These adorable pumpkin spice meringue cookies use egg whites and sugar flavored with pumpkin pie spice and colored with orange and green gel food coloring to make the cutest pumpkins!
Are you looking for an adorable sweet treat to give to friends and family that will get them in the fall spirit?
These pumpkin spice meringue cookies are the perfect fit!
Made with egg whites and sugar, and of course warming pumpkin pie spices, with a little bit of food coloring fun (so we can make them look like pumpkins,) these pumpkin spice meringue cookies are an easy and fun treat for everyone!
If you’ve never had meringue cookies before, they have a crisp exterior that gives way to a chewy, marshmallow-like interior, making them a delightful addition to any fall party or event!
Trust me, the next time you need a delicious and fun treat, you’ll definitely want to make these pumpkin spice meringue cookies.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for pumpkin spice meringue cookies
- Egg whites – Egg whites will create the structure of our pumpkin spice meringue cookies.
- Granulated sugar – Granulated sugar will add sweetness.
- Pumpkin pie spice – Pumpkin pie spice will give these meringue cookies a delicious familiar fall flavor.
- Orange and green gel food coloring – These two colors will make the pumpkin and the pumpkin leaves for the top!
Special tools for this recipe
While you don’t need anything extra special to make these meringue cookies you will need some gel food colorings and some piping tips and bags!
Here are links to exactly what I used:
- Juniper Green gel food coloring
- Orange gel food coloring
- Plastic piping bags
- Wilton #10 tip for the piped green top
- Wilton #32 tip for the piped pumpkin
How to make pumpkin shaped meringue cookies
These little guys are super cute and super easy to make! It’s a little of little steps, which can sometimes be overwhelming to look at as a whole. So let’s just take it one step at a time!
1 – Prepare – Preheat your oven to 275 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Great!
2 – Whisk – This is where your stand mixer (or hand mixer) comes into play.
Start whisking your egg whites on medium-low, and add your sugar slowly (one tablespoon at a time). Take your time!
Once you’re all done adding the sugar, add in your pumpkin pie spice, and turn up the speed to high! This will incorporate air making stiff, fluffy peaks of meringue! It should take you about 2-3 minutes to reach these peaks.
3 – Add some color – Take about ¼ of your meringue and place it into a separate bowl. Add green food coloring to this bowl (this will make the little leaves on the tops of the pumpkins) and add orange food coloring to the remaining meringue (to make the pumpkins).
When adding food coloring, fold the food coloring in gently. If you’re too aggressive, you will deflate your fluffy meringue into a gluey, runny mess.
4 – Tools and tips – Transfer both colors of meringue into their own piping bags. I’ve used a Wilton #32 tip to make the orange pumpkins and a Wilton #10 tip for the green.
5 – Let’s make a pumpkin – Starting with your orange piping bag, pipe a small, round dollop, and then take your green piping bag and add a little leaf on top.
6 – Bake – Bake the pumpkin spice meringues in the oven for 1 hour. After the 1 hour mark, keep the meringues inside the oven, turn the oven off let it cool completely with them inside, and keep the door closed! No peeking!
Tips for making the best meringue cookies
Here are some tips for making sure your pumpkin spice meringue cookies come out perfect every single time
- Make sure your bowl is absolutely clean and free of any possible grease or debris before starting. Any lingering grease will not allow the fluffy peaks to form.
- Separate your eggs in a different bowl, so you can make sure no yolks come through. The smallest amount of yolk will not allow the meringue to set up properly.
- It’s worth repeating: add your sugar slowly, giving it time to fully mix and dissolve after each tablespoon.
- Pipe your meringue pumpkins as soon as you’re done making the meringue. The longer you let it sit out on the counter, it will start to deflate.
- If you’d like a little extra stabilization in your meringues, you can add 1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar to the egg whites before you add the sugar. This can help prevent wrinkles or cracking – especially on humid days!
Storage and leftovers
Lastly, any leftover pumpkin spice meringue cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days. They will start to lose their crunch and become soft as time goes on.
More pumpkin spice treats
- Looking for a sweet treat? Try my Pumpkin Spice Apple Monkey Bread
- Want to start your day off with something delicious? Try my Pumpkin Spice Whipped Coffee
- Need some more cute pumpkin-shaped treats? Try my Pumpkin Spice Macarons
- Craving something chocolaty? Try my Pumpkin Spice Hot Chocolate
Pumpkin Spice Meringue Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 large egg whites
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- Orange and green gel food coloring see notes
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 275 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add the egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.
- Turn the mixer to medium-low speed and begin slowly adding the sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time. It should take about 2 minutes to add all of the sugar. Don’t rush or you may end up with cracked or dense meringues.
- Once all of the sugar has been added, add the pumpkin pie spice and turn the mixer to medium-high speed. Beat the meringue until stiff peaks form, about 2-3 minutes.
- Transfer 1/4 cup of meringue into a small, clean bowl and add a few drops of green gel food coloring (see notes). Fold the food coloring into the meringue gently, making sure not to deflate it as you fold.
- To the remaining meringue, add the orange food coloring and fold it into the meringue. Again, make sure not to deflate all of the air you just added. Fold gently!
- Transfer both color meringues to separate piping bags. I used a Wilton #32 tip for the orange and a #10 tip for the green.
- Using the orange meringue, pipe small round dollops (about 1 inch tall) onto the parchment-lined baking sheet and add a small green line on top to resemble the stem.
- Repeat until all the meringue has been used.
- Bake the meringues for one hour. Then, turn off the oven and allow the meringues to cool inside the oven until they are at room temperature, about 1 hour.
- Transfer the meringues to an airtight container and store them at room temperature for up to two days.
Notes
- Egg whites are the main ingredient in our meringues because they’ll whip into a light and airy wet meringue and then dry into a crisp and chewy cookie. Your egg whites don’t have to be at room temperature but they’ll develop into a lighter, airier cookie if they are.
- Granulated sugar helps sweeten the meringues and stabilize the egg whites.
- Pumpkin pie spice adds a bit of warmth and spice to make these pumpkin-shaped meringues taste a bit more like pumpkin! Feel free to swap cinnamon if you prefer.
- I used 1/4 teaspoon of Wilton Juniper Green gel food coloring and 3/4 teaspoon of Wilton orange gel food coloring. You can use any colors you like, but they must be gel, not liquid!
- If you’d like a little extra stabilization in your meringues, you can add 1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar to the egg whites before you add the sugar. This can help prevent wrinkles or cracking— especially on humid days!
Nutrition
Kris
Monday 6th of November 2023
Not only are these adorable, but the cookies melt in your mouth! Love them!