Nana’s Chocolate Chip Meringues

Nana’s Chocolate Chip Meringues are sweet and simple with just three ingredients. Rich and creamy chocolate chips speckle a slightly sticky inner meringue. This recipe comes out perfect every time.

Inspired by my Nana and Crossfit.

I’ll start with my Nana. This is her recipe after all.

It has taken me a long time to write this post. Maybe because I have to write about my Nana. I have all of these feelings in my heart – so many that it aches. My Nana is warm, gracious, and forgiving. Honest, kind, and brave. Obstinate. Forgetful. Thoughtful. Happy. Sad. Proud. Smart. Thankful. She has 94 years of stories inside of her. I love the soft skin of her hands. I love her laugh. I love the puppy eyes she makes when she’s really trying to understand something. I love how she stays up late to watch Notre Dame football and drinks a tall glass of scotch every day at 5 o’clock. I love the way she eats just a few bites before announcing she’s full, even though I do wish she’d eat more. I love the surprised, “Oh!” she gives when she learns something new. I love how she loves all of us.

It was out of love that she spent decades preparing meals for her husband and eight children.  She says she doesn’t like to cook and claims she never did. And yet, there are still a handful of recipes that belong to Nana. Like Nana’s Chocolate Chip Meringues.

The meringue is sweet and simple. I am amazed at what egg whites and sugar can do – but really, it’s the air. You have to whip in just the right amount of air to form stiff little peaks that can be made into crisp little meringues. In my opinion, Chocolate Chip Meringues are best fresh from the oven, when the chocolate chips are melty and rich next to a slightly sticky inner-meringue. I think Nana’s got her Chocolate Chip Meringue recipe down pat. They come out the same every time.

And as for Crossfit? I’m still shredding for this Crossfit Challenge and I reasoned that Chocolate Chip Meringues, with only three ingredients, were the most shredding-friendly dessert I could bring to a party. In retrospect, I think eating 14 of them was sort of extreme, but I suppose that’s better than eating 14 iced sugar cookies.

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Nana’s Chocolate Chip Meringues

Nana’s Chocolate Chip Meringues are sweet and simple with just three ingredients. Rich and creamy chocolate chips speckle a slightly sticky inner meringue. This recipe comes out perfect every time. 

Course Dessert

Keyword Chocolate Chip Meringues, Cookies

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes

Servings 18 meringues

Author theeverykitchen@gmail.com

Ingredients

• 2 fresh egg whites
• 1 pinch salt or cream of tartar optional
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a cookie sheet with cooking spray and sprinkle lightly with cornstarch.
2. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites on low speed until foamy. Add a pinch of salt or cream of tartar to help stabilize the egg whites. This can be helpful, but it is not necessary.
3. Continue to beat on medium or medium-high speed until soft peaks form. At this stage, you may start adding the sugar slowly, a few tablespoons at a time.
4. Continue to beat and add sugar until peaks are stiff. You should be able to pull the beaters out and there are peaks in the bowl and also on your beaters. Do not overbeat! The peaks will fall and appear watery.
5. By hand, gently fold in chocolate chips.
6. Drop meringues onto cookie sheet with a teaspoon, about 1 inch apart.
7. Put into oven and turn off. Pull out in 2 hours.*

Recipe Notes

*Don’t even open the door to look – you will let needed heat escape! I’ve made this mistake before.