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All the joy of Eton mess, but dressed up as a crowd-pleasing cake. Coconut crumb, juicy berries, crisp meringue, and a cloud of whipped ricotta cream—simple to stack, slice, and devour.
It’s summer-celebration friendly, make-ahead flexible, and just messy enough to be charming.
I know, I know, spring doesn’t officially start until Sunday, but I just could not help myself. Gimme all the color please! Let’s recap: we started with this KILLER Shawarma Chicken Salad, then moved on to these pretty Blueberry Muffin Yogurt Bowls, killed Wednesday with this Green Goddess Zucchini Pasta and now we are ending on a major high note with this pretty, berry filled, Coconut Eton Mess Cake!!
So yeah, Bring-On-Spring, I am SOO ready!
WATCH HOW-TO VIDEO HERE:
Also, I’m pretty excited for Easter as well! I kind of love Easter. It’s just fun. Fun colors, fun food and then ok, I love the idea that with Easter comes lots and lots of chocolate. 🙂 Oddly, there is zero chocolate in this cake, but it’s still cool, cause there is coconut, whipped ricotta and all this delicious fresh fruit. Lovin it.
I’m going to attempt to keep things short today. I’m getting my wisdom teeth pulled in the morning and well, I’m basically trying to get as much done before then as possible. And yes, I am totally having a feast for dinner tonight in fear of the “soft foods” diet.
UGH.
Honest truth? I’m not sure how long the whole “soft foods only” thing will last with me. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I will totally be eating all the ice cream my stomach will allow, but I just can’t go very long without REAL food…aka crunchy tacos, granola, big ass salads and um basically, foods that need chewing. This should be interesting…
But anyway, this COCONUT ETON MESS CAKE!!
Isn’t it pretty? And fun?!? So perfect for Easter, it just kind of screams – SPRING! Ok and even summer too, I’m most definitely excited for that! Oh, and in case you were wondering…it’s still snowing here.
So if you’ve never heard of Eton Mess, it’s a traditional English dessert, usually made in a dish, with fresh fruit, smashed pieces of meringue, and cream. Super simple, but super delish. There are a ton of different fruit combos that can be used, but strawberries and bananas are most traditional… clearly I didn’t go completely traditional.
I took the idea of fresh fruit with smashed meringue and cream and basically put it all into a cake (not a new idea, but so much more fun!). BUT not just any cake, nope, a vanilla coconut cake. It’s EVERYTHING. I know at first glance you might think this cake looks difficult make, but it’s actually the complete opposite. An Eton Mess (Cake), is well, messy… so you really can’t go wrong. Just add fruit, cream and smashed meringue and inevitably your cake will be pretty and perfect!
As I said, the cake itself is a yummy and crazy moist vanilla coconut cake. The cake portion alone is awesome and perfectly sweet, so I didn’t want to go too crazy with the toppings. I went with a whipped ricotta cream and some fresh strawberries, raspberries and passion fruit. I also had a few blood oranges on hand so I added some slices of those in as well. You can really go with any of your favorite fruit combos, all berries would be delicious! Once you have your cream + fruit, just crumble on some homemade or store-bought meringue.
See, simple?!?
And then decorate with edible flowers or just add more fruit. Best part? Not only is this cake delicious, but it doubles as the perfect center piece for Easter Brunch or Easter Dinner.
COOL! 🙂
FAQ:
Can I make the cake the day before?
Yes—bake the cake and keep it wrapped and chilled. Assemble with cream, berries, and meringue closer to serving so the crunch holds.
Will store-bought meringues work?
Absolutely; they’re perfect here. They’re often sweeter, so you may want to dial back sugar in the berries or cream slightly.
How do I keep the meringue crunchy?
Drain macerated berries well and layer meringue toward the top just before serving. Chill briefly to set the cream, then slice and serve.
Can I use a different cream?
Yes—coconut whipped cream or mascarpone-whipped cream both work.
Coconut Eton Mess Cake with Whipped Ricotta Cream.
Ingredients
Coconut Cake
- 3 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/4 cups canola oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup honey
- 3 whole eggs + 3 egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups full-fat canned coconut milk
- zest of 1 lemon
- 6-8 homemade or store-bought meringues
- edible flowers, for decorating (optional)
Whipped Ricotta Cream
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 16 ounce whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
To assemble the Cake
- 1 cup fresh strawberries, divided
- 2 cups fresh raspberries, divided
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1-2 blood oranges
- 2 passion fruits
- 6-8 homemade or store-bought meringues
- edible flowers, for decorating (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 8-inch (or 9 inch) round cake pans, or line with parchment paper, then butter/spray with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand held mixer) beat together the canola oil, sugar, honey, eggs + egg yolks and vanilla until smooth. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients with the mixer on low until there are no longer any clumps of flour. Add the coconut milk and mix until combined. Batter should be pourable, but not super thin. Stir in the lemon zest.
