Making a Baked Alaska is slightly complex. To make it as easy as possible, I suggest breaking the work up over several days — that way, you can make sure everything is as chilled or frozen as it needs to be.
On the first day, you can make the custard for the ice cream, and bake the ladyfingers (you could also choose to do this on the second day, if you can fully cool the ladyfingers before churning the ice cream). On the second day, churn the ice cream, dunk the ladyfingers into coffee-kahlua, layer the ice cream & ladyfingers into a medium-size bowl, and place the bowl into the freezer. On the third day, make the meringue, pipe it onto the released ice cream/ladyfinger dome, and toast it in the oven.
This recipe takes a lot of eggs. On the plus side, you’ll use yolks in the ice cream & then need the whites later — one for the ladyfingers, and five for the meringue.
Ingredients
Kahlua ice cream (recipe from Mandy Jackson)
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
2/3 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
3 tablespoons Kahlua
6 large egg yolks (reserve 1 white for the ladyfingers and 5 whites for the meringue)
Ladyfingers (recipe from Gemma’s Bigger Bolder Baking)
3 large eggs & 1 egg white, room temperature, yolks and whites divided
1/2 cup sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
142g all-purpose flour
Coffee-Kahlua mix
A strongly brewed cup of coffee
3 Tbsp Kahlua
Meringue
5 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
Day 1: Make the Kahlua ice cream
Combine everything but eggs in a heavy-bottomed pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
Beat egg yolks in a medium bowl. Whisking constantly, slowly drizzle in 1 cup of the heated mixture.
Slowly whisk the egg yolk mix into the pot. Continue to heat over medium-low, stirring constantly until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. It should take about five minutes.
Remove the mix from heat and strain it through a sieve into a bowl. Cover with saran wrap (press the wrap into the custard so it doesn’t form a skin) and refrigerate until completely chilled (at least four hours, or overnight). Meanwhile: skip ahead and make the ladyfingers.
(You’ll churn the ice cream on day 2!)
& make the ladyfingers
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Separate the eggs, placing the yolks in a large bowl and the whites in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.
Using a whisk, whip the egg yolks with 1/4 cup sugar, until pale and fluffy, then beat in the vanilla. Set aside.
Whip the egg whites on medium-high speed. Once they’re foamy, begin slowly adding 1/4 cup of sugar while the stand mixer is going. Continue to whip until the whites hold stiff peaks.
Using a spatula, gently fold the whites and yolks together.
Sift in the flour.
Continue to gently fold until all of the flour is incorporated.
Fill a large piping bag with the batter and pipe the batter in 3 1/2 inch long lines about 1 inch apart.
Bake for 14 to 15 minutes, or until just beginning to turn golden around the edges.
Cool on wire racks. Place in tupperware until the ice cream is churned.
(You’ll notice I’m brushing the coffee-Kahlua on in this pic. Wrong move! Dip the biscuits, like a regular tiramisu.)
Day 2: Churn the ice cream, construct the ice cream / ladyfinger dome
Churn the ice cream according to the ice cream maker’s directions.
Make a strong cup of coffee or a double espresso. Place into a shallow bowl. Add 3 Tbsp of Kahlua and mix.
Line a medium-sized bowl (I used one about 9” in diameter or so) with plastic wrap. The plastic wrap should be as smooth as you can reasonably get it, it should be overlapping (no bare spots) and it should overhang the bowl.
Place a few dollops of churned ice cream in the bottom of the bowl.
Dip a handful of ladyfingers cookie by cookie into the coffee-Kahlua mixture, dunking the top and bottom, and place on top of the ice cream.
Repeat, alternating ice cream and cookies, til you’re out of ice cream and cookies, making sure to retain enough ladyfingers to press five or six into the ice cream at the end — so they’ll be on the bottom of the Alaska when you invert it.
Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight. If you have a chest freezer, plunk it in there — it’ll freeze harder.
Day 3: make the meringue, toast the Alaska
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Place the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl.
Set the bowl over a saucepan filled with two inches of simmering water. Do not let it touch the water.
Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved. (This will take about 5 minutes)
Transfer the mixing bowl to an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Add the vanilla.
Beat on high speed until you get stiff glossy peaks.
Scoop the meringue into a piping bag fitted with a star tip.
Take the Alaska out of the freezer. Overturn it onto a baking sheet. You may need to heat up clean dishcloths or tea towels in hot water and place them onto the overturned Alaska bowl to coax it out. When it’s out, peel off the plastic wrap.
Pipe the meringue onto the ice cream dome, switching between rosettes, circles, etc. Make sure to cover all of the ice cream as generously as possible with meringue.
When the oven’s preheated, pop the Alaska in for four or five minutes, until the meringue toasts.
SLICE & ENJOY!!
Will store well enough in the freezer — the meringue gets a bit sticky but it’s still delicious.
