Delicious little melt in your mouth bites, these chocolate meringue cookies are sure to be a new favorite treat. This easy recipe has only 7 ingredients you probably already have in your pantry. You can't go wrong with whipping up a batch of these for a sweet treat or even a special choice for cookie exchanges!
Chocolate Meringue Cookies
There are many versions of a meringue cookie, but this one is a super easy version that never fails to be delicious. One of the best things about this recipe is that not only are they rich and chocolatey, but they have both a chewy and a crunchy element. This makes them the best of both worlds and ideal for sharing with others. Soft cookie lovers devour them and crunchy cookie lovers keep going back for more!
Not everyone will enjoy a meringue cookie, but that's okay. You can also whip up a batch of these whole wheat chocolate chip cookies, chocolate coconut energy bars, or even a delicious whole wheat chocolate muffin for those people.
What is Meringue?
The secret to this cookie recipe is the meringue, but you may be worried about making it. The light and airy meringue makes these cookies light and just a little bit chewy so they turn out perfect and not too hard. Meringue is a sweetened whipped egg white mixture that is traditional cooked just a little to brown the top on pies or mixed into recipes like these cookies.
What Does Cream of Tartar do in Meringue Cookies?
Cream of tartar acts as a stabilizer in the cookie recipe. This helps the meringue to form hard peaks you want in this easy cookie. In some recipes, you may also find that cream of tartar provides a slight tang to the recipe that is a nice balance with the extra sweetness in the recipe.
What if my Meringue Cookies Fall Flat?
Typically, if the meringue falls flat when you add the sugar to the mixture, it's because the eggs were not whisked enough first. This can result in a flat cookie. Another reason it may be flat is due to a lack of cream of tartar offering the stabilization needed in the meringue.
What Can I Do with a Deflated Meringue?
If your meringue is deflated, you can help by beating an additional egg white until it is frothy, then folding it into the over beaten egg whites until they are shiny again. When this trick doesn't work, you may need to start over with fresh egg whites to make new meringue.
How Many myWW Points are In Chocolate Meringue Cookies?
One of my favorite things about these cookies are that each one is so low in calories and points. For the points below, I am using a portion of 3 cookies. This recipe makes 24 small cookies, so 8 portions of 3 cookies each.
- myWW Blue: 2
- myWW Green: 2
- myWW Purple: 2
- Points Plus: 1
Ingredients
- Egg whites
- Cream of tartar
- Sugar
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Splenda or Stevia
- Salt
- Vanilla extract
Helpful Tools
How to Make Chocolate Meringue Cookies
Preheat the oven to 300°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Separate 3 egg whites into a bowl and set them aside.
Into a medium bowl, sift the cocoa powder, sweetener, and salt.
Beat the eggs on low to medium speed until frothy.
Add the cream of tartar and turn the speed to high and continue beating until soft peaks just form.
Continue beating the eggs while adding the sugar gradually.
Once the sugar has been added, continue beating until the stiff peaks form then stop beating.
Fold in the sifted cocoa mixture along with the vanilla extract a little at a time until just incorporated. The mixture will change texture and while you don't want to over mix this, you will begin to see a thicker frosting consistency.
Drop small spoons of the mixture onto the baking sheet.
For chewy cookies, bake for 20 minutes. If you prefer the crunchy texture, continue baking for 40 minutes.
📖 Recipe
The Best Chocolate Meringue Cookies Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 large egg whites
- ⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ⅓ cup Splenda or similar sugar substitute
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Separate 3 egg whites into a bowl and set them aside.3 large egg whites
- Into a medium bowl, sift the cocoa powder, sweetener, and salt and set aside.½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, Pinch of salt
- Beat the eggs on low to medium speed until frothy.
- Add the cream of tartar and turn the speed to high and continue beating until soft peaks just form.⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar
- Continue beating the eggs while adding the sugar gradually.¼ cup granulated sugar
- Once the sugar has been added, continue beating until the stiff peaks form then stop beating.⅓ cup Splenda
- Fold in the sifted cocoa mixture along with the vanilla extract a little at a time until just incorporated.1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- The mixture will change texture and while you don't want to over mix this, you will begin to see a thicker frosting consistency.
- Drop small spoons of the mixture onto the baking sheet.
- For chewy cookies, bake for 20 minutes. If you prefer the crunchy texture, continue baking for 40 minutes.
