Crispy, light, airy, and melt-in-mouth vegan meringue cookies with aquafaba! A four-ingredient vegan meringue recipe perfect for any occasion.
I always wanted to try to make meringue cookies, but the eggs put me off. Finally, last year I started to experiment the meringue cookies with aquafaba. After quite a few experiments, here I am sharing our favorite version – the rose-flavored vegan meringue cookies.
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What are meringue cookies?
Meringue cookies are light and airy cookies made with egg whites and sugar. It is often associated with French, Italian, and Swiss cuisine, and all these cuisines have their unique way of preparing these meringue cookies.
But today, I am going to share the vegan version of these meringue cookies. As I have to share a lot of details, let’s get straight into the details.
Ingredients required for vegan meringue cookies
We need four ingredients for these meringues – aquafaba, cream of tartar, sugar, and any flavors of your choice.
Aquafaba
In general, aquafaba means the liquid used for cooking the beans, precisely chickpeas or garbanzo beans. Most of the recipes call for canned chickpeas brine, and that’s what I have used for this recipe as well.
I used the liquid/brine from one chickpea can, and I got about ¾ cup of the liquid. You can use chickpeas for making hummus, stir-fry or salad, or any other recipes.
Can I use homemade aquafaba for meringue cookies?
Well, I haven’t tried and tested with homemade aquafaba. The liquid needs to be starchy, and the way/method we cook the chickpeas plays a significant role. I am still testing my homemade aquafaba. So I can’t answer this question at this point.
Trust me, canned chickpeas brine does the job, and you won’t find the chickpeas’ flavor at all.
Cream of tartar
The next vital ingredient is the cream of tartar, and we need ¼ tsp of cream of tartar. It acts as a stabilizing agent and helps the meringue get the stiff peaks and hold its shape. Also, they prevent the sugar from crystallizing.
What if I don’t have the cream of tartar?
I haven’t tested this recipe with any substitutes, but I read you can use vinegar or lemon juice. A half tsp of any of these should work.
Sugar
Make sure to use vegan sugar. While many say fine sugar works fine, I used my regular raw sugar, and the crystals were not so subtle.
When to add sugar?
While most recipes call for adding sugar gradually after soft or firm peaks have formed, I added the sugar all at once when the aquafaba became all frothy. So that the crystals can break and mix evenly.
I tried adding sugar gradually after soft peaks formed during my initial tests. With both the methods, I didn’t note any drastic difference in texture. Both were crisp and melt-in-mouth, and we liked both.
But let me let you this if you are adding sugar after stiff peaks have formed, make sure to add powdered sugar or a super fine one.
Flavors
You can use any flavors of your choice. I have tried using vanilla and orange extract, and this time, I went with store-bought rose syrup. I used 1 tbsp of the rose-syrup, and it imparted some light pink color as well.
You can also add some food colors for fun. But that’s optional.
Equipment needed
I highly recommend an electric hand mixer. If you have a stand mixer, you can use that too. It would be best if you had strength and powder to whip the aquafaba. With an electric hand mixer, you will get stiff peaks in about 15 minutes.
Traditionally meringues were scooped and shaped with spoons. But later, people started to pipe them, and that’s what I have done here as well. In that case, you need piping bags and piping tips.
And, of course, baking trays. Please don’t miss to read the “yield” section.
Use a broad and deep vessel as you whip the aquafaba increases in volume.
Baking time
It would be best if you baked meringues at low temperature for a longer time. So I baked these cookies at 200 deg F for 2 hours, reduced the temperature to 175 deg F, and baked for 30 minutes. Once the baking is complete, please turn off the oven and let it stay in the oven for 2 hours or overnight. I usually bake them in the evening and leave them in the oven overnight. It’s crucial to leave them in the oven so that they become dry and crisp.
During my initial test, I baked them for 2 hours at 200 degrees F, and they were good too. But additional crispness, this time I baked for extra 30 minutes.
You need a minimum of 2 to 3 hours of baking, and it depends upon the size of the meringues as well. We need to bake them until they are completely dry.
