This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
I’ve been trying to make healthier, refined sugar free, paleo meringue cookies for SO long now and we finally nailed them! Meringue cookies are one of my all-time favorites! They are simple, crunchy, light, naturally gluten-free, and perfect to have for entertaining or for a treat. These Maple Meringue Cookies are refined sugar free, light, and the perfect beautiful cookie everybody will love!
Meringue Cookies
I won’t lie, these Meringue Cookies took several attempt to get them just right! We wanted them to be light and crunchy and just sweet enough using only unrefined sweeteners. We tried honey, maple sugar and even beet sugar before settling down on maple syrup as the perfect sweetener for these cookies. The maple flavor is present, but it is subtle and adds a really great dimension to this elegant cookies.
Tips for Making Meringue Cookies
- It’s easier to separate the egg whites while they’re cold, but let them sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes so they whip up easier.
- Make sure you have a clean mixing bowl and whisk attachment before you start whipping the egg whites! Any grease leftover in the bowl could prevent your egg whites from whipping up.
- To get your parchment paper to lay flat without moving on the sheet pan pipe a small portion of the meringue mixture on the back of the parchment on each corner.
- Don’t open the oven up after you’ve finished baking the Meringues! Let them sit, undisturbed in the oven the entire 2 hours. They need that dry environment to continue to cook and dry out.
- Once you take them out of the oven make sure to store any Meringues in an air-tight container that will not be consumed right away so they stay nice and crisp.
While made with minimal ingredients, meringues can be a trickier cookie to make without the classic white refined sugar. We spent a lot of time perfecting this recipe and are so excited for it to finally make it to LCK!
Are meringue cookies good for you?
They are certainly a healthier cookie made with minimal ingredients!! Plus, since they are made with egg whites, you get some protein bonus!
Can you over whip a meringue?
Yes. When you over whip the egg whites past stiff peaks they get grainy or “dry” and can then collapse back to liquid.
How long can I store meringue cookies?
When stored in an airtight container and placed in a cool, dry place, meringues can stay fresh for roughly 2 weeks. Freezing is the best option if you think you won’t be using meringues for a while! We like having them in the freezer for guests. When kept in the freezer, meringues can stay fresh for months, but be careful of moisture when defrosting them as this will soften the outside of the meringue.
Can you make meringue ahead of time?
Yes!!
Tools we use for this meringue recipe:
Want other cookie recipes? Try these paleo favorites:
- Carrot Cake Cookies
- Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Double Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
- Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Watch the video here:
Easy Maple Meringue Cookies (Paleo & Refined Sugar Free)
Ingredients
- 3 egg whites 90g
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch fine sea salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 200ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a clean bowl of a heavy-duty stand mixer add egg whites, maple syrup, vanilla extract and salt. (see note)
- With a clean whisk attachment, beat on low speed until the mixture is foamy and then increase speed to medium-high until stiff peaks form, about 3 minutes.
- To form the meringue cookies you can simply scoop 1 heaping tablespoon sized dollop on to the parchment paper, or use a piping bag with a star attachment to pipe about 24 cookies.
- Bake at 200ºF for 2 hours. Do not open the oven. When finished baking, shut off oven and leave inside for another 2 hours or so.
- Once finished cooling in the oven, the meringues are ready to eat. If not eating right away you must store in an air tight container immediately or they will go soft. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.
Notes
well, ok. thought they would be softer. to me they are almost too brittle
I made my first batch today. Think I messed up. I used my convection oven and baked for 2 hours and left in over for 2. They came out tasting really yummy but are very brittle. Think baking in convection did that? Please advise
And Thank You Very Much for the recipe 🙂
What texture were you expecting? They should be light and crisp. Is that not what came out for you?
Hi Kelli-
The meringue stuck to the whisk when we lifted it up and we had to dig it out of there so maybe we beat it for too long? And the volume of meringue we had was a lot more than the video so maybe we beat for too long? We used a KitchenAid and beat on high (10) and stated but for only 1.5 minutes not 3 because it seemed to be changing too much. Thanks for the help!
