Strawberries & Cream Eton Mess with Black Pepper Coulis

To make the meringue, preheat the oven to 100°C fan.

Whisk the egg whites and a pinch of salt until frothy.

While still whisking, add the caster sugar a spoonful at a time.

Continue to whisk until stiff and glossy.

Spread the meringue evenly about 1cm thick on a lined baking tray.

Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 mins until crisp through to the centre.

Leave to cool.

To make the black pepper fruit coulis, put everything except the pepper in a pan over a medium heat.

Once the berries begin to soften, crush with the back of a fork as they cook until broken down completely.

Strain through a sieve to remove the seeds, stir in the pepper, then place in the fridge.

To prepare the strawberries and cream, whip the double cream until soft peaks start to appear.

Set two strawberries aside and chop the rest quite small and gently fold them through the cream.

To assemble, share half of the strawberries and cream mixture between four dessert bowls.

Break the cooled meringue into 2cm pieces, and share half the pieces between the dessert bowls.

Pile on the remaining cream mixture, then the rest of the meringue.

To spice things up, remove the coulis from the fridge and drizzle into the bowls.

Quarter the remaining strawberries and use to top your desserts.

Finish with an extra mill of black pepper.