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I make these in my Kitchen Aid mixer. Here's the problem with this: the amount of egg white isn't enough to catch onto the bottom of the whisk. KitchenAids are kind of notorious for this. It's their only flaw. But I've had mine for 20 years and I love, love, LOVE it! My solution: I put my egg whites in and hand whisk them until they are bubbly and frothy. They probably are double in volume before I put the bowl back on the mixer and continue using the machine. Now the whisk can reach the whites. So add the cream of tartar and put the mixer on medium speed and whip away!
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You want to get to a soft peak. You can tell this has been reached when you life the whisk up out of the egg whites and the peak droops over at the tip. Now you want to increase the speed of the mixture to high. As the egg whites continue to beat, slowly pour the sugar into the bowl. Beat until firm peaks form. The egg white foam will become smooth, moist, and shiny. Stop the beaters and lift them. Straight peaks should form.
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Now continue beating on high until stiff peaks are formed. Whites will be very stiff and glossy. Make sure they are complete to this stage if you want defined peaks at the top of your cookies.
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Add the crushed candy canes. Fold them in gently until well mixed.
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The meringue is now ready. You can either spoon it out as-is onto parchment (I don't recommend a Silpat for these cookies), or pipe it into shapes or whatever.
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To make the Candy Cane Kisses you will need to have a few things ready:
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A piping bag
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A piping/writing tip about 1/4 inch in diameter (I used a #12 tip)
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Parchment paper
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A quarter
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A pencil
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The mini kisses or chips
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With the pencil, use the quarter to trace several (about 40) circles on the parchment paper. Leave about 1/2 inch of space between each circle. Turn this paper upside down onto your baking sheet. (I used 2 baking sheets). You should be able to see the circles through the parchment.
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Preheat your oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
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Fit the piping tip onto the bag. I recommend using a plastic coupler-that way if the tip does become clogged, you can easily remove the tip and clear it out.
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Scoop the meringue into the piping bag. Twist the bag closed at the top and pipe flat circles onto the parchment using the circle patterns. I mad them a tad bigger than the quarter size. Just use it as a guide. Place a mini kiss in the center of the circles and pipe up and around the kisses. Try to make sure the whole mini kiss is covered. Pull up at the end to make the peak. They should look like big, pink chocolate kisses. Just practice to get the shape. The not-perfect ones still taste delicious!
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When all meringue is used, or pans are filled, place into the preheated 225u00b0F oven for an hour and 30 minutes (90 minutes!) Don't peek! Remove from the oven and let set on pans a few hours after they are done baking. They are a little fragile, especially at the tip, but so yummy!
