Deconstructed Baked Alaska
Mark O'Brien's ambitious deconstructed baked Alaska marries rosemary and rhubarb with white chocolate and ginger parfait, torched Italian meringue, and delicate rosemary sablé biscuits. Jimi Famurewa called it an absolute triumph, praising the toasty meringue and the sour rhubarb contrast. Jay Rayner loved the biscuits and meringue, noting the concept was sound but needed more freezing time. William Sitwell wanted bolder rosemary in the sablé. Marcus Wareing flagged the sweetness balance but praised the rhubarb-ginger-white chocolate combination. This enhanced recipe addresses all three critiques: overnight parfait freezing, doubled rosemary with low-temperature baking to preserve aromatics, and reduced meringue sugar with the tart poached rhubarb providing essential counterbalance.
- Time: 480 min
Source: Relaxed Recipes
Ingredients
- MAKE THE WHITE CHOCOLATE AND GINGER PARFAIT
- Melt the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering
- In a large bowl, whip the cold heavy cream to soft peaks — it should just hold i
- In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat over medium, stirring unt
- Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a stand mixer on medium-high speed until pale
- With the mixer running on medium speed, pour the hot sugar syrup in a slow, stea
- Gently fold the cooled melted white chocolate into the pâte à bombe until evenly
- Fold in the whipped cream in three additions — the first addition loosens the mi
- Pour into a loaf tin, individual dariole molds, or silicone molds lined with cli
- POACH THE RHUBARB
- Cut the rhubarb into batons about 7cm long and 1cm wide. Consistency of size mat
- In a wide, shallow saucepan, combine the sugar, water, lemon juice, ginger slice
- Lay the rhubarb batons in the simmering syrup in a single layer. Poach very gent
- Using a slotted spoon, carefully transfer the rhubarb to a plate. Reserve the po
- MAKE THE ROSEMARY SABLÉ BISCUITS
- Combine the flour, powdered sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the cold butter cubes
- Add the very finely minced rosemary and lemon zest. Toss to distribute evenly. T
- Add the egg yolk and mix until the dough just comes together. Do not overwork
- Shape into a flat disc, wrap in cling film, and refrigerate for at least 30 minu
- Preheat oven to 165°C / 325°F
- Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to approximately 5mm thickness.
- Bake for 14–18 minutes until the sablés are pale gold at the edges but still sli
- Cool completely on the tray. The finished sablés should be sandy, crumbly, and f
- MAKE THE ITALIAN MERINGUE
- Combine the sugar and water in a small, clean saucepan. Heat over medium, stirri
- When the syrup reaches about 110°C / 230°F, begin whisking the egg whites and cr
- With the mixer running on medium speed, pour the hot syrup in a thin, steady str
- Transfer immediately to a piping bag fitted with a large open star tip . Use as
- ASSEMBLE AND SERVE
- Remove the parfait from the freezer. If using a loaf tin, unmold and cut into ne
- Work quickly from this point — the parfait must stay frozen throughout assembly
- On each chilled plate, place a rosemary sablé biscuit slightly off-center. Set a
- Pipe Italian meringue over and around the parfait, covering it completely. The m
- Using a kitchen blowtorch, toast the meringue until golden brown with charred ti
- Arrange 2–3 batons of cold poached rhubarb alongside or leaning against the base
- Drizzle the reduced rhubarb poaching syrup around the plate for color and a hit
- Garnish with a small sprig of fresh rosemary and a few dice of candied ginger, i
- Serve immediately — the clock is ticking on the frozen parfait