Honeycomb and Tahini Chocolate Baked Alaska + 2018

steps

honeycomb:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. It doesn’t need to sit neatly in the pan, since the honeycomb will weigh it down later.

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, add sugar and give it a shake so it lays flat in the pan. Add corn syrup, honey, and water, so all of the sugar has been moistened, but do not stir. Turn the heat to medium high, and watch closely as the sugar starts to dissolve and the ingredients start to meld together.

Cook the mixture to 300ºF, which should take about 5–10 minutes depending on the strength of your stove, then remove the pan from the heat. Whisk in the baking soda for about 5 seconds, and once it has stopped foaming up, immediately pour the mixture onto the parchment paper. Let cool for 1 hour until hardened, then whack the honeycomb with a knife to break into pieces.

Immediately store any uneaten honeycomb in an airtight container, otherwise it will absorb moisture from the air and soften.

honeycomb ice cream:
In a medium saucepan, whisk the cream, milk and sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks.

Heat the cream mixture over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and the cream is just barely simmering. Ladle a bit of the hot cream into the egg yolks and whisk to temper the yolks.

Add the eggs to the saucepan pan and cook the mixture while stirring constantly until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Whisk in the salt and vanilla extract.

Transfer the mixture to a container and chill completely, at least 4 hours or overnight.

Just before churning the ice cream, break up the honeycomb candy into rough crumbs. Line a round bowl (6-8″ in diameter) with plastic wrap and set aside.

Churn the ice cream in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. Just before the ice cream is done churning add about 1/2 to 3/4 of the honeycomb crumbs. (Save the rest in an airtight container for snacking!)

Transfer the mixture to your prepared bowl. Flatten out the top and cover with another layer of plastic wrap. Place in freezer.

tahini chocolate cake:
Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and line the bottom of an 8-inch cake pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, vanilla, oil and tahini. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Whisk in the boiling water.

Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, approximately 25 minutes.

Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then remove to a rack to cool completely.

meringue:
Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until eggs become frothy

Add in sugar and beat on high until the the egg whites form strong peaks.

assembly:
Once the ice cream is churned, line a 8″ (or larger) bowl with plastic wrap. Ensure that all sides are covered. Spoon the ice cream into the bowl and level out. cover the top with plastic wrap and place in the freeze for 4 hours or overnight.

Meanwhile, bake the Tahini Chocolate Cake as directed and let cool completely.

Once the ice cream is frozen, remove from freezer, remove the plastic wrap on top (leave the plastic wrap lining the bowl) and gently press the cake on top of the ice cream. Place in freezer for another 1-2 hours.

While ice cream is re-freezing, mix your meringue as instructed above. Remove ice cream and cake from freezer (again!) and start to spread your meringue over the entire ice cream-cake structure! Use your fingers to make large peaks if desired (I find that the spatula never makes them large enough for my liking)!

If you are serving immediately, use a torch to brown your meringue! Let sit for a few minutes to allow the cake the thaw and then serve!

If making ahead, you can freeze the Baked Alaska again following the meringue. When you wish to serve, remove from freezer, torch the meringue, slice and enjoy!