Yield
Folks, this measure will minimum yield 50 to 60 cookies depending upon how you pipe. I got 77 cookies, and I had to bake them in three trays. So you need. Also, I piped the cookies a little closer. They don’t expand like other cookies, but you can easily break them apart even if they touch the other cookies.
How to store the meringues
Once the cookies have cooled down completely, you can store them in an air-tight container. These cookies tend to absorb water from the air and become sticky. Too much moisture makes the cookies sticky. When refrigerating, try not to stack them up. So far, I have stored them in the refrigerator for two weeks.
I read that if the cookies are super sticky, you can bake them again for 10 minutes. I did try that, and yes, they become crisp, but they also shrunk a bit.
Ok, I think I have covered all the significant points. Now let’s see how to make aquafaba meringues with step-wise pictures.
Watch me make meringue cookies
How to make vegan meringue cookies
- Drain the liquid from the garbanzo beans can and add the liquid to a bowl.
- Using an electric hand mixer, beat the liquid at medium-speed until it becomes foamy.
- Now add the cream of tartar and sugar.
- And beat again at high speed until you get soft peaks. Now add the rose syrup.
- Now beat again using the hand-mixer until you get stiff/firm peaks like below.
- Preheat the oven at 200 deg F and line two or three baking trays with parchment paper and set aside. Transfer the meringue to a piping bag fitted with the tip of your choice. Pipe the meringue onto the baking sheets. You can scoop the meringues onto the baking sheets using an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon.
- Bake the cookies for 2 hours and then reduce the temperature to 175 deg F and bake for 30 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the cookies inside the oven for an hour or two. Once the cookies are dry, store them in an air-tight container.
Recipe Notes
- Adjust the sugar as per your preference.
- Make sure to leave the cookies in the oven after turning the oven off.
- Use any flavors of your choice.
- I have discussed the timings, substitutes, and other details on the post. Please make sure to read them all for the perfect meringue cookies.
More Vegan Desserts
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Meringue Cookies | Aquafaba Meringues
Equipment
- Electric Hand Mixer
- conventional oven
- Baking Tray
Ingredients
Measurement Details: 1 cup = 240ml; 1 tsp=5ml; 1tbsp=15ml;
- ¾ cup aquafaba liquid from one 15.5 oz garbanzo beans can
- ¼ tsp cream of tartar
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tbsp rose syrup
Instructions
- Drain the liquid from the garbanzo beans can and add the liquid to a bowl.
- Using an electric hand mixer, beat the liquid at medium-speed until it becomes foamy.
- Now add the cream of tartar and sugar.
- And beat again at high speed until you get soft peaks. Add the rose syrup.
- Now beat again using the hand-mixer until you get stiff/firm peaks like below.
- Preheat the oven at 200 deg F and line two or three baking trays with parchment paper and set aside. Transfer the meringue to a piping bag fitted with the tip of your choice. Pipe the meringue onto the baking sheets. You can scoop the meringues onto the baking sheets using an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon.
- Bake the cookies for 2 hours and then reduce the temperature to 175 deg F and bake for 30 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the cookies inside the oven for an hour or two. Once the cookies are dry, store them in an air-tight container.
Video
Notes
- Adjust the sugar as per your preference.
- Make sure to leave the cookies in the oven after turning the oven off.
- Use any flavors of your choice.
- I have discussed the timings, substitutes, and other details on the post. Please make sure to read them all for the perfect meringue cookies.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
I made it and it turned out into a big puddle of flat meringues – from 3 cm high to 1 mm high
i whipped for 12 minutes, added sugar and cocoa powder slowly. It was really stiff when I put them on the cookie sheet and when I went back to check on them they were flat
Hi Iris, sorry that it fell flat. I did not test it with cocoa powder. Maybe the fat content would have been too high and that could have caused the cookies to deflate. Also, we need to fold in the cocoa powder towards the end. I am not able to troubleshoot what happened exactly. I will definitely try it with cocoa powder and let you know. Thanks