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Comprised of mixed berry compote, chocolate meringue, whipped cream, and fresh summer strawberries, this Eton mess recipe offers a fun twist on the iconic British Eton mess.
What’s in This Eton Mess Recipe?
A parfait-style dessert made from whipped cream, meringue, and strawberries, Eton mess is said to have originated at Eton College, where it has been served at the annual Eton vs. Harrow cricket match since the late 1800s.
Though popular in Britain, this ummer treat is not particularly well known in the United States. I first saw (and heard of!) Eton mess in my Basic Pâtisserie course at Le Cordon Bleu London, during a demonstration on classic British desserts. Suffice it to say that I fell in love with this delightful whipped-cream-and-berries concoction. I have been making variations of it ever since.
An Eton Mess to Celebrate the Coronation
Because it is so quintessentially British, and because the ingredients lend themselves nicely to the earliest days of summer, an Eton mess recipe felt like a particularly appropriate way to celebrate the upcoming Coronation of King Charles III.
Here in London, I’m not the only one with Coronation celebrations on the brain. Decorations are starting to spring up everywhere. I’ve spotted displays in department store windows and buntings on houses. There are flags lining city streets, and official coronation merchandise for sale pretty much every corner grocery stores and souvenir shop.
I even saw King Charles on a toaster:
While the official food of the King’s Coronation is not a dessert at all (you can visit this page to learn how to make the spinach and broad bean-based Coronation Quiche), I wanted to create a recipe which merges the flavors of British summer with the official colors of the Coronation, and to do so in the form of a traditional English dessert. Hence, this Eton mess recipe with mixed berries!
A Twist on a Classic British Dessert
Traditionally, Eton mess contains whipped cream, meringue, and fresh strawberries. Because I love all things chocolate (and because chocolate tastes particularly nice when combined with fresh berries!) I added double-chocolate meringue and accented the whipped cream with notes of vanilla and fresh citrus for an extra burst of flavor. I also chose to use a mix of summer berries in vibrant shades of red and blue. These echo the colors of the British flag:
This easy-to-prepare Eton mess recipe with mixed berries offers the perfect light summer dessert for street parties and Coronation celebrations. And, it will be equally enjoyable at picnics and dinner parties all summer long!
Tools and Equipment for Making Eton Mess
It is helpful to have a piping bag and tip (I used an open star tip) on hand to pipe your chocolate meringue cookies. If you do not have these items, you can spoon dollops of meringue onto a tray instead.
You will need glasses or verrines in which to assemble the Eton mess. I used stemless wine glasses (approximately 4 inches or 10 centimeters tall) but feel free to be creative.
Timing Your Eton Mess Assembly
The meringue will take about 1 hour to bake. However, it needs to cool for an additional 1-2 hours before it is ready to use, so plan your timeline accordingly. If desired, you can make the meringues a few hours ahead of time (or the night before) and leave to cool in the oven with the door closed until ready to use. You can also multi-task by preparing your mixed berry compote while the meringue cookies cool in the oven.
The compote portion of this recipe can be prepared the day before and refrigerated overnight.
For best results, make the whipped cream and assemble the parfaits just prior to serving. Do not assemble the parfaits in advance. If you do this, the meringues will begin to dissolve.
Tips and Tricks
For the meringue, chop the chocolate into very small pieces. Do not use chocolate chips or chunks, because they will cause clogs in the piping tip. Miniature chocolate chips will work, but if you use these I suggest spooning your meringue (or using a very wide piping tip) to avoid clogs.
Eton Mess Variations and Substitutions
This classic dessert is traditionally made with fresh strawberries, but you can use any combination of fresh berries for this recipe. Cherries will work nicely, too.
If desired, the compote can also be made with frozen berries. Frozen strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, cherries (or any combination of these) will produce a lovely compote.
I used orange zest for the whipped cream, but you can substitute any citrus zest (lemon, lime) you’d like, or omit the zest and make a straightforward vanilla whipped cream. You can also add a small amount of alcohol, such as Kirsch, or an orange extract. Cocoa powder can also be added to the whipped cream for an extra-chocolately Eton Mess.
Feel free to use any type of piping tip to pipe the chocolate meringue. Or instead of piping, try spooning dollops of meringue directly onto the parchment-lined tray.