Notes
- myWW Blue: 2
- myWW Green: 2
- myWW Purple: 2
- Points Plus: 1
Nutrition
Cathy
I loved these! Like others, I only used a quarter cup of cocoa powder and they turned out great. They are chocolaty and chewy, I even added some chocolate chips to some so my husband would like them. I can't wait to try this with other variations! Thank you so much.
roni
A few others have said the cocoa is overpowering as well. I think I may be a little cocoa insensitive I use it so much! Hope you find the right combo for you!
LuAnn
I was so looking forward to making to this recipe! I have not been able to find Dark Cocoa powder anywhere so I just used all regular cocoa powder. Maybe this was a mistake because the cocoa was so overpowering that I couldn't taste the sugar, vanilla or anything. The texture was fine but I think 1/3 or 1/4 cup of cocoa powder may be better. Or more splenda and less sugar? Not sure, but I'll be remaking these to see what works best.
Sandy
OK! Crazy late addition to my post, but...I took 2 of those yummy cookies and sandwiched 1 T of fat free cool whip between them. Stuck them in the freezer and just ate an awesome "ice cream sandwich"!!! For real!!!
And, I bought some orange extract and some coconut extract to experiment with flavors in the future! I think I may have found a new chocolate addiction!
Thank you again for the flexible recipe!
Sandy
As somemone suggested, I added peppermint extract! Crazy good! I thought about making them another time and adding cinnamon and a little cayenne pepper, since I love my spicy brownies, and it might give me a similar flavor! Thanks for the recipe!
bill
would anyone consider marketing these cookies? let me know and I will sell for you.I am retired livimg in my camper but have a terrible time with sugar and w. flour.I can't bake, but if someone will send me their address I will send you money for cookies.I don't have trouble with Stevia, but I do with every other artificial sweetener, i.e., Splenda, aspartame, maltitol, sorbitol.Could more sugar be eliminated from recipe?
roni
Maggie - My philosophy is too always try. As long as you use some regular sugar as they are meringue like.
Maggie
Has anybody tried this recipe with agave nectar as a sugar substitute? Would you recommend against it?
Heather
I am excited to find your blog! I just discovered Kal stevia and it is so amazing I am trying to redo all my favorite recipes to incorporate it (and even blog about my trials and errors)! I am sorry to say I made these cookies today and they were complete and utter failures! I think it was my technique though and I am not giving up! I WILL have a stevia meringue cookie!
Jessica
I made these last night, and even the husband liked them! I knew they'd be great though, because all of your recipies are! Thanks for all you do, Roni! 🙂
roni
CcsMomma - Sorry you didn't like them.. have fun experimenting! That's what I love to do! 🙂
CcsMomma
Sorry, I didn't like these at all. I was really hoping I would, too. I followed the directions and am a pretty experienced baker. I found the texture to be good, but despite prepping my pan half the "cookie" stuck. Also, the recipe as written is too much cocoa powder for my taste. I may experiment with them again when I've got more eggs.
heather
I made these and used stevia. I doubled the recipe and accidentally forgot to double the sugar. They turned out so decadently chocolate but very mushy. I then put them back in the oven at 200 degrees for about an hour and they hardened a bit. Sill incredibly chocolaty decadent. Cured any chocolate cravings I had even though a bit on the bitter side.
richard
great cookies i used the zip lock you used in your other recipe to put on cookie sheet thanks again for all you do see a man can even do this lol
Lauren
I added walnuts at the end and reduced the cocoa and they came out delicious! similar to "Flourless chocolate cookies" in SELF magazine.
eva
hello.
i stumbled upon your website &the cookies look greeaat!(:
I would like to ask if you have the recipe & the directions for an original chocolate chip cookies for chewy & non chewy ones.
Prefrably in grams &tsp or something like that because i have no measuring cups.
i am a 15 year old beginner which has tried many fruitless attempts )':
I have many questions to ask you &i hope u can email me.
Please.
By the way, i am not staying in states or so.
Im from singapore.
Because there are some ingredients which are not available here.
I hope to hear from you soon through e-mail,
eva.
Ronnie
I wonder if you have to add the regular sugar?? I make a meringue cookie with just egg whites, splenda and vanilla and they turn out really good. I wonder if I just added the cocoa to my mixture what would happen, did u try this?
