Combining sweet, juicy strawberries, crunchy homemade meringue cookies, and fluffy whipped cream, this easy English Eton Mess is a delicious gluten-free dessert not to be missed!
[Side Note: a version of this post first appeared on my OutlanderCast column, April 20, 2021]
Why this recipe works
- The meringue cookies and strawberry sauce can be made ahead
- This classic English dessert is easy to make and that's fast to assemble
- Can be served in a large bowl or as individual portions
Quick, what's light and fluffy as a cloud, soft and crunchy, and tastes like Spring?
Give up?
It's Eton Mess, a yummy unstructured trifle made of strawberries, homemade meringue cookies, and whipped cream. It is similar to a Pavlova, except the meringues are crumbled up and everything is all mixed together.
The combination of sweet, crunchy, and billowy creamy textures create a sensory explosion. Your mouth doesn’t know which to savor first!
Jump to:
The messy history of Eton Mess
The beginnings of Eton Mess seem murky at best, the common denominator being that it originated at Eton College in England. One story goes that at a cricket match in the 1920s, an overenthusiastic Labrador sat on and crushed a strawberry pavlova meant as an after-game treat for the players. Apparently they liked it so much that a new dessert was born.
It’s a cute story but may be just a story, as Eton Mess had been documented in the 1890s. There are other theories, from the word “mess” referring to a dining hall to the jumbled look of the dish.
Whatever the real origins, it’s easy to make and tasty to eat, and that’s all that matters really.
What you need
The beauty of a classic English Eton Mess recipe lies it its simplicity.
You can buy the meringues if you don’t want to make them, but I encourage you to give it a try. Homemade meringue cookies are light and crunchy, yet have a slight chewiness that makes things really interesting.
Superfine sugar (aka caster sugar in the UK) will dissolve more readily in this type of meringue than standard granulated sugar, but you can use granulated if you'd like.
If you do want to use superfine sugar, check out the FAQs before to see where to buy it or how to make it.
How to make Eton Mess
Eton Mess has four major steps: baking (or buying) the meringue cookies, prepping the strawberries, whipping the heavy cream, and assembly. Let’s break it down…
Step 1: Bake the meringue cookies
If you decide to bake the meringue cookies, all you need to do is make a simple French meringue batter. That is just a mixture of egg whites (photo 1) whipped to stiff peaks and stabilized with sugar (photo 2), the same meringue as in French Macarons.
In this case, we’re also adding cream of tartar to further stabilize the meringue structure and vanilla and salt for flavoring (photo 3). The finished meringue will have a glossy finish and will hold its shape (photo 4).
After making the meringue, spoon it into mounds on a half sheet baking pan lined with a Silpat silicone mat or parchment paper (photo 5).
Bake at 200°F for 1 to 1½ hours until they are pale in color and appear dry and crisp. It's best to turn off the oven once the meringues are done without opening the oven door and let them cool completely in the oven (about 1 to 2 hours) before removing the pan.
Step 2: Get your strawberries ready
This involves just cutting the strawberries into bite-sized chunks, then sprinkling on some granulated sugar and letting them sit for a bit (photo 6). This is called macerating the strawberries.
Remove some of the strawberries to use as a topping; then coarsely crush the remainder (photo 7).
Step 3: Prepare your whipped cream
The final prep step is to whip the heavy cream to soft peaks; then add vanilla and powdered sugar and whip to stiff peaks (photo 8). Chilling the bowl and beaters beforehand helps speed up the process.
Step 4: Assemble the Eton Mess
All the steps above can be done ahead of time, but you should assemble the dessert right before you’re ready to serve. You want the meringue pieces to stay firm in the whipped cream.
Crumble the meringues into the whipped cream, then fold in the crushed strawberries (photo 9). Don’t mix it in all the way as you want to see streaks of strawberries.
Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl and top with the reserved strawberries.
Questions asked and answered
Here are some questions you might have...
No, store bought meringue cookies are fine. However, homemade meringues have a slight chewiness to them that lends another texture to the dessert. Plus, this recipe can be made in advance and makes more cookies than you need, so you can have more Eton Mess another day!
For a successful meringue, the egg whites need to be absolutely free of fat to whip. To make sure there is no yolk, I suggest you separate the eggs over a bowl and dump the whites into another bowl (an egg separator can help). Also, wiping the mixing bowl with white vinegar or lemon juice prior to adding the whites helps to ensure there is no fat in the bowl that can inhibit the meringue formation. This step is optional but highly recommended.
Superfine sugar (aka caster sugar) is a type of sugar that lines between granulated sugar and powdered sugar on the graininess scale. It's commonly used in the UK and Commonwealth countries, prized for its wonderful ability to dissolve more readily into batters and meringues. Depending on your market, you can find superfine sugar in the baking aisle, with the British foods, or online.
