Eton Mess

In July 2013, chefs in London created what was supposedly the world’s largest Eton mess, the classic British dessert of berries, whipped cream, and meringue. Assembled and served from an enormous martini glass, the confection weighed a whopping 368 pounds. To serve the dessert to 2,000 hungry passersby, a chef perched on a ladder, scooping out portions of the dessert bit by bit until there was none left. Had I been there, they most likely would have served only one person: me.

Okay, it may be a bit of an exaggeration to say that I could single handedly tackle an Eton mess of that size. But it really is my favorite way to enjoy sweet summer berries. And with heaps of whipped cream, ripe berries (typically strawberries, but some iterations include raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries), and crisp meringues that are just beginning to soften, it’s everything you want in a light summer dessert. It’s easy to assemble, and even easier to eat—and nobody in my husband’s British family can stop at just one serving.

According to food writer Helen Saberi, writing in The Oxford Companion to Sweets, the dessert was first mentioned in historian Arthur Beavan’s 1896 book Marlborough House and Its Occupants. In a chapter detailing “notable balls, fêtes, and garden parties” at the royal residence, he notes that “Eton Mess aux Fraises,” or Eton mess with strawberries, was served at an 1893 garden party that Queen Victoria attended. Many, however, attribute the creation of the dessert to Eton College, the posh boys’ school in Windsor, England. There are iterations of Eton mess throughout the country, and Saberi mentions that a version with bananas—called Lancing mess—is served at Lancing College in Sussex. 

Though strawberries are traditionally used to make the dessert, I’ve seen it served with an assortment of berries. What berries you incorporate and how you assemble the dessert is entirely up to you; some smush everything—the whipped cream, meringues, and berries—together in a bowl, then spoon it into individual bowls to serve. Others carefully layer the components to create a parfait of some sort.

Here, I opt for a combination of raspberries and strawberries; some recipes call for blending the fruit to create a juicier mixture, but I find it much easier—and just as delicious—to quickly macerate the fruit with sugar and a bit of lemon zest. I prefer layering the dessert in individual glasses, but if you’re short on time or simply can’t be bothered, you can assemble the whole thing in a large serving dish. And whether you choose to make your own meringue cookies or use store-bought is entirely up to you; eaten as a whole, it’s likely no one will notice if your meringues weren’t made from scratch. 

Beyond the necessary inclusion of berries, meringue, and whipped cream, there are no hard or fast rules on how to serve Eton mess. The most important thing is that you make it before berry season is over—because while supermarket fruit will suffice, the dessert is the most delicious when made with berries so ripe they look as if they’re about to burst.