Mallka
I have made these 3x now and LOVE them. But for me I only get 15 cookies and they don't fluff up. They are dry & cakelike but still good none the less. My problem is once I am adding the cocoa mixture it simply breaks down the peaks 🙁
Oh and I ate all but 3 that the toddler ate today as well *blush* So thats what 5pts for WW?
roni
Jenna,
You need a little sugar to get the stiff peaks. I'm just not sure how low you can go before it affects that.
If you try it, let me know!
-Roni
Roni
Roni,
Is the sugar needed for baking purposes? Would the recipe be catastrophic if splenda was used in place of all of the sugar? I'm an amateur baker, sorry if this is a silly question!
Thanks!
Jenna
Holly
I just left them uncovered on a plate. Great recipe Roni, my whole family loves them.
roni
Kayla - I have never had them last more then a day! LOL it's a really good question. Has anyone else stored them??
Kayla
Roni, how do you store these? I put them in an air-tight container and they became mushy within one day.
Kayla
These are GREAT!!! I'm always looking for a healthy chocolately dessert! I made one batch exactly like the directions (chewy) and they were awesome....no leftovers 😉 I then made a second batch with less cocoa and more splenda and also one extra egg white (made half crunchy and half chewy) Not sure which ones are better.....I see endless possibilities with these...maybe a little peppermint extract next time!
roni
Just straight up splenda! I never bought the blend before.
shannon
Is that splenda as in the baking blend or just the granular splenda straight??
greeneggs
not that you don't do enough blogging already but you should share some of your recipes on recipezaar.com
Pam
Oh man. I just made these cookies (soft style) and they are FANTASTIC. I'm never going back to regular cookies. It can't be said often enough - Roni, you rock my world.
Christy
Hey these cookies are wonderful. My husband even likes them. Maybe if you are looking for another video you could make these cookies. If you have a program that will let you speed up your video you could even add some movie magic and speed up the video while you are mixing. It would be interesting too see.
Anyways...you better be careful or we are going to find you on Food Network. 🙂 You are definitely good enough. Keep up all your hard work.
Melissa
Wow! Thanks so much for this recipe. I have now made them twice. The first time that I made them, I overbeat the batter. They were still good but just flatter.
The second time I made them, I beat the batter just right, so they were still fluffy. I also put just half the cocoa called for in the recipe and doubled the spendla. I just found the cocoa to be a little overpowering in the first batch. That made the recipe have less calories, but of course, some fiber was lost.
I actually think I may overbeat them next time because they came out more cookie like in texture. However, both ways were delicious, so I can just alternate my batches because that way, you're really making two differnt kinds of cookies. Sorry to write so much about cookies, but I'm in love with them!
I read your blog frequently and really admire what you do! Thanks so much for all your advice and recipes. The video posts are great as well.
roni
Bonnie - The Stevie is a bit tricky to work with. I noticed the sweetness level is drastic different with different brands. Which I think is odd. To be honest, I think the cookies come out better with the Splenda. You could always double the sugar but then in essence you would be doubling the calories.
Oh! and they are pretty small. Last time I got 27 out of the batch, I think when you use the stevia the cookies have less volume.
Bonnie
Roni,
When you use Stevia in these cookies, does it matter if you're using the packets or the bulk? Your recipe states Stevia powder extract, and I don't see that terminology on my box of SweetLeaf Steveia SteviaPlus packets.
I'm making them now, if you happen to be on the computer, I could use an answer. If not, I'll figure out something, or use Splenda this time. Thanks!
roni
Elaine - Recipe all fixed, I hope they come out for you!
Elaine
I'm in the middle of doing of these and realize recipe doesn't say when to add vanilla (or almond extract) so I have added it at the end. Also, it says "For chewy continue baking for an additional 20 minutes." Is there supposed to be another time for non-chewy? Thanks! Hope they turn out--but with all that chocolate--they can't be bad!!!
Karen
Amazing - I never knew that cocoa had fiber - and I consider myself a fiber guru! Thanks!
PS. Thanks also for introducing me to whole wheat orzo - I've tried it and love it! I may never eat rice again!
roni
The cocoa powder. 1 cup has 29g of fiber according the nutritiondata.com.
That translates to .6g per cookie!
Karen
Roni,
Where does the 3 grams of fiber come from in the cookies?