serves 6
In these days of Brexits and Grexits, I wanted to pay homage to a mess! Taking a cue from the classic English dessert Eton Mess, and always on the lookout for quick crowd-pleasers that look impressive, I created—without much trouble, I should add—my own Greek mess, a mélange of broken meringues, Greek spoon sweets, toasted almonds, and tangy Greek yogurt whipped cream. Don’t worry about who will clean this mess up … you’ll lick the bowls clean for sure!
2 cups (480 ml) chilled heavy cream
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
½ teaspoon pure almond or vanilla extract
1 cup (240 ml) Greek yogurt
1½ cups (375 ml) Greek vyssino (sour cherry) spoon sweet (see Note, see here)
6 meringue rounds (see here), about 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter, broken up by hand into small chunks
⅔ cup (95 g) blanched almonds, toasted
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the heavy cream on medium-high speed until it begins to stiffen. Add the sugar and almond or vanilla extract and whip until the cream holds stiff peaks. Using a spatula, fold the yogurt into the cream.
Assemble the mess: Place a dollop of the cream-yogurt mixture in each of six glass goblets or dessert bowls. Drizzle 1 teaspoon of the sour cherry spoon sweet and its syrup on top. Add a few pieces of broken meringue, then a few toasted almonds, and a little more of the sour cherries and their syrup. Continue layering the meringues, cream mixture, sour cherries, and almonds, finishing with a drizzling of the sour cherry syrup and a sprinkling of the toasted almonds. Serve immediately.
