Recipes and Cooking Desserts & Baking Ice Cream Pro Chef Whips Up a Retro Baked Alaska Recipe 2.0 (1) 1 Review This classic dessert was featured in a 1960s edition of a Better Homes & Gardens cook book. By BHG Test Kitchen BHG Test Kitchen The Better Homes & Gardens Test Kitchen has been in continuous operation for nearly 100 years, developing and testing practical, reliable recipes that readers can enjoy at home. The Test Kitchen team includes culinary specialists, food stylists, registered and licensed nutritionists, and other experts with Bachelor of Science degrees in food science, food and nutrition, or culinary arts. Together, the team tests more than 2,500 recipes, produces more than 2,500 food images, and creates more than 1,000 food videos each year in the state-of-the-art test kitchen. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process and Katlyn Moncada Katlyn Moncada Instagram Katlyn Moncada is the associate food editor at BHG.com, sharing food news and tutorials on becoming better home cooks. She is a writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience in digital media, photography, and video production. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Published on October 28, 2022 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Prep Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 3 mins Bake Time: 4 mins Freeze Time: 4 hrs Total Time: 4 hrs Servings: 12 Jump to Nutrition Facts Jump to recipe Written in a 1960s edition of a Better Homes & Gardens cook book as "Baked Alaska—spectacular!", this is a classic dessert recipe that features ice cream encased in fluffy meringue. In this episode of Then & Now, a series highlighting 100 years of recipes for the magazine's anniversary, chef Alexis deBoschnek enthusiastically gets to work. "The title does say 'spectacular' but it is funny that it is all store-bought items," she says. "Which is in line with the '50s." She concludes the spectacular aspect must be about the final look. To make this riff on a Baked Alaska, purchased sponge cake slices cover ice cream (deBoschnek uses Neapolitan here). This process goes pretty quickly in order to keep the ice cream from melting. That goes in the freezer while you prepare a meringue that will be baked to achieve a nice golden brown exterior. Ingredients 12 oz loaf sponge cake 1 quart ice cream 5 large egg whites 2/3 cup sugar Directions Trim a ¾-inch layer sponge cake or layer cake 1 inch larger on all sides than a 1-quart brick of ice cream. Place on cutting board or cookie sheet. Make meringue by beating egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, beating to stiff peaks. Center the ice cream on the cake. (You can line with paper to help move onto plate later.) Spread meringue over ice cream and cake, sealing carefully to edges of cake. Sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake in extremely hot oven (500ºF) until golden, about 3 minutes. If desired, assemble ahead; freeze; then brown just before serving. Rate it Print Nutrition Facts (per serving) 224 Calories 6g Fat 39g Carbs 5g Protein Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label Nutrition Facts Servings Per Recipe 12 Calories 223.7 % Daily Value * Total Fat 5.6g 7% Saturated Fat 3.2g 16% Cholesterol 48.3mg 16% Sodium 234.8mg 10% Total Carbohydrate 38.9g 14% Dietary Fiber 0.4g 2% Total Sugars 31g Protein 4.6g Vitamin D 0.1mcg 1% Vitamin C 0.3mg 1% Calcium 77.2mg 6% Iron 0.8mg 5% Potassium 138.3mg 3% Vitamin D 6.1IU Alanine 0.2g Arginine 0.2g Ash 0.8g Aspartic acid 0.4g Caffeine 0mg Carotene, alpha 0.3mcg Choline, total 22.1mg Copper, Cu 0mg Cystine 0.1g Energy 936.2kJ Fluoride, F 6.8mcg Folate, total 16.1mcg Glutamic acid 0.9g Glycine 0.1g Histidine 0.1g Isoleucine 0.2g Leucine 0.4g Lysine 0.3g Methionine 0.1g Magnesium, Mg 10.8mg Manganese, Mn 0.1mg Niacin 0.6mg Phosphorus, P 87.1mg Pantothenic acid 0.4mg Phenylalanine 0.2g Proline 0.3g Retinol 63.5mcg Selenium, Se 6.2mcg Serine 0.3g Theobromine 0mg Threonine 0.2g Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) 0.2mg Tryptophan 0.1g Tyrosine 0.2g Valine 0.3g Vitamin A, IU 228.9IU Vitamin A, RAE 64.4mcg Vitamin B-12 0.3mcg Vitamin B-6 0mg Vitamin K (phylloquinone) 0.2mcg Water 47.3g Zinc, Zn 0.5mg *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.