Instructions: Heat the oven to 180 degrees. Spray 3 baking pans with cooking spray and line with parchment paper.

Whisk 1 tablespoon of the sugar with the egg whites in a bowl. Set the bowl over, but not touching, a pan of simmering water and whisk until the mixture is warm to the touch, about 2 minutes.

With an electric mixer, beat the whites on medium speed while slowly adding the remaining sugar. Turn the mixer to high, scraping down the sides of the bowl, and beat until stiff peaks form, about 7 minutes.

Using a piping bag with a star tip, form quarter-size rounds on the baking sheets, or spoon dollops of the meringue onto the baking sheets. Sprinkle each meringue with a few peppercorns.

Bake the meringues until theyre dry to the touch with melt-in-your-mouth centers, about 1 hour to 1 hour, 15 minutes.

This recipe yields about 80 for 14 to 16 servings.

If you would like to email yourself the recipe for later use, or share the recipe with your friends or family, enter the email addresses below and this recipe will be emailed to you and others as well.