Neat-and-tidy Eton mess with blackberries & stem ginger whipped cream

From Fast, Fresh and Easy Food.

There are times when I feel that the kitchen is my haven and wild horses could not drag me away from it. It is then that I make these white, crispy cradles from scratch. At other times (which, if you are like me, seem to occur far to often these days), then I am dashing around the kitchen to pull off a pudding in 20 minutes flat. So I have given the choice of both to alternate at your will. And the fruit and cream spiked with peppery ginger is almost good enough to eat on its own!

INGREDIENTS

1 stem ginger ball (this comes in syrup

and can be found in the baking section of the supermarket)

½ vanilla pod (or a couple of drops of vanilla extract)

300ml whipping or double cream

(keep it in the fridge until you need it so it whips up more easily)

50g icing sugar

12 meringue nests (shop-bought, or for homemade see page 225)

300g blackberries

50g white or dark chocolate, to drizzle (optional)

A few fresh mint leaves, to serve

METHOD

If you are using shop-bought meringues then carry straight on with the recipe. If you are going to make the merinuges from scratch then turn over the page for the recipe and whilst they are cooking turn back to this page to make the filling.

Finely chop the stem ginger ball and then split the piece of vanilla pod open and remove the seeds. Set both aside.

Pour the cream into a large bowl and sift in the icing sugar. Whip it up until it just begins to go thick. A hand held or freestanding electric whisk or a food mixer makes light work of this, but you can do this with a hand whisk and plenty of elbow grease.

Gently stir the ginger and vanilla seeds (or extract, if using) through with as few stirs as possible.

Arrange six of the meringues on a large serving platter or cake stand and, using half the cream, put a blob on each one. Arrange the blackberries on the cream, and then use the rest of the cream up on top.

Sit the remaining meringues on top, pretty side up.

For something really fancy, melt the white or dark chocolate in a small bowl either in 30-second blasts in a microwave or set over a small pan of simmering water. Use a small spoon or fork to drizzle it back and forth across the meringue stacks. Rip over some mint leaves and serve.