Quick and Easy Eton Mess

Eton mess is one of my all time favourite desserts. It's one of the absolute easiest to throw together and it always looks incredible! You can either make your own meringues or if you want to cheat a little, buy a pack in the supermarket. I had a couple of crushed meringues left over from an order this weekend and didn't want them to go to waste so I bought a few frozen berries and went for it.

To make your own meringues...

YOU WILL NEED...

3 Egg Whites 

150g Caster Sugar 

1 tsp Lemon Juice 

METHOD... 

1) Preheat your oven to 100C/ 225F/ gas mark .25, and line a flat baking tray with grease proof paper

2) Put the lemon juice into your mixing bowl and, using a piece of kitchen towl wipe the inside of the bowl

3) Empty your egg whites into the bowl and whisk on high speed until the mixture becomes white in colour and forms a peak when the whisk is lifted

4) Next add half the caster sugar and again beat on high speed until combined and the moisture forms a peak when the beater is lifted. Add the remaining sugar and beat once again on high speed. You should be able to hold the bowl upside down without any of the mix budging. 

5) Pipe the mix into your baking tray and place in the oven for 1 hour 30 mins. When ready, leave to cool fully on the tray and then store in an airtight container for up to a week. 

For The Berry Compote...

YOU WILL NEED... 

A bag of frozen Summer berries

3 tbsp of Brown Sugar 

Juice of half  a lime

METHOD... 

1) Simply empty the bag of frozen berries into a pot with the sugar and lime juice

2) Stir and allow the mixture to come go the boil and then to simmer for 4-5 minutes. 

3) Allow the mixture to cool fully before storing in an airtight container. The compote can last for up to a week in the fridge. 

To Assemble... 

YOU WILL NEED... 

100ml Fresh Cream (whipped) 

Handful of fresh berries 

The compote you made earlier 

The meringues you made earlier (or the pack you bought in the shop!)

Simply layer each of the ingredients in a glass and top with fresh berries - enjoy!

Pavlova Gateaux with Chocolate Mousse, Fresh Cream & Berries

Dad's favourite dessert is pavlova loaded with fresh cream and strawberries but he also loves dark chocolate. For his birthday this year, to combine his two favourites, I decided to make a meringue gateaux filled with dark chocolate mousse and strawberries, topped with fresh cream, berries and dark chocolate shavings. 

Ingredients

FOR THE MERINGUE

9 Egg Whites

450g Caster Sugar

Lemon Juice or white vinegar (to wipe bowl)

FOR THE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

200g Dark Chocolate 

2 tbsp Water

6 Eggs (separate and keep 6 whites but only 3 yolks)

Pinch of Salt

EXTRAS

250ml Cream (whipped)

Handful Dark Chocolate Shavings

Punnet of Fresh Strawberries (washed and sliced)

Method

FOR THE MERINGUE

1) Preheat your oven to 100C/225F/Gas Mark .25, and line two flat bakng trays with greaseproof paper. Trace around a small plate (approx 8 inches round) with a pencil to give yourself piping guidelines when the mixture is ready.

2) Whisk the egg whites on high in your electric mixer until they rise, become glossy and form a peak when the whisk is lifted.

3) Add  half your sugar and again, beat on high until the mixture forms a peak when the beater is lifted. When this occurs, add the remaining sugar and whisk on high for the final time until, once again, the mixture forms a peak when the beater is lifted.

4) Fill your piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle with the mix and pipe onto your baking tray filling the two circles you traced earlier. If you have some mix left over after this, pipe small meringe shapes, as you would icing on top of a cupcake - you can use these to decorate or to simply eat when they come out of the oven instead of having to wait for your masterpiece ! 

5) Bake the small meringues for 45 minutes and the two large for 1 hour 30 mins. Once done, remove from the oven and allow to cool fully before assembling.


FOR THE CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

1) Using your electric mixer, whisk the egg whites and salt on high, like you did for the meringue, until the mixture becomes glossy and peaks when the whisk is lifted.

2) In a separate bowl, melt the chocolate over a pot of simmering water. Once melted, add the egg yolks and mix. Then set the mixture aside to cool for 10 minutes.

3) After the 10 minutes are up, add the egg white mixture to the chocolate mixture, one spoon and a time and stir -always in the same direction.

4) Pour half the mixture into a bowl, cover and chill in the fridge for at least 5 hours before serving. You can pour the remaining mix into glasses to chill. You can serve these separatly to the cake.

TO ASSEMBLE...

Make a gateaux with the meringues, using the chocolate mousse as the filling. Spread the whipped cream on top and decorate with the mini meringues, berries and chocolate shavings.

Chocolate Meringue Feast

I was invited for Sunday lunch last week so thought that I better whip up something special for dessert. I considered a sundae or something small but felt creative and went all out instead. I had never combined meringue with sponge cake before but had always thought that it looked pretty good. I whipped up a sticky chocolate fudge sauce to pour over the top and used Chantilly Cream for the filling - yum! 

Ingredients

FOR THE MERRINGUE

6 Egg Whites
150g Caster Sugar

FOR THE CHOCOLATE FUDGE SAUCE

2 Egg Yolks
150g Sugar
50g Plain Chocolate
3  tbsp Water
50g Butter

FOR THE CHOCOLATE SPONGE

250g Caster Sugar
250g Butter (softened)
4 Eggs
250g Self Raising Flour
6 tbsp Cocoa Powder

FOR THE CHANTILLY CREAM

250ml Whipping Cream
2 tbsp Icing Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Method

FOR THE MERRINGUE

1) Preheat your oven to 110C/ 230F/ Gas Mark 1/4 and line two baking trays with greaseproof paper.
On one of the sheets, draw a circle around an 8 inch round baking tin and leave both to one side.

