Eton Mess is a delicious summer dessert and a great way to finish off a meal as it is light yet very moreish. Our recipe uses double cream, condensed milk and natural Greek yoghurt so it feels very silky and has a perfect level of sweetness. We made our own meringue but you could easily use shop bought meringues for convenience. Berries are a popular fruit with an Eton Mess but you could easily try it out with other fruits for something a little different. Check out our recipe below and try it out yourself – it’s easy to make and won’t take too long.
Ingredients
For the meringue:
- 6 large egg whites
- 300g caster sugar
- 1 pinch of salt
For the cream mix:
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 300ml double cream
- 300g fat-free Greek yogurt
- 200g condensed milk
For the fruit mix:
- 1 punnet strawberries, hulled and quartered
- 1 punnet raspberries
- 1 punnet blueberries
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp of balsamic vinegar
Serves 4 -6
Preparation time – 15 minutes
Cooking time – 1 hour 20 minutes
1. Make your meringue
If you have chosen to make your own meringue, preheat the oven to 130°C. Put the egg whites into a clean, dry bowl and beat with an electric whisk on a medium speed until it forms stiff peaks.
Top Tip: Make sure there is no grease in the bowl, and that none of the egg yolks are in with the egg whites, otherwise your meringue will not whisk into peaks.
Once the egg whites have formed little peaks, gradually add the caster sugar and the salt to the egg whites while you keep whisking. Increase the speed of your electric whisk and beat for a few minutes until they are white and glossy.
Top Tip: You can check to see if the glossy meringue mix is ready by checking that t is smooth. Do this by rubbing a little of the mix between your fingers, if you can feel granules you need to keep whisking.
Once the meringue is ready, line 2 flat baking trays with greaseproof paper. Divide the mixture between each tray and use a spatula to smooth it out. Allow a little space around the edges of the tray. Bake in the oven for 1 hour 20 minutes until crisp on the outside and a little gooey inside. Once baked, set aside to cool.
2. Prepare the fruit
Wash, hull and quarter the strawberries. Place the strawberries in a bowl and macerate them by adding sugar, vanilla extract and balsamic vinegar. This helps bring out the flavour of the strawberries. Set aside until you are ready to use. Wash the raspberries and blueberries and set these aside until you are ready to use them.
Top Tip: You can use other fruit if you like, for example, different berries or nectarines and peaches.
3. Make the cream mix
Pour the cream into a bowl and add the vanilla extract. Whisk until soft peaks form. Pour in the condensed milk and whisk for a few seconds until combined. Add the greek yoghurt and fold in gently.
4. Make the Eton Mess
Eton Mess is best enjoyed once assembled. Add the fruit to the cream mix, making sure that you do not add the balsamic liquid mix. Leave a few pieces of fruit aside for garnishing the dessert. Crumble the cooled meringue, leaving a little aside, and add the crumbled meringue to the cream mix. Fold in the fruit and crumbled meringue.
Spoon the Eton Mess mix into glasses and top with a few pieces of fruit and some crumbles meringue. Add a little orange zest and mint leaves. Enjoy straightaway.
Are you a fan of Eton Mess? What other meringue based desserts are you a fan of? Let us know by commenting below or sharing your thoughts with us on Facebook and Twitter.
Welcome to Pikalily, an award-winning food, travel and lifestyle blog. We are Nial and Helen, a happily married couple from Northern Ireland, who share a passion for food and travel among many things. We became parents to our beautiful boy Lewis in 2017. Follow our adventures through the blog.
