If you’ve been here a while, you know I’m a little extra when it comes to treats. I want things that look absolutely adorable, which is why I was making these Christmas Tree Meringue Cookies.

As I was making them, though, we had an adorable 5-year-old stop by and ask if she could help me decorate.

When you’re making Christmas cookies and a 5-year-old wants to help, you have to say yes and let her do the decorating.

So if you want a really cute Christmas cookie that you can make with kids, these Christmas Tree meringues are perfect.

Christmas Tree Meringue Cookies Recipe

Christmas Tree Meringue Cookies Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons vanilla
• 2/3 cups sugar
• Green food coloring
• Star-shaped sprinkles
• Rainbow sprinkles

How To Make Christmas Tree Meringue Cookies:

Pre-heat the oven to 250.

Separate the egg whites from the yolks. Put the whites into a stand mixer and discard the yolks (or save them in the fridge for an egg wash for homemade bread).

Add the salt, cream of tartar, and vanilla to the stand mixer. Beat on high for 2 minutes until the eggs are foamy.

Stop the mixer and add the sugar.

Beat on high for 10 minutes until stiff peaks form.

Add three drops of green food coloring to the meringue. Gently stir the meringue to incorporate the green food coloring.

Add the food coloring three more drops at a time until you reach the desired colored, gently stirring each time.

Put a 2D piping tip in a piping bag. Cut the tip of the bag. Fill the bag with the green-colored meringue.

Set out two large 11- x 17-inch baking sheets. I use a silicone baking mat for easy cleanup, but it’s not necessary.

Gently pipe the meringue into a Christmas tree shape. Start with a circle at the bottom, then fill it in, then work your way up making smaller circles until you get to a point.

Continue until you’ve piped all the meringue. You should end up with between 30 and 40 Christmas tree meringue cookies, depending on how large you pipe them and how stiff your meringue is.

When they’re all piped, sprinkle the rainbow sprinkles on top to act as ornaments.

Top each with a star sprinkle on top.

Bake the meringues for 40 minutes.

After 40 minutes, turn off the oven and leave the cookies inside for an hour.

Remove them from the oven and you can eat them right away. If you don’t eat them as soon as they’re ready, store them in an airtight container in the fridge.

Tips For Making Meringue Cookies

Don’t be intimidated by meringue cookies. They’re honestly a lot easier to make than everyone thinks. They just take a bit of patience and a few tips to make the perfect meringues.

Use a stand mixer

If you make the meringue in a stand mixer, the mixer does most of the work. Making them with a whisk would be hard because you would have to whisk the ingredients by hand until you formed stiff peaks.

A hand mixer would work too, and I do use our hand mixer for things like mashed potatoes. But our stand mixer is a lot easier for making meringues because then I don’t have to hold a mixer for 12 minutes.

Clean the bowl

If you’re making your meringues in a stand mixer, or any bowl really, be sure to wash the bowl and wipe it, making sure that it’s completely clean. Any oil, fat, or residue left behind from the last time you used that bowl can ruin the meringue.

Clean the egg beater attachment

Even if your bowl is clean, unclean egg beaters can ruin the meringues. So wash your egg beater attachment to make sure there is no oil, fat, or residue from the last time you used them.

Warm the eggs at room temperature

Room temperature eggs make much better meringues. So take your eggs out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you are ready to make your Christmas Tree Meringue Cookies.

Beat until still peaks form

Stiff peaks mean just that. Stiff. Not stiff and then limp. Completely stiff. The stiffer the peaks, the more meringue you’ll get. And more meringue means more cookies.

Stir carefully

When you’re stirring in the food coloring, you need to stir the meringue very slowly, basically folding the food coloring into the meringue. If you stir too quickly, you’ll flatten the meringue.

Pipe quickly

You don’t want to take too much time between when you pipe your meringue cookies and when you get them in the oven. They’ll start to deflate a little if they sit out too long and you’ll lose your Christmas tree shape.

Can you make Christmas Tree Meringues with kids?

So, like I said before, I made these Christmas Tree Meringue Cookies with the help of a 5-year-old.

She came over just as I was mixing the meringues. When I turned off the stand mixer, she asked if she could help.

I let her drop in the food coloring. That was a good way to work on counting since I told her to count three drops (and she did).

She wanted to stir, and I was nervous, but I let her. She wanted to stir normal speed and I kept getting her to slow down, but she was able to help.

And of course, if you’re making these with kids, let them decorate.

I poured some of the star-shaped sprinkles onto the kitchen counter. I gave her two small containers and had her put the yellow and white stars in one container (like a lit star and an “off” star) and the other colors in a second container.

That was good for color sorting and hand-eye coordination.

Pour the rainbow sprinkles into the lid of the sprinkle container and have the kids sprinkle those — gently — on each tree. Then, have the kids put a star-shaped sprinkle on top of every tree.

How do you store meringues?

Store meringues in an air tight container (or ziptop bag) in the fridge for up to a week.

The meringues will start to get soft and a little chewy after a couple days, so they’re best fresh and better the first four days. But they’re still delicious even a couple days after that.

Are meringues gluten free?

Yes. Meringues are gluten free. So if you’re making these for someone with celiac disease, you can give them these cookies.

They’re not, however, dairy free, so don’t give them to someone who is vegan or who has a dairy allergy (like an egg allergy).

Want more Christmas treats?

We have a whole bunch of other Christmas treats that you can make to go with these Christmas Tree Meringue Cookies to fill out your Christmas cookie platters.

– Christmas Rice Krispy Treats
– Chocolate Christmas Fudge
– Christmas Chocolate Pretzels
– Easy Brownie Christmas Trees
– Santa Hat Strawberries

More Christmas Tree-Shaped Treats:

Believe it or not, these Brownie Christmas Trees are not our only Christmas tree-shaped treat. We also have our Christmas Tree Brownies and our Chocolate Christmas Tree Pretzel Sticks.