Ingredients
Method
- Preheat oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / Gas 4. Grease and line a 20cm sandwich tin. Whisk eggs and sugar 5–6 minutes until very pale, thick, and tripled. Sift flour over surface — add hot water and vanilla. Fold gently until just incorporated. Bake 18–20 minutes. Cool completely.
- Line a 1 litre pudding basin with cling film. Fill with slightly softened ice cream — press firmly. Fold cling film over to seal. Freeze 4 hours minimum — overnight ideal.
- Place sponge on a lined baking sheet. Invert frozen ice cream dome centrally onto the sponge. Return to freezer.
- Whisk egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl over barely simmering water 5–6 minutes until sugar dissolved and warm. Remove from heat. Add vanilla. Whisk on high speed 5–6 minutes until very thick, very glossy, and cool.
- Cover entire assembly with Swiss meringue — every millimetre. Create peaks and swirls. Return to freezer 30 minutes minimum.
- Preheat oven to 220°C / 200°C fan / Gas 7. Bake 5–6 minutes until golden. Watch constantly from 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
Notes
Swiss meringue gives better stability and gloss than standard meringue for this recipe.
Ice cream dome must be completely solid before meringue goes on — 4 hours minimum, overnight ideal.
Cover every millimetre of ice cream and sponge — any gap allows heat to reach the ice cream.
Return to freezer after applying meringue — gives extra buffer and better visual result.
Bake at maximum temperature for minimum time and watch every second from 5 minutes.
The assembled uncooked Alaska keeps in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.
