This Halloween, you can whip up some spooky ghosts that — through some sort of witchy magic — only need two ingredients!
Meringue ghost cookies require only egg whites, sugar and a lot of whipped air to create a sweet, crispy, light dessert.
Lifehacker’s guide on how to make these ghost cookies explains that there are different kinds of cooked meringue you could use for a nice silky texture. A Swiss meringue (in which the whites and sugar are heated in a double boiler) is like spreadable marshmallow, while Italian meringue (featuring a hot sugar syrup poured onto whites as they are whipped) is the base for mousses and buttercream frosting. Uncooked meringues also exist; in the French style, you simply whip egg whites and sugar together.
Allie Chanthorn Reinmann, the recipe creator, prefers using cooked meringues for this treat but says an uncooked French meringue batter will also do fine. She notes that cream of tartar, flavorings and some other minor additions are sometimes used in meringue recipes, but aren’t necessary for good meringue cookies.
You’ll know your meringue is ready for shaping when you pull a whisk out of the batter. If stiff peaks remain, you’re good to go. Shape your ghosts’ wispy figures with a piping bag or by using the back of a spoon to spread the meringue into the body you want.
There are many ways to form your ghost cookies. You could make them so they lie down flat with whispy shapes, pipe them into fat chocolate “kisses,” or make them seem like they’re ready to fly at any moment with tall, thin bodies.
The bubbly meringue mix is baked at a low temperature in the oven over an extended period of time. Leave the meringues to dry out further in the oven; allowing the ghost cookies to cool in the oven helps prevent cracks.
The dried and cooled meringues can then be decorated with a food-safe pen, melted and piped chocolate, chocolate chips and more.
The full method for making these cookies is at Lifehacker.
Eat your ghost cookies alone or use them to top cakes, cupcakes, tarts or pudding cups like these cute chocolate-dirt desserts.
One of the awesome things about these two-ingredient ghost cookies is that since they only use egg whites and sugar, they are a low-fat, low-calorie dessert. That’s a positive compared to the large amount of trick-or-treat goodies your kids (and you) may be consuming at Halloween.
What do you think? Will you whip these meringue treats up this spooky season?
This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Checkout Simplemost for additional stories.
