Rhubarb Eton Mess
A pretty, family-friendly dessert, and the perfect way to take advantage of the rhubarb the Canadian spring has to offer. Serve in elegant individual glasses, or in a big trifle dish, family style. The result is luscious whipped cream studded with bits of meringue crowned with softly-sweet, pink rhubarb - a new take on the British dessert, Eton Mess.
- Prep: 15 min
- Cooking: 10 min
- Refrigeration: 30 min
Ingredients
- 2 oranges
- 4 stalks rhubarb cut into 1 inch (2.5 cm) pieces (2 cups/500 mL)
- 1/4 cup (60 mL) liquid honey
- 8 meringue ‘cookies’ each approximately 3-1/2-inches (8 cm) wide x 1/2-inch (1 cm) thick
- 2 cups (500 mL) 35% whipping cream
- 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla
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Preparation
Grate zest from oranges. Squeeze juice and measure 1/2 cup (125 mL), adding water, if necessary to make enough.
In a small saucepan, combine rhubarb, orange zest, juice and honey; bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir until honey dissolves. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer gently for about 8 minutes or until rhubarb is very soft (reduce heat, if necessary, to avoid boiling). Remove from heat and let cool completely.
Just before serving, break meringues into bite-sized pieces and place in a large bowl. In a separate, chilled bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form; fold into broken meringue bits with vanilla. Add half of the cooled poached rhubarb to the cream mixture and stir gently until combined.
To serve, spoon mixture in a large serving bowl and top with remaining rhubarb and serve ‘family style’ at the table. Alternatively, spoon cream mixture into small serving dishes and top with remaining poached rhubarb. Serve immediately.
Tips
Store-bought meringue cookies, or nests, can be replaced by leftover, broken homemade meringue or pavlova shells, etc. The yield should be 3 cups (750 ml) broken meringue.
The meringue adds lots of sweetness to the dessert, but feel free to add more honey during the poaching stage if the rhubarb is particularly tart.
If fresh rhubarb isn’t available, you can use frozen rhubarb. Let it thaw in a colander to drain off excess liquid and reduce poaching time to about 4 minutes.
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Nutritional information
Per serving| Energy: | 304 Calories |
| Protein: | 3 g |
| Carbohydrate: | 29 g |
| Fat: | 21 g |
| Fibre: | 0.9 g |
| Sodium: | 63 mg |
Top 5 Nutrients
| (% DV*) | |
|---|---|
| Calcium: | 6 % / 71 mg |
| Vitamin A: | 23 % |
| Vitamin C: | 22 % |
| Vitamin D: | 10 % |
| Vitamin E: | 10 % |