Sure! You can make one cup of superfine sugar by grinding one cup plus two teaspoons of granulated sugar in a food processor for 30 seconds. No trip to the market needed!
Pro Tip: Try other flavor combinations for Eton Mess
You’re not limited to just strawberries and whipped cream! Here are some flavor alternatives to try (thanks to The Guardian):
- Substitute 2 to 3 ripe bananas for the strawberries. Slice half and toss with the granulated sugar. Mash the other half into a pureé and fold into the whipped cream.
- Substitute other fruit for the strawberries, like other berries, apples, or peaches, or plums. Hard fruit may need to be cooked down to a chunky compote with the sugar adjusted to taste.
- Add a tablespoon or two of your favorite wine or liqueur to the macerating fruit and/or the whipped cream for an adults-only dessert.
- Add ¼ to ½ teaspoon (or to taste) of spices to the whipped cream. Try a hint of black pepper for strawberries, crushed cardamom, cinnamon or nutmeg for bananas, and ginger for stone fruit such as plums.
An easy to make trifle that tastes like Spring
Eton Mess tastes like a creamy, dreamy cloud of strawberry sweetness, punctuated with crunchy bits of sweet meringue.
You never know which texture will be in the next mouthful, and it's so easy to go back for more!
Yummm…
Is this merely a crushed Pavlova? Perhaps, but Eton Mess is delicious, whatever its story. No Labradors needed.
Perfect for Valentine's Day or Date Night, this is an easy gluten-free dessert not to be missed!
Slainté! L’chaim! Cheers!
Tammy
Related Recipes
If a recipe uses egg whites, what do you do with the egg yolks? I've got you covered! From custards to sauces, you'll be able to use up those yolks.
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Recipe
Easy English Eton Mess
Equipment
- hand mixer
Ingredients
For the meringue cookies
- ½ teaspoon white vinegar, or lemon juice (optional), see Recipe Notes
- 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- pinch kosher salt
- ½ cup superfine sugar (aka caster sugar), or granulated sugar, see Recipe Notes
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the strawberries
- ½ pound strawberries, fresh
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
For the whipped cream
- ¾ cup heavy cream, chilled
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar, sifted
Instructions
- Make the meringue cookies: Preheat the oven to 200 °F and place the rack in the center of the oven. Line a half sheet baking pan with a Silpat silicone mat or parchment paper. Set aside.
- Wet a paper towel with white vinegar or lemon juice and use it to wipe out a medium bowl to ensure there’s no fat residue. Place the egg whites in the bowl and beat with a hand mixer until foamy. Stir in the cream of tartar and salt.
- Add the sugar a little at a time, beating after each addition, until soft peaks form. Add the vanilla extract and beat until the meringue holds stiff peaks.
- If you’re using parchment paper, place a little of the meringue on the underside of each corner to hold it flat to the baking pan. Using two spoons, portion the meringue into 12 mounds on the baking pan.
- Bake the meringue cookies for approximately 1 to 1½ hours until they are pale in color and appear dry and crisp. Turn off the oven once they're done without opening the oven door and let cool completely in the oven (about 1 to 2 hours) before removing the pan.
- Prepare the strawberries: About an hour before you’re ready to serve, hull the strawberries and cut them into bite-sized chunks. Place the chunks in a small bowl, sprinkle with the granulated sugar, and toss very gently to coat. Set the bowl aside in a cool place to macerate for at least 20 minutes, until they begin to give up their juices.
- Remove a third of the strawberries and set aside. Lightly crush the rest into a chunky compote using a wooden spoon or potato masher.
- Make the whipped cream: Chill a medium bowl and the mixer beaters. Pour the heavy cream into the chilled bowl and use a hand mixer to whip to soft peaks. Add the vanilla extract and sifted powdered sugar, then beat the mixture until stiff peaks form. Chill until ready to assemble.
- Assemble the dessert: Just before serving, break five to six meringue cookies into bite size pieces into the whipped cream. Fold in the crushed strawberries with their juices making sure not to overmix. The whipped cream should be swirled with strawberry juices, rather than pink all the way through.
- Transfer the mixture to a serving bowl and top with the reserved strawberries. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- Substitute 2 to 3 ripe bananas for the strawberries. Slice half and toss with the granulated sugar in Step 6. Mash the other half into a pureé and fold into the whipped cream in Step 9.
- Substitute other fruit for the strawberries, like other berries, apples, or peaches, or plums. Hard fruit may need to be cooked down to a chunky compote with the sugar adjusted to taste.
- Add a tablespoon or two of your favorite wine or liqueur to the macerating fruit and/or the whipped cream for an adults-only dessert.
- Add ¼ to ½ teaspoon (or to taste) of spices to the whipped cream in Step 8. Try a hint black pepper for strawberries, crushed cardamom, cinnamon or nutmeg for bananas, and ginger for stone fruit such as plums.
