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cherry eton mess; eton mess; quick and easy dessert
Cherry Eton Mess
Chef
Easy
StarStarStarStarStar

Crumbled vanilla meringue, stewed and puréed cherries folded into whipped cream and served with grated dark chocolate – simply divine.

SHARE &COMMENT
cherry eton mess; eton mess; quick and easy dessert
Cherry Eton Mess
Chef
Easy
StarStarStarStarStar
SHARE &COMMENT

Introduction

Crumbled vanilla meringue, stewed and puréed cherries folded into whipped cream and served with grated dark chocolate – simply divine.

Ingredients

    FOR THE MERINGUE:
  • 3 egg whites
  • 175g caster sugar
  • Seeds from 1 vanilla pod
  • FOR THE CHERRIES:
  • 60ml water
  • 2 tbsp kirsch liqueur
  • 50g caster sugar
  • Reserved vanilla pod
  • 500g fresh cherries, rinsed and pitted
  • FOR ASSEMBLY:
  • 500ml double cream
  • 25g good quality dark chocolate, grated

Method

  • 1. <h5>For the meringue:<h5>
  • 2. Preheat oven to 140°C/275°F/gas 1 and line 2 baking trays with parchment paper.
  • 3. Whisk egg whites on medium speed in a large grease free bowl until frothy. Still whisking, slowly add the sugar 1 tbsp at a time. Increase speed to high, add vanilla seeds, and whisk until meringue is smooth and glossy and all the sugar has dissolved.
  • 4. Drop 8 mounds of meringue on to prepared baking trays and flatten the tops with the back of a spoon. Bake for 1 hour, then turn off oven and leave meringues to dry out with oven door closed until oven is completely cold, ideally overnight.
  • 5. <h5>For the cherries:<h5>
  • 6. Combine the water, kirsch, sugar and vanilla pod in a large saucepan over low heat. Stir until sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil then add cherries and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove cherries with a slotted spoon and set aside. Continue to boil liquid until reduced by half. Remove from heat and leave both cherries and syrup to cool completely. Discard vanilla pod once cool.
  • 7. <h5>To assemble dessert:<h5>
  • 8. Purée half of the cherries with the syrup. Set aside.
  • 9. In a large bowl, lightly beat double cream with a whisk or electric mixer until soft peaks form. Do not overbeat.
  • 10. In a large bowl, crumble half of the meringue, then top with half of the cream, cherries and purée. Layer with the remaining broken meringue, cream, cherries and purée then use a large spoon to lightly fold the mixture about 5 times, just enough to mix the cream into the ingredients but still maintain streaks of white.
  • 11. Serve immediately with a sprinkling of grated dark chocolate. Components can be prepared ahead of time, but dessert should be assembled just before serving so that the meringue remains crisp.

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