Christmas Eggnog – Maybe I Do Like It

I’ve never been a big eggnog person, and that’s putting it kindly. It’s too thick, too sweet, and way too artificially nutmegy. I even did an anti-nog tweet recently, just for a few cheap, seasonal laughs, but then I realized I was being unfair to this iconic Christmas drink.

I was basing most of my hating on the stuff in the carton from the supermarket, which features no booze, and a nutrition label you seriously don’t want to read. The homemade stuff I’ve had was significantly better, and so I decided to film this rather easy process, since I get so many requests this time of year.

This recipe does feature raw egg whites, so there’s a very, very tiny chance of a foodborne illness. If you’re concerned, please feel free to use pasteurized eggs, or Google, “how to safely use raw eggs,” or just make something else.

Freshness is the key here. The freshest eggs, milk, and cream you can get, and don’t even think about using pre-ground nutmeg. Maybe this recipe will be the one that finally has you going out to buy that jar of whole nutmeg and grater, but it really is the key. I hope you give this luscious liquid custard a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 6 servings:

(recipe based on Alton Brown’s famous version)

For the custard base:

4 egg yolks

1/3 cup white sugar

2 cups whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

cook to 170-180 F. , then add;

2 to 3 ounces bourbon whiskey

3/4 teaspoon freshly and very finely grated nutmeg

For the meringue:

4 egg whites

1 tablespoon white sugar

- Add meringue to cold custard base, mix, and chill until very cold. Whisk thoroughly before pouring.

Salted Caramel Custard – My Newest Favorite Dessert Ever

Yes, if you asked me right now, this salted caramel custard would be my favorite dessert. These easy “pots de crèmes” are just sweet enough, just salty enough, and just drop-dead gorgeous enough.

I used Maldon sea salt to garnish, which has quite large, but very light crystals, so we’re not adding as much salt as it may appear. Think of a big, fluffy snowflake, floating down onto your warm palm. Stay with me here. As soon as that huge flake lands, it melts into a tiny drop of water. It’s sort of the same thing here.

This recipe will make exactly six (6.5 ounce) ramekins, but you can use any size you want, as long as you monitor the cooking time. Speaking of which, there are many variables effecting how long yours will take, such as ramekin size/shape, and how close they’re packed together, so the times given here are just a guideline.

Simply bake until the custard is just set, and you get that signature “jiggle” when you wiggle. By the way, I wasn’t kidding about eating these cold. I know it’s very hard not to eat a little bit before they’re chilled, but these are so vastly superior in taste and texture when cold, we’re going to need you to be strong. I really hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for six (6.5 ounce) ramekins:

9 large egg yolks

2/3 cup white sugar

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/4 teaspoon fine salt)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup whole milk

flaky sea salt to garnish

- Bake at 300 F. about 45 min to an hour, or until set.

Sweet Potato Muffins – The Sweet Potato Pie of Muffins

Sometimes you don’t have a good reason for not loving a certain recipe, and that’s how it is for me with sweet potato pie. It just does not do it for me, and I don’t even know what “it” is. However, I thought the same flavors could work for a holiday-inspired sweet potato muffin, and I was thrilled with the results.

These are perfect if you have leftover sweet potatoes during the holidays, but if not, totally worth cooking a few just for this easy recipe. I microwaved mine for about 6 or 7 minutes, until they were very soft, but roasting, or boiling will also work.

By the way, we’re not using sweet potatoes for our sweet potato muffin; we’re using yams, which are actually just incorrectly named orange-fleshed sweet potatoes.  So, I guess never mind.

As I mention in the video, these muffins are just a little bit of frosting away from being cupcakes. I’ve never understood the allure of mini marshmallows on a sweet potato casserole, but something tells me some “fluff” would work well on these, as well. I really hope you give them a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 24 Sweet Potato Muffins:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup melted butter
2 cups mashed sweet potato or “yams”
1 cup chopped pecans, plus more for the top
demerara sugar for the tops

- Bake for 25 minutes at 350 F. or until a wooden skewer comes out clean.

Gingersnap Cookies – Hot, Hot, Sweet

I always tell people I’m not a cookie eater, but I guess that depends on the cookie, since when it comes to these gingersnaps, I can’t get enough. As soon as these cool, I chain-eat them until they’re gone; but that’s not my fault. I blame the amazing spicy-sweet flavor, and irresistible texture.

Speaking of irresistible texture, I’ve got some homework for you. You’re going to have to make batches of these to find out your own optimum baking time. I know, it’s hard work, but you need to somehow find a way. 

Depending on the exact size of your dough balls, and how crispy, or chewy, you want these, the baking times will vary from 10 to 15 minutes. As far as ingredients go, the crystalized ginger is technically optional, but not too hard to find (check the bulk section), and it really gives the cookies that extra kick of ginger flavor and heat. 

