What to do with leftover egg whites or yolks? I actually have a collection of recipes I use for just such dilemmas. With egg whites, one of the great standby recipes is some kind of meringue. When I decided to make these cookies, I actually only had one egg white in need of use, so had to use another one, creating a spare egg yolk (hence making the key lime cookie recipe I posted earlier).

I am not the biggest fan of meringue (no more so than any other cookie or baked concoction). Nevertheless, I practice on rare occasions making this (and other meringue) recipe(s) because it seems like something I should be able to do. I never make the ganache for these, mostly because if I make them, I am transporting them and not serving immediately. In fact I tend to be lazy in the ganache/glaze/frosting department. If I feel that a cookie or cake is sufficient without further embellishment, I don’t bother. The lemon cake I frequently make, for example, is so simple and delicious on its own, it seems a shame to make a glaze (while others who have made it say the glaze is their favorite part).

ESPRESSO MERINGUE KISSES

Preheat oven to 325°F/160°C

Meringues:
2 egg whites
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Ganache, if desired:
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons butter
3/4 cup chopped chocolate

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.

Separate eggs and leave egg whites out to come to room temperature (30 minutes). Stir sugar and espresso powder together and set aside. Add vanilla to the egg whites. Beat on medium until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1 tablespoon of the sugar mixture at a time to the egg whites. Beat on high until stiff peaks form and sugar is almost dissolved. Drop onto prepared baking sheets, bake until light brown, about 15-20 minutes.

For ganache: Stir together cream, sugar, butter. Cook on stove over medium high heat until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil. Place chocolate in a bowl and pour the boiling cream mixture over the chocolate. Let stand 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Drizzle the baked, cooled meringues with the ganache just before serving.