The best low calorie meringue cookies

Crunchy on the outside soft on the inside, who doesn’t love a good meringue cookie? These low calorie meringue cookies are the perfect low calorie treat to snack on! At just 1 calorie a cookie, they’ll have you reaching for more and more!

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Okay so imagine I told you that you can eat a cookie that is sweet, chewy and super satisfying for just 1 calorie? You’d probably be shocked and think there’s no way but, I’m here to tell you that there is way! These meringue cookies are super delicious, sugar-free and require just 4 ingredients.

Meringue cookies are small cookies that are typically made from whipped eggs and sugar. They’re crispy on the outside and soft/chewy on the inside. You can have them bigger and fill with cream and berries like these low calorie mini pavlovas, or you can make these cute little meringue cookies. These cookies typically contain a lot of sugar – I mean A LOT! They’re around 30 or so calories each but if you can make the same tasting cooking for just 1 calorie, why not, right?!

I am really kicking myself about not making these cookies sooner! I know they would have been my go-to’s during my weight loss journey. They are so easy to store and can easily be batch baked so you can continue to enjoy them throughout the week!

Low calorie meringue cookies

These meringue cookies are probably one of my all time favorite low calorie snack recipes. They are really satisfying and sweet but contain just 1 calorie each! You can snack away to your hearts content without worrying about how many calories you’re consuming because the entire batch is just 45 calories! I repeat THE ENTIRE BATCH OF COOKIES IS JUST 45 CALORIES!!

Why you’ll love this recipe:

• Made in just 1 bowl.
• Requires only 4 ingredients!
• This recipe is free from added sugars and is Keto!
• Delicious, sweet meringue cookies for just 1 calorie each!
• The BEST low calorie meringue cookies ever!

Ingredients

Exact ingredient quantities can be found at the bottom of this page.

To make these low calorie meringue cookies you will need:

• Egg whites – What is a meringue without egg whites? Egg whites are high in protein, low in fat and low in calories making them perfect for weight loss. If you were hoping to make this recipe vegan, I’ve heard aquafaba is a great alternative to egg whites. I haven’t personally tried it so I can’t vouch for it!
• 0 calorie icing sugar – This recipe is free of added sugars – yay! Typical meringue recipes use granulated sugar to help the egg whites get super fluffy. Unfortunately, 0 calorie granulated sweetener hasn’t worked as well for me so 0 calorie powdered sugar is the way to go. It’s great at giving meringues a light and airy texture. If you don’t have access to any, blitz your granulated sweetener in a food processor until it’s powdered!
• Lemon juice – Typical meringue recipes call for cream of tar tar but it isn’t easily accessible to me. Lemon juice worked as a great substitute. If you want to use cream of tartar, use half the amount of lemon juice.
• Vanilla extract – Adds a hint of vanilla to the cookies!

How to make low calorie meringue cookies

1. Place egg whites into a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk the egg whites until they begin to start foaming, about 2 minutes with an electric hand mixer.
2. Add in the lemon juice and continue to whisk until the whites begin to increase in volume and become really frothy, about 2 minutes with an electric hand mixer.
3. Sprinkle in the powdered sweetener, I recommend adding 1 heaped teaspoon at a time and whisking continuously. Once the egg whites start to look silky and all of the sweetener has been aded, whisk in the vanilla extract. The meringue is ready when it is super fluffy and forms stable peaks.
4. Add a small amount of the meringue on the corners of your baking tray so the parchment paper will stick and create a stable base to pipe the meringue onto.
5. Transfer the meringue to a piping bag fit with a nozzle and pipe the meringues onto the parchment paper. Leave roughly 1/2 an inch of space between the cookies.
6. Bake the meringue cookies at 105°C for 45 minutes. Turn the oven off and let the meringue cookies sit in the oven for another hour with the door closed. The cookies are ready when you can easily remove them from the parchment paper, they should feel firm but light and airy.

Top tips

Separate the egg whites from the yolk carefully – Make sure the egg whites are completely separated from the egg yolks. The fat in the egg yolk can completely ruin the meringue and stop it from whipping up. Separate the egg whites and yolk in two different bowls and ensure no yolk gets into the whites. If a little yolk does get into the bowl of egg whites, use the egg shell (not your fingers!!) to remove it from the egg whites.

Pipe the cookies quickly – Don’t let the meringue sit for too long as this can change the texture and cause it to deflate. I like to have everything prepped beforehand so pre-heat the oven, prepare you tray and transfer the meringue to the piping bag as soon as it’s ready.

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