Hi Kelli!
When I picked up the whisk attachment the meringue stuck in the whisk and I had to dig it out. Watching the video I see it just falls out of yours. So maybe over whipped? Also we had a ton of meringue compared to the video but used the exact recipe.
We tried these today and will try again! They had lots of bubbles in them and look sad and deflated now that we cooked them- ha! Any ideas what went wrong? I thought maybe I didn’t beat them long enough but the air bubbles make me think I beat them for too long. No idea what I’m doing over here 🙂 thanks!!
Hi Erin. I’d love to help you troubleshoot here, but could use a bit more information to help you figure this out. You initially thought you didn’t beat them long enough–did the eggs ever reach the stiff peak phase where when you lift up the whisk they stuck up stiff and straight? – Kelli
I’m wondering if you could use this recipe for a pavlova? Would you recommend a different baking time and temp? I’m looking for something that doesn’t have refined sugar. Thanks!
Hi! This should work fine as a pavlova. We haven’t tested of course, but I can’t think of a reason it shouldn’t. If you try it, let us know how it goes! – Kelli
Can you use this recipe for a lemon meringue pie?
If so, how?
Yes! Make the meringue as stated and top pie before baking. If you’d like to torch it or broil it at that point you could. However know those will be raw egg whites. If you wanted something with cooked egg whites, you could check out our marshmallow fluff. You could use that technique of cooking the egg whites first over a double boiler to cook them if you were concerned. Just leave out the gelatin. Reach out if you have any questions.
Made these today but they didn’t crisp up at all 🙁
Hi Jo! Sorry to hear they didn’t work for you! Did you check over the post / watch video again to ensure you did all the steps correctly? Wondering what might have went wrong for you, but without more information it is hard to say!
hi there, I doubled the recipe and now have six egg yolks, what can I do with them?
You can make the Spaghetti Carbonara!
Can’t wait to try these. Do you think this recipe would work in a “layer” for a meringue cake ? (I’m wanting to make a daquois ). I’m also curious why there’s no cream of tartar, like I’ve seen in other recipes . . . Is it an unhealthy ingredient, or just unnecessary?
Hi Amber! Kelli here part of the LCK team. It should work, but you may need to adjust the cooking time (lengthen it slightly). We didn’t include it because we simply didn’t need it. It helps stabilize the meringue and can be useful when making it for a pie that needs a longer shelf life, but since we are baking these as cookies it felt unnecessary. If you feel more comfortable using it, add a pinch. Either way it should work!
What is the nutrition information on these cookies?
Made these today with black current flavored maple syrup (which made them a bit darker colored) and they were fantastic. Perfect little bite sized morsels without all the usual dessert downfalls (gluten refined sugar and dairy). Thanks for this recipe!
I AM SO HAPPY YOU LOVED!
some of the cutest little cookies i have ever seen, bite sized for convenience!
The instructions are not clear enough.. put the egg whites note and be what?
What do you mean?
Made them!
Ate them!
The family really liked them! I made them tiny like the size of a quarter. And it was a nice little treat to pop in your mouth! Thank you again!!!
YAY!
When I was a kid, my mom made raspberry meringue kisses that used Jello (raspberry powder) and mini-chocolate chips for me at Christmas. I have since tried this with raspberry juice (from my garden) and also freeze-dried raspberries. They both work but the juice is way more putzy (seeds). And I agree about honey! I just love maple syrup and use that in my cold brew. Humidity is NOT your friend here so don’t pick a super sticky day!
Any reason for not using cream of tartar?
What a great recipe! You made the Meringues much healthier, and with no additives :-).
I’m so intrigued by these cookies…only two main ingredients! I’ve never made meringue cookies before; can’t wait to try! 🙂
Well, aren’t these the cutest little cookies ever!
Could I possibly use honey instead of maple syrup and get the same result?
No – we tried it with honey and didn’t have great results. If you try it, let us know!