Obviously, you can also adjust the spices to suit your tastes, but don’t make these too mild. They’re called “snaps” for reasons other than their texture. I really hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 50 to 60 cookies (depending on size):

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

12 tablespoons room temp unsalted butter

2/3 cup white sugar

1/3 cup finely chopped candied ginger

1/4 cup molasses

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg, beaten
- Bake at 350 F. for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on desired texture.

A Waldorf Salad by Any Other Name

As I joked about in the video, a fruit salad has to be pretty damn good to actually get a name, and the venerable Waldorf salad is certainly worthy. 

I realize that there are a small group of you who won’t be able to wrap your heads around mayonnaise with fruit, and that’s a shame, since it means you won’t get to enjoy one of the great combinations of all time. By the way, if you are one of the aforementioned people, but like mayo slathered all over your sandwich, containing slices of sweet, ripe tomato, and caramelized onions, then you have some explaining to do. Also, coleslaw. I rest my case.

Embellish this as you see fit, but I really like it best with just the four ingredients seen here. Things like dried cranberries can add a nice seasonal touch, but for me, the chewy fruit gets in the way of that addictive crunchy/crisp texture. I really hope you give this old-school, but timeless Waldorf salad a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 1 cup dressing (enough for 2 Waldorf salads below):

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup crème fraiche or sour cream (I used CF)

juice from 1/2 lemon

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

pinch freshly ground black pepper

pinch cayenne

1 tablespoon finely chopped tarragon

For 2 large or 4 appetizer sized Waldorf salads:

2 large crisp, sweet apples, cut in 1/2 inch cubes

1 cup small cubed celery root

1 cup quartered seedless grapes

1/2 cup toasted walnuts pieces

Pumpkin Zeppole – You “Can” Do It

It may sound strange, but the only way to mess up this pumpkin zeppole, is by using a fresh pumpkin. Like virtually every other pumpkin dessert, I think using pure canned pumpkin will give you the best results. That really is the trick to this Halloween treat.

If you take a pumpkin, roast it, and scoop out the flesh, it may look similar to the canned stuff, but you’ll be surprised at how little sweetness and flavor it actually has. It sounds like a great way to go, but in reality, it is not. And what about “sugar pumpkins;” that smaller variety of pumpkin specially grown for cooking? They are definitely better, but still, it’s been my experience that even those don’t have as concentrated a flavor.

Like all things cooking, people will vehemently disagree with me, and claim they can achieve results that are just as good using fresh, but even so, that’s a lot of work for something that’s basically the same. Ultimately, you’ll have to decide.

By the way, if you can't get canned pumpkin, roasted butternut squash (just like we did for this soup) will work very nicely!

Special thanks to my old friend, Jennifer Perillo, for this recipe was adapted from one of hers. I’m not above stealing a recipe from total stranger, but it’s nice knowing the foundation for a recipe is coming from someone who actually knows what they’re doing. I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 24-30 depending on the size:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 cup (8 ounces) fresh ricotta cheese, well-drained

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree (or roasted butternut squash)

1/4 cup white sugars

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Canola oil for frying

Poached Pears “Belle Helene” - Why Escoffier Really Created This Dish

They say Auguste Escoffier created this dish in honor of the opera, La Belle Helen, but we chefs know the real reason. How else are you going to use up bruised pears in such a delicious and beautiful way? Okay, so maybe that wasn’t his motivation, but as you’ll see in the video, it sure does work great.

The recipe is very straightforward, so instead we’ll go into your options for the chocolate sauce, as well as what to do with all that extra simple syrup. We have two chocolate preparations that will work for this (and have been linked). The first would be our easy hot fudge recipe; and the second, and more traditional choice, would be the classic chocolate ganache.

If you follow the link to the later, you’ll be taken to our Boston Cream Pie video, where you’ll see the technique for creating a classic ganache, but you’ll probably need to adjust the ratio of cream to chocolate. Generally it’s equal parts chocolate and cream, but if you want something more pourable, then 2 parts cream to 1 part chocolate (by weight) would work better.

As far as the extra vanilla poaching liquid goes; you’ll want to strain it, pour it into some cool looking bottles, and give it away as edible gifts. The taste is incredible. Better than the pears, if we’re being honest, and would make a fantastic holiday treat for the wannabe mixologists in your life. I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 poached pears:

6 cups water

zest and juice of one lemon

4 bosc pears, cored and peeled (you can also use Anjou or Bartlett)

1 split vanilla bean, or a few teaspoons of vanilla extract

3 cups sugar

Simmer for about 20-25 minutes, depending on size and firmness

Peach Financiers – Because French Bankers Hate Dirty Money

There are many different techniques used for making financiers, but as usual, I’ve chosen the easiest one. I would have been happy to try those other more complicated versions, but fortunately, I enjoyed this one so much, there’s no need.

