By Dorie Greenspan
- Total Time
- 1 hour 25 minutes, plus 2 hours’ cooling
- Rating
- 4(226)
- Notes
- Read community notes
This is not a traditional Eton mess, the renowned British dessert usually comprising meringue, whipped cream and strawberries. I made one like that and loved it, but the elements just begged to be played with. For this, my favorite mess for the fall-into-winter season, I’ve added spice-cookie crumbs to the meringue for more flavor and a bit of surprise, made two add-ins — a quick-cook cranberry jam and a lemon curd — and stirred in some fresh raspberries (more tang, more color). Of course, I kept the whipped cream — it’s essential to a mess. Going with cranberries and curd make this a good choice for the holidays. You can serve the mess family style or in bowls, coupes or even canning jars. And if you want a bit more texture and another flavor, speckle the top with chopped pistachios.
Featured in: The Eton Mess, a Classic Dessert for Endless Variation
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Ingredients
Yield:6 servings
- ½cup (100 grams) plus 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1½teaspoons cornstarch
- 2large egg whites, at room temperature
- ¼teaspoon cream of tartar or ½ teaspoon distilled white vinegar
- Pinch of fine sea salt
- ½teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3tablespoons spice-cookie crumbs, preferably Biscoff/speculoos
- 112-ounce (340-gram) bag cranberries (if frozen, don’t defrost)
- ¾cup (150 grams) sugar
- ½cup (120 milliliters) freshly squeezed orange juice (or water)
- 1teaspoon minced, peeled fresh ginger
- About 1½ cups (about 360 milliliters) lemon curd, homemade or store-bought (see recipe)
- About 3 cups (about 375 grams) raspberries
- 1½cups (360 milliliters) heavy cream, lightly whipped
- Chopped pistachios (optional), for topping
For the Meringue
For the Cranberry Jam
For Assembly
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
625 calories; 33 grams fat; 20 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 82 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams dietary fiber; 67 grams sugars; 6 grams protein; 95 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
To Make the Meringue
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1
Center a rack in the oven, and heat it to 250. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Step
2
Sift the 2 teaspoons sugar and the cornstarch together; set aside.
Step
3
Using a mixer with a whisk attachment, beat the whites, cream of tartar or vinegar and salt on medium-high speed until the whites form soft peaks, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining ½ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. It will take about 5 minutes to blend in all the sugar — don’t rush it. When it’s incorporated, add the vanilla, and beat for another 2 minutes or so, until you have stiff, glossy, beautifully white peaks. Switch to a flexible spatula, and fold in the reserved sugar-and-cornstarch mix, followed by the cookie crumbs.
Step
4
Scoop the meringue out onto the baking sheet, and spread it about ½-inch thick. Size and shape don’t matter here.
Step
5
Bake, undisturbed, for 1¼ hours. The meringue will puff, and it may crack; it shouldn’t color much, although it might turn beige here and there. Turn off the oven, prop the door open just a crack, to let the hot air out, and leave the meringue to finish drying for another 2 hours, or for as long as overnight. It’s ready when you can easily peel away the paper or mat. Set aside in a dry place until needed. (The meringue can be made up to 2 days ahead and kept loosely covered at room temperature as long as it’s not humid.)
To Make the Jam
Step
6
Put all the ingredients in a medium saucepan, and cook, stirring, over medium heat, until the mixture bubbles, many of the cranberries pop and the sauce starts to thicken, about 10 minutes. The filling will thicken more as it cools. Scrape into a bowl, and cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate if you’re not using it immediately. (The filling can be made up to 3 days ahead and kept in the refrigerator.)
To Assemble the Dessert
Step
7
For each serving, start with a few of spoonfuls each of curd and jam. Add a few spoonfuls of whipped cream, and top with some berries. (You can make the mess up to this point, cover it and refrigerate for up to 1 hour.) Crumble meringue generously over the dessert, and sprinkle over pistachios, if you’d like. You might have some meringue, curd or jam left over — add more to each serving or reserve. Serve immediately, while the meringue is still crunchy.
