A Valentine’s Day – or any other occasion! – treat.
Ingredients:
- 5 large egg whites
- 1 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
- Pinch of cream of tartar
- 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Finely grated zest of 1 orange
- 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated grapefruit zest
- Pink gel-paste food coloring
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 225 degrees.
- Put egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar into the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a pan of simmering water.
- Whisk until mixture is warm and sugar has dissolved.
- Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high, beat until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla.
- Transfer half the meringue to another bowl. Using a rubber spatula, stir orange zest into 1 bowl of meringue. Stir grapefruit zest and pink food coloring into remaining meringue.
- Place a 3 1/4-by-3 1/2-inch heart-shape cutter in one corner of a parchment-lined baking sheet. Using a small spatula, fill heart with meringue; swirl. Push down edges of meringue with the spatula, and lift up cutter. Repeat, spacing meringue hearts 2 inches apart on baking sheets.
- Bake until meringues are firm and can be removed easily from parchment paper, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Meringues can be stored between layers of parchment paper in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.
Adapted from Martha Stewart website.
