Quadruple chocolate baked alaska flambe
Triple Chocolate Brownie and creamy White Chocolate, Pomegranate and Macadamia Ice Cream wrapped up in a billowy meringue then set on fire to create a caramelized flavour that no blow torch can mimic!
Although there’s a bit of process involved in making this show stopper, Farro has everything you need to make the ‘cooking’ of this dish super simple.
Secret Kiwi Kitchens Triple Fudge Brownie Mix creates a crunchy, decadent, gooey and full of chocolate brownie that takes less than 5 minutes in one bowl from start to oven! Fear not the packet mix. This is as good as the best brownies we’ve tasted. You don’t want the brownie to be too gooey for this dish so cook for 25 minutes then let cool in the pan. It will continue cooking for longer as the pan holds heat for longer than a baking dish.
We love Duck Island Ice Cream. There’s just so much choice! We chose the white chocolate, pomegranate macadamia with some additional fresh raspberries. The Ice cream choice is yours!
Little Beauty Freeze Dried Boysenberries are a taste and crunch sensation! With all the flavour of a fresh boysenberry they add a glorious finishing crunch.
And Pink Peppercorns!! O M G. So good. Delicate, thin skinned and spicy they too add the most lovely crunch and excite the taste buds with their fruity heat. Add more or less depending on your love of spice! As they are so delicate there's no need to use a pepper grinder. I like the explosion of the full peppercorn so I just rub them between my fingers, but if you like you can crush them with the handle of a knife or use a mortar and pestle.
You do need to be careful with the flames! So if this feels a little bit scary then leave this step out. But I’d encourage you to give it a go! Why not! Life’s for living!
THE BROWNIE
1 pkt Secret Kiwi Kitchen Triple Fudge Brownie Mix
4 eggs
170g butter, melted
1 T vanilla essence
1 T butter and 1 T cocoa to prepare the pan.
ICECREAM
1 470g punnet Duck Island White Chocolate, Pomegranate Macadamia ice cream
½ punnet fresh raspberries
MERINGUE
3 egg whites
150 g caster sugar
Pinch salt
1 T vanilla essence
TO FLAMBE
4 T spirit of your choice. I used Waiheke Distillery Co. Red Ruby Gin.
TO SERVE
Little Beauty dried Boysenberries
Pomegranate jewels
Pink peppercorns
TO MAKE THE BROWNIE
Liberally butter your Legacy Pan then dust with sieved cocoa powder. Heat oven to 180 Celsius.
To make the brownie, beat eggs till pale and ribbony, add the cooled melted butter and vanilla essence.
Sprinkle in the brownie mix and beat till well combined.
Pour batter into your prepared Ironclad Pan, even out the top and bake for 25 minutes.
Let cool, covered overnight.
TO ASSEMBLE
Take a 3 cup container of your choice. I used my grandson’s sand castle bucket! You could use a small bowl or a Jimbo's container! It will never go in the oven so you can use plastic.
Line the container of your choice with tin foil and spray lightly with oil.
Cut the brownie in half then slice one half into 9 segments. You’ll use 7 to line the vessel!
Press a slice of brownie, pointy end up, onto the tin foil. Press the sticky bottom of the brownie to the tin foil, rather than the crisp top. Press quite firmly so it sticks to the tinfoil.
Place the second piece of brownie, pointy side down, next to the first slice and continue till you have lined the inside.
Pack extra brownie into the bottom of the vessel.
Layer the ice cream into the brownie lined container with fresh raspberries and fill right to the top.
Take a small plate the same size as the top of the container and cut around the brownie to create the lid.
Press the brownie lid on top of the ice cream and press down well against the edges of the brownie lining to ensure no ice cream can escape! We will now call this the Alaska!
Freeze for at least 5 hours or overnight in a very cold freezer. I turned up the cool factor in our freezer to high.
When really frozen hard. Remove the Alaska from the fridge. Carefully trim off the top off the frozen brownie so it will sit flat in your Legacy Pan.
Slide a sharp knife around the edge of the tinfoil to loosen. Remove tinfoil.
Return Alaska to the freezer till ready to anoint with meringue.
Heat oven to 220 Celsius.
To make the meringue, whip egg whites till soft then slowly add sugar 1 T at a time. Web all the sugar is incorporated, whip on high speed for 3 minutes until it holds really glossy, stiff peaks., If you rub a little between your fingers you should feel no sugar granules.
Fold in the vanilla essence.
And now you will work at speed!
Place 4 T meringue in a blob in the centre of your cold and lightly buttered Legacy pan.
Nestle the frozen Alaska on top of this and press down gently so it sticks to the pan.
Swiftly, using a large spatula, evenly cover the Alaska in meringue. Then using a fork or smaller spatula create decorative swoops and swirls. Get your creativity on!
Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown all over.
TO FLAMBé
In the last minute of baking the Alaska, heat the spirit of your choice in a small saucepan over a low heat until it is just about to boil. Don’t boil it! This will burn off the alcohol that you need to create flame.
Remove Alaska from the oven and send it straight to your serving table.
Make sure your loved ones are gathered to witness the beauty that is about to unfold.
With a BBQ lighter or long match, light the boiling spirit at the table and pour over the top of the Bomb Alaska.
Behold the Flames! The drama!
Scatter with pomegranate jewels, crushed boysenberries and pink peppercorns.
Slice with a hot wet sharp knife and serve immediately! And have a lovely Valentine's Day.
*** We served and flambe’d this dish outside so that no curtains caught on fire. If serving inside ensure there is nothing flammable too close. The flames can leap rather high!