I probably should have held off until December to post this because it's the perfect "cookie exchange" cookie, but I'm not that patient and life is short. Plus, Date Nut Meringues are perfect for fall when my favorite nuts are in season. Also note, these cookies have chocolate chips, so if you are a chocoholic you are all set.
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Date Nut Meringues are Chewy!
Of course if you live somewhere where different nuts are in season, use those. In Italy, they make a similar version of these with hazelnuts. The Italian cookie is called Brutti ma Buoni aka "Ugly But Good", but I wouldn't call these ugly. Let's just say they have character. What they are is very, very chewy. Mine were even chewier than expected but I kind of liked the contrast of chewy dates with the crispy light meringue and crunchy pecans. They also seem to keep well, as I've been storing mine in a tin on the counter and they taste just as good on day 3 as day 1.
More Recipes With Dates
Recipe
Date Nut Chocolate Chip Meringues
Ingredients
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
- 1 cup pecans toasted and chopped**
- ⅔ cup finely chopped dates
- ¾ cup dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. and Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a mixing bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Beat in the sugar a few tablespoons at a time. Stir in the pecans, dates and chocolate chips.
- With a generously rounded teaspoon, drop 12 mounds of cookie dough onto each baking sheet. Set one sheet on the middle rack and one on the lower rack and bake for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 275 degrees F, shift the baking sheets so that the sheet on the bottom is now on the top and vice versa. bake for another 15 minutes at 275 degrees F.
- Turn off oven and let the cookies sit in the closed “off” oven for about two hours.
Gloria says
I just made these with a few changes and they were terrific!!! Even though I messed up a few things like an extra egg white and not enough sugar. I did add 1/2 t orange extract because we like orange and chocolate. I also left out the dates because many in my family are date (the edible kind) "challenged". Thanks Anna!!
Sue says
Those sound different but really good.
Jan Harris says
I don't know Anna, but I think the Italians got it right. The first thing I thought when I saw the pic was, boy, those are ugly but I bet they taste good! LOL
Lisa Ernst says
Too bad I'm not a meringue fan as I love the idea of having a simple way to hold a lot of great things together! If one of these were in front of me I'd try it regardless. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 🙂
Holiday Baker Man says
So yummy!