2) Whisk the egg whites in the electric mixer until when lifted, the beater forms a peak in the mixture. Add the sugar, a few spoons at a time and continue to whisk again until the mixture forms a peak when the beater is lifted.

3) On one tray, using a piping bag and star nozzle, pipe the mixture into small shapes like you would icing on top of a cupcake. On the other tray, pipe the mixture so it fills the 8 inch circle shape you drew earlier.

6) Place both trays in the oven and bake undisturbed for 1 and 3/4 hours.

-------------------------------

FOR THE CHOCOLATE FUGDE SAUCE

1) To make a syrup, dissolve the sugar in the water in a saucepan and bring to the boil until it has reached 110 degrees on your sugar thermometer.

2) Whisk the syrup and the egg yolks until the mixture is thick and mousse-like and leave to one side while you melt the chocolate in a heat proof bowl over a pot of simmering water.

3) Leave the chocolate to cool slightly for 5 minutes. Then beat the butter and chocolate together and add the syrup mixture and continue to beat.

-------------------------------

FOR THE CHOCOLATE SPONGE

1) Preheat the oven to 180c/ 350F/ Gas Mark 4 and grease and line an 8 inch round baking tin.

2) Cream the butter and sugar together in your mixing bowl until creamy and pale in colour. Add the eggs and continue to beat until light and fluffy. Then add the flour and cocoa powder, one spoon at a time and beat further until of light and fluffy consistancy again.

3) Pour the mixture into your tin and bake for approx. 40 minutes until firm to touch.

Easy Peasy Pavlova

I've been baking for a while now but this, believe, it or not, was my first attempt at a meringue of any kind. To my surprise, it might actually have been the simplest thing I have ever made. There's not really much to it but it looks fantastic served at any occasion. Any amateur baker could whip up something spectacular by following this super easy recipe. I decided to top the pavlova with fresh cream and summer berries which went down a treat at home. Dad, who isn't usually too keen on dessert even went back for a second piece - I think that says something!

Ingredients

12 Egg Whites 

345g Caster Sugar

345g Icing Sugar

Fresh Cream

Berries of your choice 

Method

1) Preheat your oven to 100C and line a baking tin with greaseproof paper 

2) Using your hand mixer, beat the egg whites in a clean metal bowl until they resemble clouds and stand in stiff peaks when the beater is lifted 

3) Add the caster sugar slowly, one spoon at a time as you continue to mix until all is the caster sugar has been added. The recipe should be thick and glossy when done

4) Then sieve a quarter of the icing sugar into the bowl and, using a metal spoon, fold it in. Repeat this until all the icing sugar has been added. 

5) Then using your spatula, spoon the majority of the mixture onto the lines tray and spread. If you like you can then use a piping bag to pipe the remaining mixture around the edges

6) Bake for 1 hour and 20 mins @ 100C and leave to cool before assembling 

7) Spread the cream over the base, top with berries and serve - enjoy!! 

Mississippi Mud Pie

South Carolina was the place to be last summer when myself and a bunch of friends traveled over to the states on a J1 visa. While there, my keen interest in food and baking had me trying every tasty treat that my broke Irish behind could afford to sample. Although the dessert doesn't originate in South Carolina, my all time favourite had to be Mississippi Mud Pie. This traditional southern dessert with it's rich chocolaty filling and it's whipped cream topping will have you feeling guilty for a week after eating a slice but believe me, it's well worth it! I've baked the dessert on a couple of different occasions since I've been home, and, each time, the delicious smell of the pie in the oven brings me straight back to that sunny southern state. 

You might have guessed that the dessert in question is in fact the infamous pie featured in The Help, but, you'll be extremely glad to know that unlike Mini's, my mud pie doesn't have a horrendous secret ingredient! 

Recipe adapted from Love Food's gorgeous book 'Bake'.

Ingredients 

FOR THE BASE

175g Plain Flour (sieved)

25g Cocoa Powder (sieved)

40g Light Muscovado Sugar

85g Butter (softened)

3 tbsp Cold Water 

FOR THE FILLING

85g Dark Chocolate

85g Butter 

85g Light Muscovado Sugar 

2 eggs (lightly beaten) 

100ml Whipping Cream 

1 tsp Vanilla Extract 

FOR THE TOP

250ml Whipping Cream

100g Dark Chocolate 

Method 

1) Preheat your oven to 200C/ 400F/ Gas mark 6 and grease your round tart dish with melted butter

2) The water for the pastry works best when it's really cold so place a small glass of water into the freezer at the beginning 

3) Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a large bowl and stir in the sugar 

4) Add the butter, and, using your fingertips rub the butter into the mixture until it resembles small breadcrumbs 

5) Add the tbsps of water until the mixture binds a dough 

6) Roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface - make sure that it's large enough to cover your pie dish 

7) Prick the base multiple times with a fork, cover with greaseproof paper, and fill with baking beans. If you don't have baking beans, simply sit a small plate on top and bake in the oven for 10 minutes

8) After the 10 minutes have passed remove the base from the oven and reduce the temperature to 180C/ 350F/ Gas mark 4

9) For the filling, melt the chocolate and butter in a saucepan on a low heat

10) Whisk the sugar and eggs together until smooth and then stir into the chocolate mixture along with the cream and the vanilla extract 

11) Pour the mixture over the base and bake for 20-25 minutes until firm

12) When ready, leave to cool while you whip the cream 

13) When the tart is fully cool spread the cream over the filling. Then drizzle melted chocolate over the cream using a spoon or, if you want to be extra fancy, fill a plastic food bag with the chocolate, pierce it with a cocktail stick and squeeze the chocolate over the top. 

Serve chilled and enjoy!