Eton mess is a dead simple dinner party dessert and if you don’t fancy faffing around making meringue then you can skip the stages below and use ready-made – your guests won’t know if you’ve bought it from the shop. You can use a mixture of fruits or just the classic strawberries, it’s up to you. Serve in individual portions or as a large sharing one.

Timings

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 2-3 hours

Serves

Ingredients

For the meringue

2 egg whites
120g caster sugar

To serve

150g strawberries, hulled
80g caster sugar
350ml double cream
1 tsp vanilla essence
200g mixed berries

Method

Put the oven on to its lowest temperature.
To make the meringue, whisk the egg whites and the caster sugar until very stiff, so that it forms peaks when the whisk is removed (an eclectic stand mixer will give the best results).
Spread out the meringue on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper so that it’s only 2-3cm thick and place in the oven for two to three hours or until dry and brittle.
Process the strawberries in a blender with half the sugar until smooth. Whip the double cream with the rest of the caster sugar and vanilla essence together until stiff.
Break the meringue into small pieces and fold into the cream with half of the strawberry puree.
To serve, spoon the cream mixture in the middle of the plates then drizzle more of the strawberry purée around the outside, scattering over the fresh berries.