Eton Mess – Mini Pavlova

This effortless 5 Minute Eton Mess recipe features crumbly pre-made meringue nests topped with whipped cream, strawberries and mint for a deliciously festive dessert.

Why We Love This

Using ready made meringue nests, this easy English dessert can be made in minutes, looks spectacular and tastes incredible!

The refreshing combination of crumbly meringue, sweet fruit and whipped cream is the perfect way to finish a meal. It’s also great when you’re craving something sweet after dinner, but don’t feel like the hassle of making or baking something more intricate like homemade pavlova.

It’s easy to adjust and make as much as you need, whether it’s eton mess for two or enough to feed a crowd! Use the more traditional toppings, or tweak the recipe to suit your taste. It’s also a great way to make use of leftover fruit, coulis, sauces or spreads.

What is Eton Mess? 

It’s a traditional English dessert made with meringue, whipped cream and strawberries.

There are two main visual variations for this recipe. The traditional recipe features a base made from a meringue nest (basically mini pavlovas) topped with fruit and cream. The more creative version features crushed meringue placed in a clear glass with layers of colourful fruit and cream.

No matter which style you choose, both are bound to delight!

What You’ll Need

• Meringues – You can buy pre-made meringues or make your own mini pavlova nests in all kinds of shapes and sizes. We usually choose the nest or cup shapes because of how well they hold all the whipped cream and fruit toppings.
• Whipped Cream – We recommend making your own homemade whipped cream for the best flavour – see the recipe card below for our preferred method. We infuse it with caster sugar (aka superfine sugar), vanilla essence, and sometimes fruit puree, coulis or jam for extra flavour – the end result tastes better than ice cream! Of course you can use canned whipped cream or thickened cream (heavy cream for our US readers) if you prefer.
• Fresh Fruit – Strawberries are the most iconic eton mess topping, but we encourage you to get creative and experiment with your topping combinations. See below for more ideas!

Topping Ideas

It’s easy to customise this recipe for a different dessert experience every time! Try different topping combinations and see which style you like best. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Fresh fruit – strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, mango, kiwifruit, banana
• Fruit powder – aka dried and finely ground fruit for a colourful garnish
• Berry coulis – check out our Vanilla Blanc Manger for an easy blackberry coulis recipe.
• Fresh cream and/or ice cream
• Lemon curd
• Nutella, chocolate sauce or chocolate cream
• Yoghurt or creme fraiche
• Chocolate buttons or shaved chocolate
• Stewed rhubarb / rhubarb compote
• Fresh mint (tastes delicious and makes for a beautiful garnish)

Wandercook’s Tips

• We used beetroot powder as a garnish on our mini pavlova to give it an extra hit of colour. It’s just like a natural food colouring, but the best part is it doesn’t change the flavour of the dish!
• Pair a sweet topping with a sour topping for the perfect flavour balance.
• Crumble one meringue nest to use as a garnish.

FAQs

Variations & Substitutes

• Homemade Meringues – Make the meringue nests yourself using our pavlova recipe as the base. It’s really easy to do, especially if you have a Kitchenaid, but it does mean it’ll take longer than 5 minutes since you’ll need to bake the meringue.
• Crushed Meringues – Crush up the meringues and serve in clear glasses for an eye-catching variation. You could create neat layers of fruit, cream and crushed meringue, or mix it all together for an artistic look.
• Easter Dessert – Top with ice cream and easter eggs of different sizes.
• Christmas Dessert – Top with strawberries, kiwi fruit, fresh mint and a sprinkling of icing sugar for a red, green and white dessert!

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