Guest chef: Yasmin Newman’s s’mores Baked Alaska
The US’s favourite campfire treat — toasted marshmallow with chocolate and biscuits — gets a baked Alaska makeover.
I’ve savoured upmarket versions of the American campfire treat s’mores (an abbreviation of “some more”) - a combination of toasted marshmallow, biscuits and chocolate — across New York, but not one in baked Alaska form. I’m leading the charge. You’ll need a blowtorch to scorch the meringue.
S’mores baked alaska
150g dark chocolate (55% cocoa solids), finely chopped | 125g unsalted butter, chopped | 3 eggs | 110g (½ cup) caster sugar | 2 tablespoons almond meal | 2 tablespoons plain flour | ¼ teaspoon fine salt | 6 large scoops coffee ice cream
Butter cookies: 115g (¾ cup) plain flour | ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda | ½ teaspoon baking powder | 1½ tablespoons caster sugar | 55g (¼ cup) light brown sugar | 90g unsalted butter, softened
Marshmallow meringue: 8 egg whites | 440g (2 cups) caster sugar | 180g (½ cup) glucose syrup
Preheat oven to 200°C. Grease six 150ml ramekins and place on baking tray. Place chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, stir until melted and smooth; set aside to cool. Place eggs, sugar, almond meal, flour and salt in a bowl; whisk until well combined. Add chocolate mixture and stir until well combined; divide evenly among ramekins. Bake for 13 minutes or until tops are just cooked (cakes will be slightly gooey in centre). Cool completely; turn out, set aside.
To make cookies, sift flour, bicarb of soda and baking powder into a bowl; add sugars and butter. Using electric mixer, beat until mixture clumps together. Shape into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Reduce oven temp to 180°C. Roll out dough between two sheets of baking paper to a 3mm thick, 25cm square. Transfer to baking tray, remove top sheet of paper, bake for 8 minutes or until just golden and still soft. Remove from oven. While still warm, using an 8.5cm cookie cutter, cut out six rounds; cool completely on tray.
To make meringue, place ingredients in large heatproof bowl over saucepan of simmering water. Cook, whisking, for 2 minutes or until sugar dissolves and mixture is warm. Remove from heat; using electric mixer, whisk for 5 minutes or until stiff peaks form and mixture is cool. Just before serving, fill a piping bag fitted with a 9mm plain nozzle with meringue. Divide cookies among serving plates. If necessary, warm cakes for 20 seconds in microwave until gooey in centre; place on top of cookies. Place a scoop of ice cream on one cake. Working quickly, pipe meringue over ice cream, cake and base. Repeat with remaining cakes. Using a kitchen blowtorch, scorch meringue. Serve immediately. Makes 6
Yasmin Newman is a Sydney-based writer. Edited extract from The Desserts of New York by Yasmin Newman (Hardie Grant Books, $39.99).