technique

 

There are several methods for making meringue.  You can heat the egg whites and sugar in order to dissolve the sugar before whipping into a beautiful fluffy cloud (Swiss Meringue).  Or you can whip the egg whites and slowly add the sugar, being careful not to deflate the egg whites (French Meringue). Or you can drizzle hot sugar syrup into the egg whites as you whip them (Italian Meringue).

But we also need to talk about baking those meringue cookies.  You want to bake them low and slow to give them plenty of time to dry out.  I say to shoot for 60- 75 minutes baking in the oven.  When they are done, turn the heat off and let them sit for about 3 hours.

 

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Them Eggs Tho

 

Egg whites are the main player in a meringue and everything else is just there to add fun, flavor, and stabilize.  Of course, you’re thinking egg whites from a cartoon will make this super easy, but please don’t do this!  Those egg whites are pasteurized and will not whip up the way they are supposed to.  In fact, the carton even says not to use them for meringues.

Use fresh eggs and separate them while they are cold.  Now, we’ll be heating our egg whites up a hair, so the temperature isn’t as big of a deal this time.  However, keep in mind that they separate easiest when cold, but whip up best at room temperature.  Just leave them in a closed mason jar on the counter for an hour if you need them a bit warmer.

 

 

Meringue Making Tips

 

Another thing to keep in mind about the egg whites is that you need clean utensils.  I’m not throwing shade at your ability to wash your stuff, but you should make sure to wipe down the whisk attachment and bowl with a smidge of white vinegar on a paper towel.  This will get rid of any fat or grease residue that could inhibit the whites from reaching their full potential.

In the same spirit, make sure not to get any yolk in your whites.  I suggest separating your whites into a separate bowl first before adding the perfect egg white into the rest.  This way, if you get an exploding yolk, the rest of your egg whites aren’t tainted. And those 3 egg yolks that you’re removing? Try making my mango curd!  It’s absolutely delicious.

 

Related Reading: All About Meringue: Covering the Basics

 

Making the Meringues

 

The recipe I had planned on using was a French meringue, so it did not involve any heating of the egg whites.  Heating a sugar syrup or the egg whites and sugar makes me nervous because many recipes can be vague about when to remove your ingredients from the heat.  I didn’t go with this method, but check out my Forget Me Not Cookies recipe if you prefer a French meringue.

I love this recipe because it actually includes a temperature for the egg whites.  Precision matters with meringues. You still need to pay attention to how your ingredients are behaving, but I find recipes that are specific are much more reliable. Watch the recipe video to see exactly how I make, pipe, and bake these cookies.

 

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Make These Easy Cookies Your Own

 

I always thought that making meringue cookies would be tricky because I didn’t have much experience with meringue.  As long as you have a food thermometer, you are taking a stroll down easy street.  Don’t have one? Not a big deal, but there’s a smidge more guess work.

Any recipe for meringue cookies is going to be fantastic because the flavor and color combinations are endless!  Use any extract you like and add some gel color to make those meringue cookies pop. I’m so excited to try peppermint, root beer, raspberry, and more.  What flavor would you like to try? Tell me in the comments below! I did vanilla for these ones, but I’ve also done almond and vanilla, butter, and nut.

 

 

What a Fun Cookie

 

Cupcake Jemma has used meringues a ton of times to decorate cakes, but I always thought it was too much work.  Oh my goodness, I was wrong. These are so cute and you could use all sorts of fun piping tips to make some really adorable additions to any cake.  I’ve used them on my Eagle Cake and my first number cake!  

Beyond just meringue cookies, you can make meringue pops to enjoy as is or shove on top of a cake for another layer of fun.  Pipe a dollop of meringue, add your lollipop stick, then pipe your meringue pop. You can even add sprinkles and edible glitter before you bake for even more glam.

 

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And guys, I’ve got some great news for you if you can’t do wheat.  You may have figured this out already, but meringue cookies are naturally gluten free, just like macarons!  So now you’ve got a cute, easy, gluten free cookie recipe. Even if you don’t avoid gluten, this is a good recipe to keep on hand in case you are ever entertaining guests with this dietary restriction.  Such an awesome cookie!

 

Enjoy!

 

Who knew meringue cookies could be so exciting?  Not me! I’m seriously so excited to try these again.  Maybe my next cake will feature this fun cookie. I love that this recipe only takes a few ingredients that you are sure to have in your house already.  There’s no reason you can’t take 30 minutes out of your day to whip up a tasty batch of meringue cookies in whatever flavor you desire!