I made these over the holidays and they turned out great! You could swap out the peppermint candy for other candy (try lemon drops, peanut brittle, etc) that can be made into a powder form (or try cocoa or even coffee).
Makes approximately 30 cookies (they are small)
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 90 minutes
- 5 Peppermint Hard Candies (or 2 candy canes)
- 2 Large Eggwhites
- 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 225 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Pulse the candies in a small food processor (or you can place in a ziploc and crush with rolling pin). You need the consistency of a fine powder and approximately 3 tablespoons of it.
Add eggwhites to a medium bowl (glass or metal works best and avoid ANY yoke or they won’t get stiff). Beat with an electric mixer on medium until they get frothy then add the salt and cream of tartar. Continue to beat until soft peaks form and it gets slightly thicker. Then, slowly add in the powdered sugar and continue whipping for about 5 minutes on medium high until the mixture becomes glossy and thick and stiff peaks form. Then, fold in about 1 tablespoon of the powdered peppermint.
Place the mixture in a pastry bag or you can use a ziploc with the end cut off. Pipe about 1-inch rounds onto the lined cookie sheet and sprinkle the tops with remaining pepermint. Bake for approximately 90 minutes or until they are dry to the touch. Remove from oven, let them cool about 5 minutes and then store an an air-tight container.
*Adapted from Shape Magazine’s recipe (December 2013).
