Meringue Christmas Trees

• Preheat the oven to 200°F/93°C and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Set aside.
• Before you whip up the meringue, make sure there are no traces of grease on the whisk attachment or in your bowl. Grease can prevent the meringue from whipping up properly. If you see or feel any grease, moisten a paper towel with vinegar and wipe the inside of the bowl and the whisk attachment to remove any grease.
• Then add 4, large egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment and mix on medium speed until the surface of the egg whites is covered in small bubbles. Add 1/2 tsp cream of tartar and continue to mix until it reaches the soft peak stage and leaves visible tracks.
• Gradually mix 1 cup of granulated sugar into the egg whites over a few minutes while mixing on a medium-low speed. Increase the mixing speed to a medium-high speed (6 on a KitchenAid). When the meringue gets close to reaching stiff peaks, add 1/2 tsp of vanilla or almond extract and a squirt of green gel food coloring. Keep mixing until stiff, glossy peaks form. Don't worry if the color of the meringue is lighter than you expect, we will be adding gel food coloring to the inside of the piping. Scrape around the sides of the bowl to make sure all the meringue is evenly colored.
• Fit a large piping bag with an open or closed star piping tip (like a Wilton 1M). Do not use a bigger piping tip than this, or the meringue won't be able to keep its shape once it's piped. Use a small paintbrush to brush green gel food coloring on the inside of the piping tip and piping bag. Then scoop the meringue into a large piping bag fitted with a large open or closed star piping tip. Seal the top of the bag with a rubber band or clip.
• Pipe little trees by piping three dollops of meringue on top of each other. These don't spread as they bake, so they can be piped about 1 inch apart. Ideally, you'll fit all the trees on one tray because these take so long to bake and cool. Toss nonpareil sprinkles over the meringues to look like Christmas ornaments. Add a star sprinkle to the top of each tree if desired.
• Bake the tray on the middle rack of your oven for 90 minutes, then turn the oven off and let the trees sit in the oven for another hour. Letting them gradually cool helps prevent them from cracking. At this point, the trees should be fully cooked and look and feel dry to the touch. If they still seem wet or moist, leave them in the oven for another half hour.
• Remove the tray from the oven. They should have a crunchy exterior and a soft, chewy center. Let the meringues cool fully to room temperature, then lightly dust them with powdered sugar using a fine sieve to make them look like snow. Enjoy! These can be stored at room temperature for up to two weeks.