The classic Eton Mess dessert gets a grown up makeover in this Vegan Gooseberry and Strawberry Eton Mess recipe. Get the recipe below.
Eton Mess is a classic British dessert made from whipped cream, meringue and strawberries. It's not traditionally vegan but with a few tweaks you can easily make it suitable for a plant based diet.
In this recipe, I've taken the classic dessert recipe and not only made it vegan, but I've added gooseberries for a more grown up take on the dish.
Gooseberries are stewed with strawberries for a seasonal pudding that is both sweet and tart, mixed with vanilla cream and sweet, crisp meringue.
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Ingredients
This dish is best made in the summer months when the fruit is in season. For full quantities check out the recipe card below. In the meantime, here's your shopping list:
- Gooseberries, red or green
- Strawberries
- Caster sugar
- Vegan double cream
- Vanilla paste
- Vegan meringue kisses
Step-by-step Instructions
Making an Eton Mess is simple. It involves minimal cooking (unless you're making your vegan meringue kisses from scratch). Just follow these steps:
- Step 1: Place the gooseberries and strawberries into a saucepan with the case sugar and 2 tablespoon of water.
- Step 2: Heat the fruit and sugar on a medium-high heat until they begin to burst and the sugar is dissolved.
- Step 3: Reduce the heat and cook until it forms a compote.
- Step 4: Transfer the compote to a bowl and leave to cool completely.
- Step 5: Whisk the cream and vanilla paste until thick.
- Step 6: Layer the compote, cream and meringue kisses in a pudding glass and serve.
Substitutions
There are so few ingredients in this recipe there aren't many substitutions you can make. If you really need to, you could swap the vegan double cream for coconut cream. It will have a slight coconut flavour but it would still be delicious!
Variations
You can add a twist to this dessert with one or more of these tweaks:
- Extra fruity - add more berries - raspberries would work particularly well.
- Extra crispy - add more crunch to the dish with some flaked almonds, crushed pecans or another nut. Alternatively, swap the meringues for biscuits.
- Boozy - a splash of sherry or another liquor to the cream for a boozy hit.
Equipment
All you need to make this dish is a saucepan and spatula, a bowl and an electric whisk.
Serve the dish in pudding glasses or bowls.
Storage
Both the compote and whipped cream can be made a few hours ahead of time but this is a dish best assembled immediately before serving otherwise the meringues will go soft.
Top tip
Avoid stirring the fruit too much while it's cooking so that it doesn't break down too much. It's nice to leave the fruit in large pieces for some added texture.
FAQ
You can make the component parts of the dessert in advance but you should not assemble until you are ready to serve.
The recipe
Vegan Gooseberry and Strawberry Eton Mess
Equipment
- 1 saucepan
- 1 Spatula
- 1 bowl
- 1 Electric whisk
Ingredients
- 200 g gooseberries
- 200 g strawberries
- 250 g caster sugar
- 600 ml vegan double cream
- 28 vegan meringue kisses
Instructions
- Place the gooseberries and strawberries into a saucepan with the sugar and 2 tablespoon of water.
- Heat the fruit on a medium-high heat until the fruit bursts and the sugar is dissolved.
- Reduce the heat and cook until it forms a compote, stirring occasionally so it doesn't catch.
- Transfer the compote to a bowl and leave to cool completely.
- Once the fruit is cool, whip the cream until it is thick.
- Layer the compote, cream and meringues in pudding dishes and serve.
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