Eton Mess

Most people I know are not big meringue fans. Sure, they'll eat it on Lemon Meringue Pie but that's really about it. And, to tell the truth, I'm no exception. The dry texture and pure sweetness of a meringue "cookie" is too much. However, it's the intense sweetness and crunchy texture that makes meringue such a great component in this dessert!

Eton Mess is named after a posh British school where it was invented. It consists of strawberries, cream, and meringue pieces. Mine isn't traditional because it is A) not mixed into a "mess" for aesthetic purposes and B) uses chocolate meringue bits instead of the traditional plain vanilla. The best part is that it takes very little time to prepare and all of the components can be made in advance and assembled at the last minute (to keep the meringue pieces crunchy)

There are lots of recipes around the interwebs for both meringue cookies and Eton Mess. Here are just a couple links:

http://www.allrecipes.com/HowTo/Perfect-Meringues/Detail.aspx

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/eton-mess-recipe/index.html