Ratings
4
out of 5
226
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Cooking Notes
Marty
The ingredients list is out of order. Ingredients for the jam are listed under the meringue; berries and whipped cream should be listed separately.
Susan
I’ve done an Eaton Mess with cranberry curd (very good) and with cranberries chopped, mixed with enough sugar to minimize the pucker, and cooked briefly. I liked the second one better because the less cooked cranberries were a better contrast with the crisp sweet meringues and luscious whipped cream.
Isabel
With toasted oats instead of meringue, it is Cranachan, a Scottish dessert.
Faded elegance
Only a bag of cranberries for the jam? Why does the recipe refer to “all the ingredients?”
Dawn
I don't see any strawberries in the ingredients. Cranberries and lemon curd... I think the strawberries were just in reference to the traditional version, not the version in this "fall-winter" recipe.
AMReing
Tasty, but literally “a mess”, lol. I wanted to clean out the fridge, and had all the ingredients, leftover cranberry sauce and lemon curd from a previous holiday. I only wish I could have arranged it in a little more attractive fashion.
Jennie
Made this with blueberries because forgot to buy raspberries and it's like eating a blissful delicious cloud--in fact, we have decided to call it Cloud 9 in my house. I wonder what it would be like with a jam other than cranberry--raspberry, marmalade, quince, strawberry, blueberry? I bet they would all be great. Biscoff are super oily (hence cookie butter), and the crumbs immediately deflated my meringue. It still cooked up, but it's more sticky than crisp. Delicious though.
Oregon
Just made this. Holy Christmas it was good even w a store bought lemon curd rather than my own. Super easy, I used dried berries and leftover cookie crumbs as garnish.
Frank
As an Australian, I'd never heard of Eton Mess until we stayed with a woman outside Totnes, Devon, Englandwe had brought some meringue and she said 'oh - we'll make Eton Mess!'so she took us for a ramble up the hill to some blackberry bushes where we picked enough, came back and whipped some cream, broke up the meringue and tossed it with some berries and Bob's Your Uncle - easy and delicious !
G Boltman
This was outstanding. Sweet but a nice mix of tart and some warm spices to balance it all out. I used Meyer Lemons for mine and I think that contributed to a lot of the amazing flavor in there. Only caveat is that it's pretty labor intensive. Make most parts ahead of time instead?
GC
The lemon curd recipe is so delicious! I made it for the Eton mess (which I made w/o the cranberry) and that was very good. But afterwards I had a lot of lemon curd left over. I froze it and wondered if it would survive. It did! After thawing it still tasted delicious, very tangy and fresh, and I used it to make a lemon tiramisu -- layer ladyfingers soaked in a mix of sugar syrup with lemon juice and limoncello, then lemon curd, then whipped cream, repeat, ending with whipped cream. Enjoy!!!
Cathi
I am going to make this with orange curd.
Alice
This is a variation on a Pavlova: meringue, whipped cream, fruit. The difference is in the lemon curd and the presentation.
GG
If there is any way to cut down on the sugar in each of the 3 components?I loved the dessert, but I am feeling very sugar jittery now!!!
chris
Made this twice last autumn. Absolutely delicious and such fun to put out unassembled to allow guests to build their own. I’m making it again soon! Love it
Mary
This was a big hit with guests. I did lighten the lemon curd with sweetened whipped cream. Also add more sugar and OJ to the cranberry to get away from such tartness.
Ellen
Has anyone tried making individual meringes, and, instead of cumpling them on top, putting them on the bottom, then adding jam, curd, whipping cream, etc? Could be less of a 'mess' and possibly a little more elegant?
Joyce G
Can this be made and transported the same day?
Anne P
I liked this dessert, but found the lemon curd too sweet. Better with just the cranberry jam, which helps make a summery dessert more seasonal.
Betty
This recipe was delicious. A big hit with friends and family. There was leftover meringue, which they fought over.
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