Mini Mocha Meringue Cakes

(I don’t want to infringe on copyright in anyway, so while I altered the original recipe quite a bit as far as feel the first time I made it, I’m going to go even further and include the changes I would make if I did it again. Just being extra cautious! It's the kind of girl I am.)

Meringue

2 egg whites, room temperature
Pinch cream of tartar
½ cup sugar (the recipe called for superfine, I used regular)
2 Tablespoon Dutch process, cocoa
2 teaspoons instant coffee granules, lightly rolled to crush
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups whipped cream, sweetened with ¼ - ⅓ cup sugar and ½ teaspoon vanilla (I’m guessing a bit on this, since we did more cream than that at the time – some for the coffee!)

Fudge Sauce – this is an addition that I think would be simply smashing. I thought they needed a little something extra, if you know what I mean.

1. Put the egg whites in a large clean bowl, and whisk slowly until they become thick and frothy. Add the cream of tartar and continue to whisk more quickly until the whites form stiff peaks.

2. Sprinkle over half of the sugar and continue whisking until mixture is stiff and glossy. Whisk in the rest of the sugar a little at a time. Sift over the cocoa powder and add the coffee granules. Whisk in vanilla.

3. Trace 2” circles (I think I did about 36 using a cookie cutter) on parchment paper and then flip over and place on a cookie sheet. Carefully spread meringue evenly within circles, trying to make them fairly even and flat. You could also pipe it in a spiral pattern. Bake in a 250°F oven for 45 minutes. I pulled it out at this point and it cooled on the counter, however, I think you’re actually supposed to let meringue cool in the oven. In which case I would cut the baking time down a little.

4. To assemble, place one meringue disk on a plate, drizzle a tiny bit of chocolate sauce over disk, place a generous dollop of cream in center and press another “cookie”, bottom down, on top of cream. Drizzle a bit more chocolate sauce, and another dollop of cream, artistically placed, to finish it. Assemble all the meringue cakes and place on serving platter and then sift cocoa carefully over the tops. It is okay to get a little on the platter – it adds a nice touch!

Note: I’m not a meringue expert and these turned out very fragile so I lost a few in assembly. Over baked? The granulated sugar? Just as a note that you are likely not to get 18 mini cakes. I will probably cut down the baking time a bit if I do these again. 35 minutes and let them cool in the oven? Just giving you the inside scoop on my thoughts on this.