Chocolate & Cinnamon Baked Alaska

Baked Alaska is what I would call an Oldie but a Goody!! This weekend I arrived home to my parents house and had this idea that I would love to attempt a Baked Alaska. I have actually never eaten or even seen a baked Alaska in reality and when I mentioned it to my Dad he seemed less than impressed. Baked Alaska was all the rage in the 70's, but I think my Dad's  perception of a Baked Alaska was very different to what I was setting out to create. My mission began......making a stunningly spectacular and undoubtedly delicious Baked Alaska! But perhaps more importantly proving my Dad wrong! This dessert comprises of an ice-cream centre, with a chocolate cake base, all topped with gooey meringue. I have to say, the different variations of this dessert you could create are endless, and I feel this might just be the first, in a series of Baked Alaska that E-D will do!

Chocolate and Cinnamon Baked Alaska

Ingredients
For the cake
500g ice-cream (of your choice; chocolate, vanilla, cookie dough etc.)
25g dark chocolate
65g butter
65g sugar
1 egg (beaten)
65g self-raising flour

For the meringue
2 egg whites
100g sugar

Method
1. For the ice-cream centre, line a small pudding or dome shaped bowl with cling film and fill 
    with  ice-cream of your choice. I used delicious HB Carte D'Or Cinnamon Caramel Waffle 
    Ice-Cream (a little pricey but very indulgent!). Place in the freezer in the bowl to set.
2. Meanwhile for the chocolate cake base, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and 
    creamy. Next add in the beaten egg whisk until well incorporated. Melt the chocolate in a 
    bowl set over a pan of boiling, once melted incorporate into the mixture. Finally fold in the 
    flour gently. Spoon the mixture into an 8inch tin with the base lined and sides greased. Place 
    in the oven at 180C and cook for 15-18 mins until the cake bounces back when pressed 
    firmly. Turn cake out on to wire rack to cool completely. 
3. For the meringue, whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl until the mixture forms soft peaks. 
    Whisk in half of the sugar until glossy and then fold in the remaining sugar. 

The Assembly
Remove the ice-cream from the freezer and place upside down on the chocolate cake base. Place the meringue into a piping bag (or alternatively spoon carefully) and begin to pipe soft peaks all over the ice-cream. Ensure to seal the ice-cream in, being careful not to leave a gap between the cake base and ice-cream. Finally, using a blow torch, gently heat the edges of the meringue until golden alternatively place the Baked Alaska into the oven at 220C for 3-4 minutes until the meringue is golden.

E-D's Notes
- I like to serve this dessert with a chocolate sauce of freshly whipped cream
- There are lots of great alterations you could make to this dessert, by using a different ice-
  cream in the centre or different cake base you can achieve a whole new dessert so get 
  creative!
- If you like raspberries, why not add a layer of raspberries between the ice-cream and 
  chocolate cake.