I chose to spoon the whipped cream on the tops of the parfaits. If desired, you can pipe it into pretty shapes and swirls instead.
As written, this recipe makes enough to fill four (4) 4-inch / 10 centimeter glasses. For larger groups, this recipe can easily be doubled, or even tripled.
Other summer berry dessert recipes you might enjoy:
Mixed Berry Crumble
Mixed Berry Breakfast Pastries
Blackberry Cream Cheese Danishes
And if you do make these, or any of my recipes, don’t forget to tag me @bastecutfold or use the hashtag #bastecutfold on Instagram. I always love to see what you’re making!
Eton Mess with Mixed Berries
- Total Time: 4 hours
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
A Coronation-inspired Eton mess recipe comprised of a mixed berry compote, fresh strawberries, and chocolate meringue, with layers of fluffy orange-vanilla whipped cream in between.
Ingredients
Meringue:
2 large egg whites (about 90 grams), at room temperature
100 grams (1/2 cup) caster sugar
7 grams (1 tablespoon) unsweetened cocoa powder
35 grams (1/4 cup) finely chopped dark chocolate
Mixed berry compote:
100 grams (1 cup) blackberries
100 grams (1 cup) blueberries
1 tablespoon caster sugar
15 grams (1 tablespoon) orange juice
Orange-vanilla whipped cream:
275 milliliters (1 1/4 cups) cold whipping cream
15 grams (1 tablespoon) confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
15 grams (1 tablespoon) finely zested orange zest
Assembly:
150 grams (1 1/2 cups) diced strawberries
To garnish:
Extra berries, chopped dark chocolate, mint leaves, meringue pieces, orange zest
Instructions
Preheat oven to 110° C / 230° F.
Line a baking tray with parchment or a silicone baking mat. Fit a piping bag with a star* piping tip, and set aside until ready to use.
Add egg whites to a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Whip to soft peaks.
Gradually add sugar, continuing to whip on medium-high speed until the mixture is thick and glossy, and stiff peaks form.
With a rubber spatula, gently fold in cocoa powder, followed by chopped dark chocolate.
Transfer meringue mixture to piping bag fitted with star tip.
Pipe onto prepared tray. (I piped 1.5-inch cookies, and ended up with about 35 pieces. However, feel free to pipe the meringues in any size and shape you wish.)
Bake in preheated oven for one hour. Without opening the door, turn off the oven and allow cookies to cool in oven for 1 – 1.5 hours.
While meringues are cooling, prepare the berry compote:
In a saucepan, combine blackberries, blueberries, and sugar.
Simmer mixture over medium heat until berries begin to break down and mixture thickens slightly, about 10 – 12 minutes. (You should still be able to see some chunks or pieces of berry; do not cook so long that the mixture dissolves into liquid.) Remove saucepan from heat and stir in orange juice.
Transfer compote to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Just before serving, prepare the orange-vanilla whipped cream:
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, add chilled whipping cream. Whip on medium-high speed until soft peaks form.
Whip in icing sugar, followed by vanilla bean paste and orange zest. Taste and adjust, adding more orange, vanilla, or sugar** if desired.
Assembly:
Spoon mixed berry compote into the bottom of four glasses, dividing the mixture equally between the four.
Spoon half of the whipped cream over top of the compote, dividing equally between the four. Reserve remaining whipped cream for the tops of the parfaits.
Break meringue cookies into pieces, reserving a few whole cookies for the garnish. Add a generous layer of meringue on top of the whipped cream, dividing equally between the four.
Spoon diced strawberries over top of the meringue, dividing equally between the four.
Top strawberries with remaining whipped cream, dividing equally between the four.***
Garnish parfaits as desired, using extra berries, reserved meringues, mint leaves, chopped dark chocolate, or orange zest.
Serve immediately.
Notes
*You can use any type of piping tip to pipe the meringue. Instead of piping, you can also spoon dollops of meringue onto the parchment-lined tray instead.
**Do not add too much sugar or make the whipped cream overly sweet, as the meringue adds a lot of sweetness to the dish.
***I chose to spoon the whipped cream on the tops of the parfaits. If desired, you can pipe it instead.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cooling Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven + Stovetop
- Cuisine: Custards and Puddings
