Strawberry season finally, finally arrived here in the mid-Willamette Valley of Oregon after what seems to be the wettest, cloudiest Spring imaginable. The strawberries grown in this neck of the woods are so superior from any I have had from other parts of the West (sorry Washington and California). They are so sweet and red through and through and when you bite into one, the juice just oozes out all over your fingers.
It's a short season though so buying and using them as often as possible in a variety of ways is always a goal of mine. This recipe called Eton Mess is one I have never tried but I saw Jamie Oliver make once on his wonderful cooking show called Jamie at Home. It apparently is a dessert which originated at Eton, an elite all boys school in England and is served at cricket games in the early summer when strawberries are in abundance.
It couldn't be easier, especially if you buy your meringues already made from a bakery. I chose to make my own using
this recipe from an earlier blog entry of mine.
Eton Mess
(serves 2)
1/2 cup whipped cream and 2 Tbsp sugar beaten until cream holds soft peaks
4 cookie sized meringues, broken up into bite size pieces
1 pint of strawberries, washed, hulled and sliced
Gently fold meringue pieces and sliced strawberries into the whipped cream and spoon into bowls. Serve immediately so meringues don't dissolve.
So, maybe that's where daughter Fran's inspiration came from! She put this delicious concoction together for us when we bought our first berries this year and then we took it to a family get together. I decided it's much better with homemade meringues, but fine with store bought. Does that make sense? ;)
ReplyDeleteYou know, the Windsor boys went to Eton. Pip, Pip, Cherrio! Toodles.
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