Italian Meringue

Place pizza stone in oven (optional).
Preheat oven to 200° F.
Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Place egg whites into mixer bowl.
Whisk attachment and mixer on high setting, beat egg whites until stiff.
Combine sugar and water in small pot.
Boil syrup until it reaches hard ball stage, 250° F.
With mixing running at medium speed, slowly pour syrup into eggs whites, pouring along edge of pan to avoid syrup hitting whisk.
Continue beating until meringue is room temperature and very stiff.
Place meringue on baking sheets, using piping bag to form shapes or two spoons to form mounds.
Bake until completely dry, 1-2 hours. Meringues should not color.
Cool and store in airtight container.

Adapted from La Nouvelle Pâtisserie, Jean-Yves Duperret and Jacqueline Mallorca.