Baked Alaska recipe. This holiday season, take a break from the traditional Yule Log and Gingerbread recipes with a dessert that will guarantee a white Christmas for you and yours.
Recipe courtesy of Millennium Alaskan Hotel Anchorage
Ingredients
- CAKE: Nonstick vegetable oil spray
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup sifted cake flour (sifted, then measured)
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted, cooled
- FILLING: 2 quarts ice cream, softened (flavor of your choice)
- 1 quart sorbet, softened (flavor of your choice)
- MERINGUE: 6 large egg whites
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preparation
- 1 FOR CAKE: Preheat oven to 325°F. Spray 9-inch-diameter springform pan with nonstick spray.
- 2 Whisk eggs, sugar, and vanilla in large metal bowl to blend. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bowl to touch water); whisk constantly just until mixture is warm, about 2 minutes. Remove bowl from over water.
- 3 Using electric mixer, beat mixture until very thick and ribbons form when beaters are lifted, about 7 minutes.
- 4 Add flour in 3 additions, gently folding just to combine after each.
- 5 Fold in poppy seeds, then quickly fold in butter in 2 additions (do not overfold). Pour batter into prepared pan.
- 6 Bake cake until top is golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 28 minutes. Cool completely in pan on rack. Remove pan sides.
- 7 FOR FILLING: Line 4-quart 10-inch-diameter bowl with plastic wrap, leaving 8-inch overhang.
- 8 Spread sorbet in even layer over bottom (not sides) of bowl.
- 9 Spread ice cream over sorbet.
- 10 Place cake atop ice cream, pressing slightly to compact. Cover with plastic wrap overhang; freeze at least 4 hours or overnight.
- 11 FOR MERINGUE: Using electric mixer, beat egg whites in large bowl until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time; beat until thick and glossy. Beat in vanilla.
- 12 Unfold plastic wrap from over cake at top of bowl. Invert dessert onto 9-inch-diameter tart pan bottom; remove plastic wrap. Working quickly, spread meringue over dessert, swirling to form peaks and covering completely.
- 13 Freeze at least 30 minutes. (Can be made 1 day ahead; keep frozen.)
- 14 Preheat oven to 500°F. Place dessert on its tart pan bottom on heavy large baking sheet. Bake just until meringue is light golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer to platter. Serve immediately.
