How to Make Meringue Mushrooms (Red Toadstools & Classic Mushrooms)

A hand holding a small meringue mushroom with a red cap and white stalk.

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How to Make Meringue Mushrooms (Red Toadstools & Classic Mushrooms)

Make charming meringue mushrooms for your Yule log! Easy tutorial for classic white mushrooms & red toadstools to decorate a bûche de Noël.

Prep Time30

Cook Time2

Total Time2 30

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, French

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: mushrooms

Calories: 35kcal

Author: Ella Gilbert

Equipment

Stand Mixer or Handheld Mixer
Bowl
Piping Bags
Baking Sheet

Ingredients

2 large egg whites room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
Pinch kosher salt
Red gel food coloring optional
2 oz Melted chocolate for assembly

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Preheat oven to 200°F (100°C).
Beat the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar in the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on high speed, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer. Once it begins to get foamy, slowly pour in the sugar while the mixer is running. Continue mixing until you have stiff, glossy peaks.
2 large egg whites, ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar, Pinch kosher salt, ½ cup granulated sugar
If you want red toadstools, gently remove half of the white meringue mixture and place it in a piping bag. Add a few drops of red food gel and mix until combined. Place in a separate piping bag. Otherwise, place all of the white meringue mixture into one piping bag fitted with a large round tip. I used the Wilton 2A tip.
Red gel food coloring
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Pipe out your meringue into caps and stems. If you have any peaks and the caps aren't flat, moisten a finger and gently push the peak down.
If making red toadstools, use the white piping bag to pipe out the stems and the red piping bag to pipe the mushroom caps. Once everything is piped out, switch the white piping bag tip for the smallest round tip you have (I used a Wilton 3 tip). Very gently, dot white meringue on top of the red caps. I find I hardly need to press any meringue out of the piping bag, as you just want very small spots on the caps.
Bake in the preheated oven for 2 hours until dry. Do not open the oven door while baking. You'll know they're ready when they can easily peel off the parchment paper. Once baked, use a wooden spoon to prop the oven door open a smidge and let them cool for about 20 minutes in there. Then remove from the oven and let cool completely.
Chop up your chocolate and melt it in the microwave. I recommend melting in 15-second increments and then stirring so the chocolate doesn't burn.
2 oz Melted chocolate
Carve a small hole in the bottom of each meringue cap with a sharp knife. Be gentle, you don't want to cut all the way through the cap!
Dip the top of each stem in the melted chocolate and attach a cap. Or, you can spoon a small amount of chocolate on the bottom of the cap and then insert the stem.
Let the chocolate set completely before using.

Video

Notes

Making Ahead: You can make these meringue mushrooms 2-3 days ahead of time, as long as it isn't super humid. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature.

Red Food Gel: I'm using Americolor Super Red gel.

Eggs: Make sure you're using fresh egg whites and not egg whites from a carton. It's way easier to separate cold eggs, so I recommend separating the eggs while cold, then letting the egg whites come to room temperature.

Nutrition