Baked Alaska

This is a very impressive dessert and it is easier than you think.  The secret is to make
sure your ice cream is frozen as firm as possible, hard frozen if you will, and you have
everything ready to go.......

1 8" round cake (chocolate or white cake, but you can do whatever you like)
1 half gallon round of your favorite ice cream
You can also use a pie shell, pre-baked.

MERINGUE
5 room temperature egg whites
1/2 tsp. of cream of tartar (optional, but makes good meringue)
2/3 cup sugar

Cut the ice cream carton in half, with the ice cream in it of course, with a very sharp knife
and place the ice cream on top of the cake base.   At this point, trim the cake base so that
it sticks out from the ice cream approximately 3/4". *You can keep layering round slices of
ice cream on top trimming it so that it will resemble an igloo when finished.  Cover with
plastic wrap and place in the freezer so that the ice cream hardens again or until you are
ready to serve. 

When you are ready to serve your amazing dessert, pre-heat the oven to 450 and start your
meringue.   Beat the egg whites until semi-stiff.  Gradually add the sugar and cream of tartar,
a couple of tablespoonsful at a time, and continue to beat until the meringue forms stiff peaks
and turns glossy.  

Remove the "igloo" from the freezer and with a spatula, spread the meringue over it until the
cake and the ice cream are completely covered.  Place on a cookie sheet and bake for about
3 minutes to brown the meringue.   Serve immediately on a chilled serving dish.

*Some things we do...

We usually mold the ice cream in a medium sized mixing bowl lined with Saran Wrap by letting
the ice cream soften a bit and then putting it in the bowl so that when it's hardened and removed,
it already looks like an igloo.

If we are feeling very festive, we sprinkle shaved chocolate, slivered almonds, or shredded
coconut on top of the meringue before we bake it.

You can also spread apricot, raspberry, or cherry jam on the cake before you place the ice cream
on top of it.  This is very yummy and a nice surprise inside the igloo.

Sometimes we just bake a batch of brownies in an 8" round pan and go from there.  This makes
for a very rich Baked Alaska.

Just remember... Baked Alaska is basically a cake type base with an ice cream top covered with
meringue.  Use your imagination and you will can impress anyone with your Baked Alaska creation. 
We are always ready for new ideas to make our Baked Alaska different, so if you would care to share
your creations with us, please e-mail us.

Questions? Just eMail us.