Ultimate Meringue Recipe for Pies, Cookies, Bars & Desserts

Is there anything better than a big fluffy mound of toasted meringue on top of any dessert? I think not. Here is my step-by-step guide to getting perfect, glossy, stiff meringue every time!

What is meringue great on? Try these recipes Caramel Pumpkin Bars with Toasted Meringue, my favorite Guinness Cake piled high with meringue, Salted Caramel Pumpkin Cheesecake (put the meringue on top) and Eggnog Cream Pie.

It’s also great on my favorite Fudgy Brown Butter Brownies or this Chocolate Lemon Tart (for a twist on a traditional Lemon Meringue Pie).

And if you’re looking for crispy meringue, check out my favorite Crispy French Meringues or these Chocolate Orange Meringues.

Why You Should Make This Perfect Meringue Recipe

• This basic meringue recipe takes just 15 minutes
• Uses only 5 ingredients
• This recipe uses both confectioners sugar (powdered sugar, 10x, icing sugar) and cream of tartar for a super stable meringue recipe
• The texture is light, fluffy, glossy and perfectly stiff
• It’s perfect for meringue-topped pies, meringue kisses, baked Alaska (see The Cake Book)

Step-by-Step Instructions (with photos!) to Make Meringue

Below are step-by-step photos (with captions) to make THE BEST Meringue perfect every time! My biggest tips are:

• Use Fresh Eggs. Do not use boxed eggs or any type of egg substitute.
• Separate Eggs When Cold, Whip When Room Temperature. As soon as you decide to make the meringue, separate the egg whites from the yolks (make lemon curd with your leftover yolks). Then let the egg whites come to room temperature. You’ll want to do this because the room temperature egg whites will whip up faster and will have more volume.
• Make Sure Everything is Freshly Cleaned and Dried. You’ll want to make sure that everything that touches the egg whites has been freshly cleaned and dried and that there isn’t a speck of egg yolk or oil in the mixture either.
• Don’t Forget the Cream of Tartar. It will stabilize your meringue so that your stiff peaks stay stiff. If you additional use the confectioners’ sugar, that will additionally stabilize your meringue. I love to use both!

Let’s make some really beautiful meringue!

Shop this Easy Meringue Recipe

These are the tools for making meringue:

Electric Stand Mixer (I prefer the Artisan to the Professional).

Or Breville Handheld Mixer, this one has a bunch of speeds, dough hooks, whisks. I was never a fan of handhelds until I got this one!

A whisk if you’re not using a mixer (bless); you’ll also need a spatula to scoop the meringue onto your dessert

My trusty scale for precision.

These heat-safe nesting glass bowls for whisking the egg whites and sugar

If you’re going to toast your meringue, this is a great hand-held torch!

For more fun shopping, check out my Shop (aka my favorite things!).

More Meringue Dessert Recipes

If you want to dive more into whipping up eggs and churning out something beautiful, take a look at these recipes: my favorite Chocolate Pavlova with Berries, Fudgy, Chocolate Brownie Meringue Cake, Perfect French Meringues, Chocolate Orange Meringue Cookies (these are super fun to make!) or my favorite Chocolate French Macaron recipe (with Marshmallow Filling, swoon).

Looking for more cream of tartar recipes?! They are what makes a snickerdoodle a snickerdoodle! Try these Classic Super Soft Snickerdoodles, Five-Spice Snickerdoodles and my favorite Soft & Chewy Brown Butter Snickerdoodles.

Enjoy your glossy, fluffy meringue recipe!

Ultimate Meringue Recipe for Pies, Cookies, Bars & Desserts

Your ultimate guide to making perfect meringue every time! Below are step-by-step photos and instructions so you can master this classic baking technique. My favorite part of meringue? It gives desserts mega jazz hands (my favorite!). Making stable, glossy, pillowy meringue takes less than 15 minutes and uses just five ingredients. Have fun!

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: French

Keyword: Meringue, How To, Recipe

Author: Rebecca Firth

Ingredients

• 4 large egg whites (room temperature)
• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
• ¼ cup (35 g) confectioners’ sugar
• ½ vanilla bean (split and scraped, or 2 teaspoons (8 g) vanilla paste or real vanilla extract)

Instructions

• In an electric stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, add the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt. Make sure the bowl and whisk are freshly cleaned and dried. Whisk on medium until the eggs are frothy and then slowly add in granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Really take your time here so that the sugar has time to dissolve; this should take about 5 minutes.
• Periodically, rub a small bit of meringue between two fingers to make sure there is no grittiness. If there is, keep whisking.
• When all of the sugar is in, turn the mixer on high speed and just before you reach stiff peaks, dump in the confectioners’ sugar. Run the mixer on low to combine and then increase to high until you reach stiff peaks, which should take less than a minute depending on the speed of your mixer.
• The meringue will look glossy and hold its shape when you invert the whisk. The tip of the inverted meringue will be just shy of 12 o’clock. It should also feel smooth when you rub some between your fingers.
• Add in the vanilla (or any extracts, food coloring or flavorings) and run the machine for 30 seconds more to evenly distribute throughout the meringue. Your meringue is now ready to top your dessert recipe. See Notes below about toasting your meringue.

Notes

Mixer vs Your Arms

The instructions are for making meringue with an electric stand mixer (my preference) or a handheld electric mixer. However, feel free to use a whisk and mixing bowl..you’ll just need to whisk for a long time to get to stiff peaks. But you can do it.

Using all Granulated Sugar

You can use all granulated sugar (and omit the confectioners’ sugar). You’ll use 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar.

I like the combination of granulated and confections’ sugar for the stability, but you can make perfectly gorgeous meringue using just the granulated sugar.

Clean Your Bowls

You want everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) that comes into contact with your egg whites to be freshly cleaned and dried (bowls, whisks, etc). 

Also make sure that there isn’t a speck of egg yolks in with your egg whites.

Adding Extracts, Food Coloring & Other Liquids 

Add all extracts, food colorings and liquids sparingly to your meringue. 

I prefer gel food color as it’s least likely to disrupt the texture and consistency of your meringue.

Soft Peaks and Stiff Peaks Defined

To see what stage your meringue is at, you’ll need to swirl a whisk around the meringue and then pull the whisk directly up and then invert.

If the meringue is starting to hold its shape but is soft and still melts into itself, that is soft peaks.

When you do the same technique of dipping the whisk into the meringue and upon inverting the whisk the top point of the meringue should point directly up or slightly off to the side. This is stiff peak stage.

Please leave any questions in the comments section if you’d like more clarification!

Humidity

Making meringue on humid days is an exhausting endeavor. It can be done, but just note that it’s not without difficulty.

If it’s summer and you have the AC on, then the humidity in your house is fine. The same for wintertime if the heater is on. Low humidity is ideal for meringue.

Toasting Meringue

You can get your meringue toasty in a 350℉ (177℃) oven for 5 to 10 minutes or until golden brown (see photos). Place whatever your baking in the top third of the oven, about 6 inches (15 cm) from the heat source.

My favorite way to toast meringue is using a handheld kitchen torch (I’ve linked to one above in the shopping section).

About Meringue

There are several different types of meringue (French meringue, Italian meringue, Swiss meringue). This recipe uses French meringue.

In addition to using this recipe in say, classic Lemon Meringue Pie, you can also make crispy, classic meringue cookies from this same recipe.

Leftover Egg Yolks

Make my favorite, sunny Lemon Curd! It will last in the fridge for several weeks and goes with everything. xx

Thanks for baking with me! Please rate + comment this recipe and tag me on social @displacedhousewife #displacedhousewife so I can see your beautiful treats! xo