- Pour the batter among the 3 cake pans and bake 25-30 minutes, until the tops are just set and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool five minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the pan. Grab 3 large flat plates, line them with wax or parchment paper and invert the cakes onto the paper lined plates. Cover and let the cakes cool completely before assembling.
Whipped Ricotta Cream
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand held mixer) fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add the ricotta and heavy cream, continue to whip until the the ricotta is smooth and the cream has fluffed, about 6-8 minutes. Add the honey + vanilla and whip until combined. Keep the cream covered in the fridge until ready to assemble.
Assemble the Cake
- In a bowl, mash together 1/2 cup chopped strawberry and 1/2 cup raspberries until you have a loose sauce.
- Place one cake layer on a serving plate or cake stand and drizzle lightly with honey. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta cream over the cake and then swirl 1/3 over the mashed berries into the cream. Crumble 2-3 meringues over top. Add a handful of fresh chopped strawberries, raspberries, orange slices and passion fruit. Repeat with the remaining 2 cake layers. Be careful not to over fill your layers with fruit or the cake will be hard to slice.
- If desired, decorate the cake with edible flowers.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Eton mess is one of my all time favourite recipes, it’s light and super easy to make. The idea of making a cake from it is inspired!
Thank you!!
This is lovely, just lovely!
Thanks Kathy!
cookbook! cookbook! cookbook!
🙂
Gorgeous cake and perfect for spring!! The wisdom teeth pulling – over in a blink! Hope all goes well….you’ll be eating regular food in no time!
Thank you so much! Have a great weekend! 🙂
Beautiful so pretty x
Thanks Aimmee!
Wow, what a perfect way to welcome spring Tieghan! This cake is gorgeous and absolutely sounds delicious! Good luck with your wisdom teeth. I’d stick to ice cream and water ice the first day, but then I’d go all in for the cake! Have a great weekend and thanks for sharing this beauty!
Thank you so much, Mary Ann! Have a great weekend! 🙂
Love the edible flowers, such a nice touch!
Omg wisdom teeth though…I think the biggest thing for me was that I got so tired of eating sweet things since most readily available soft foods are sweet…I was in so much distress that my mom made me puréed roasted cauliflower soup and we call it Wisdom Tooth Soup to this day!
haha! Oh no!! Hoping it’s not as bad as I am thinking!
Have a great weekend! 🙂
This is so beautiful! I love all the recipes you put up this week and plan on making the green goddess pasta this weekend. I remember a great meal my dad made for me after I got my wisdom teeth pulled: His famous tomato soup, soft mashed potatoes, and a frozen fruit smoothie 🙂 really not bad at all.
YUM!! That sounds amazing!! I am sure I will figure it out!
Have a great weekend! 🙂 Thanks!!
It looks beyond gorgeous and delicious!!!
http://bloglairdutemps.blogspot.pt/
Thank you so much! Have a great weekend! 🙂
Oh Tieghan this is beyond beautiful! I didn’t think Eton Mess needed much improving but it pales into insignificance next to this cake! Good luck with your wisdom teeth – hopefully you’ll be back on solid food very soon 🙂
Thank you so much, Sasha!! Have a great weekend! 🙂
This cake, omg YES!!!! It’s like you wrapped Spring into an edible art piece!!! I hope your teeth pulling goes well so you don’t have to be on soft foods too long.
Thanks Tori!! Have a great weekend! 🙂
This cake is gorgeous!
The wisdom tooth thing really depends! I was acared to death about pulling my own, because everyone and their dog told me it would be super painful, will definitely require stitches and take a million years to heal. I was out of the dentist’s room in 10 minutes, and 9.5 of those were waiting for the anesthetic to take hold. I had to chew on the other side for a while, but it healed nicely in no time, really.
Oh I hope that is the case for me!! Thank you!! Have a great weekend! 🙂
I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen such a beautiful cake! Love the flowers and fruits together. Also, whipped ricotta is such a good frosting – we made it for a carrot cake once!
Thank you! Have a great weekend! 🙂
this looks amazing! have you seen sweet style ca’s eton mess cake? both of your cakes scream freshness and spring!
Hmm, no I have never seen that cake?!?
Thank you! Have a great weekend! 🙂
Girl you always kill it with all your posts but this one is STUNNING. Totally imagining this as the dessert for a late spring dinner<33
PS – good luck on the wisdom teeth! Don't get freaked out if you look like a chipmunk either, I have been there LOL
Awee!! Thank you so much!! Means a lot!
Have a great weekend! 🙂