Thread: Meringue Bone good but too easially broken

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I made 'bones' this year, but most of them broke as i tried to take them off the cooking paper. For ingredients i used:

1-1/2cups powered sugar
Pinch of salt
5 egg whites at room temperature
Pinch of cream of tartar
1teaspoon vanilla

They tasted great, but 1/2 broke trying to get them off the cooking paper.

Any ideas on how to avoid this? I really liked them as did others. I even made a skeleton of of the left over mix, skull, ribs, legs and arms!

I want to get this right, because I plan on using this next year, as well as try it out for Christmas food too. Any suggestions???? Thanks!

Sealed With A Kiss

Makes: 24 cookies (or other meringue shapes)
Prep time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 3 hours
Cooling time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
3 egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon McCormick® imitation strawberry extract
3 drops McCormick® red food coloring

Special Equipment:
Pastry bag
No. 4 star tip

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two heavy, large, cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Beat egg whites in large metal bowl on medium speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar. Increase speed to high and continue beating until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, one tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form, about five minutes. Quickly mix in strawberry extract. Stir in food coloring, one drop at a time, until desired color is achieved.
3. Spoon meringue into pastry bag fitted with star tip. Pipe twelve, 1-inch-high x 1-inch-diameter mounds onto each prepared cookie sheet, spacing evenly apart. Bake for three hours or until dry and crisp. Cool meringues completely on baking sheets. Store in airtight container at room temperature.

White Meringues Variation: Omit the red food coloring and use one teaspoon white vanilla or 1/2 teaspoon white crème de cacao instead of the strawberry extract.

Mint Meringues Variation: Substitute 1/2 teaspoon mint extract or white crème de menthe and two to three drops green food coloring, adding slowly until the meringues are pale green.

Note: To ensure a completely smooth meringue, the sugar must be added a tablespoon at a time. When making meringues, it is very important to have any equipment (bowls, mixers, spatulas, spoons) scrupulously clean. Any grease or fat can wreck an egg white foam. If your meringues keep breaking, fat or grease could be the cause. Rub equipment with lemon juice, then rinse and dry completely to get rid of all traces of fat. (You can also try baking on parchment paper) Humidity is also a factor when making meringues. An old adage states never to make meringues on a damp day. It's true: When the sugar in meringues absorbs moisture, it turns soft and sticky.

I did these last year & again this year. Make sure you use parchment paper vs wax paper.

I used regular brown paper bags, not parchment paper. I also was using Powered Sugar. Does the type of paper or sugar matter?

I made some last year using granulated sugar and baked them right on a cookie sheet, had no problems, just had to be gentle taking them off of the sheet... I think the recipe I found was in the HF cooking group: Halloween Candy Recipes: Meringue - Kaboose.com