Meringue Bones

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Meringue is mostly air, so a few egg whites make a whole tray. Piped as a short bar with a blob at each end, they bake up looking like tiny femurs. The only real rules: a clean grease-free bowl, and a long, low bake so they dry out instead of browning.

Ingredients

• 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
• 150 g caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tsp cocoa powder, for dusting

Method

1. Heat the oven to 100°C (fan 90°C) and line two baking sheets with parchment. Fit a piping bag with a plain round tip about 1 cm wide.
2. Wipe the mixing bowl and whisk with a little lemon juice or vinegar to remove any grease, then dry.
3. Whisk the egg whites with the salt and cream of tartar on medium until foamy, then to soft peaks.
4. Add the sugar a tablespoon at a time, whisking well between additions. Once it is all in, whip on high until the meringue is stiff, glossy, and no longer feels gritty when rubbed between two fingers. Whisk in the vanilla.
5. Pipe bones: a 6–7 cm bar, then a small double blob on each end. Space them 2 cm apart.
6. Bake 1 hour 15 minutes without opening the door. They are done when they lift cleanly off the parchment and sound hollow.
7. Turn the oven off and leave the bones inside with the door ajar until completely cool.
8. Dust lightly with cocoa powder through a fine sieve for a "dug up" look.

Troubleshooting: weeping or tacky meringue usually means humidity — don't make these on a rainy day, and store them in an airtight tin the moment they cool. If they crack, you piped them too thick or the oven ran hot.