I mention in the video that these are called “financiers” because they’re rich, and look like gold bars (if you use the traditional rectangular molds). Well, apparently that’s not quite right.

Word on the “rue” is that there was a bakery next to the Paris stock exchange that made these small almond cakes so bankers could enjoy them on the way to work, without getting their fingers dirty. I assume this is accurate, since I read it in the YouTube comments.

Anyway, not only is this an easy recipe, but it works beautifully with pretty much any summer fruit. Berries are popular, as are other stone fruits. Just don’t use too much. It’s merely a garnish, and adding too much could effect the texture and cooking time. I hope you give these delicious peach financiers a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 12 small cakes:

3 egg whites

1/2 cup white sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup almond meal (or finely ground almonds)

3 tablespoons flour

3 oz unsalted butter (6 tablespoons), toasted to a golden-brown

12 small sliced of peach

- I used mini-muffin pans, so you'll have to adjust your time if you used regular muffin tins, or other molds.

- Bake for 5 minutes at 400 F., then top with fruit, and continue baking until browned, about 10-12 minutes.

Fresh Fig and Goat Cheese…Tart?

There are worse problems in the kitchen than making something that tastes amazing, but is very difficult to name. Like, for example, something that’s easy to name, but tastes terrible. Luckily, this fresh fig and goat cheese “tart” was the former.

I wanted to make some sort of crostata, or galette-type, free-form tart, which I’ve done successfully in the past (and have the video to prove it), but instead of using standard pie crust dough, I decided to try something a little more rustic, and savory, using spelt flour and olive oil.

I knew this would pair beautifully with the sweet fruit, and tangy cheese, but what I didn’t know, was that it would end up being way too crumbly, and pretty much useless as a tart crust. So, I crumbled it into the bottom of a shallow ramekin, and the rest is history.

As predicted, the combination of flavors really worked extraordinarily well, and the somewhat gritty texture of the “crust,” added to the interest. But, what the heck is this? I don’t think it’s a tart. An upside-down crumble? Sandy tart? I give up, but if you have some time to kill, I’d love to know what you would call this delicious accident. Semantics aside, I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

For  the crust (makes enough for about 4 small tarts):

1 cup sprouted spelt flour

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp sugar

1/4 cup olive oil

3 or 4 tbsp water, or enough to form a crumbly dough

For one “tart:”

about 1/3 cup “crust” mixture

2 ounces creamy fresh goat cheese

1 black mission fig, sliced

tiny pinch of salt

very tiny pinch of cayenne

1 tbsp white sugar

spring of fresh lemon thyme

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies. Ever.

I know, everybody says that, but I really mean it. These are, these have to be, the best chocolate chip cookies, ever. Crispy around the edges, chewy and chocolaty in the middle, and thin, oh so thin.

The only way someone doesn’t love these, is if they prefer thick cookies instead, which, in that case, makes their opinion invalid, since they’re obviously crazy. Besides, you know you can just press two thin cookies together to get a thick one. Right?

My “secret” formula has been adapted from Alton Brown’s famous, “The Thin” recipe, and is fairly foolproof. The only real variable is the baking time, since we all scoop slightly different amounts. Mine took about 12 minutes, but if you make yours a little bigger, or smaller, that time will change.

And yes, of course you can add nuts to yours! I’m a walnut guy from way back, but decided to go sans nuts for this video. Speaking of nuts, you’re nuts if you don’t try this very simple, and amazing chocolate chip cookie recipe soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 32 Chocolate Chip Cookies (depending on size):

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt (or 3/4 teaspoon of fine table salt)

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 sticks (1 cup) very soft unsalted *butter (be sure the butter is room temp, and very, very soft!)
*I used a high-quality European-style butter, and recommend you do the same. Cheaper butters will have more water content, which can affect the fat ratio, and thickness of your cookie.

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 tablespoons milk

1 large egg

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

- Bake at 375 F. for about 12 minutes

Butter Puff Biscuit Dough – Faster, Easier, and Not Great for Shortcake

As promised, this is the puff pastry-like dough I used in the apple roses video, and while not exactly “ quick and easy,” this was definitely quicker and easier. Just don’t try and make strawberry shortcake with this stuff.

I wanted to use this dough as the centerpiece of our strawberry shortcake video, but unfortunately the cold pastry was way too hard to cut with a spoon, and so I ended up using a much more traditional, and user-friendly biscuit.   

That aside, as a puff pastry substitute, I think this was a huge success. Hopefully, you saw this in action in the apple roses video, which, by the way, was done with scraps. Besides fruit tarts, I’d love to try this for things like ham and cheese turnovers, and chocolate croissants.

With that in mind, I hope any and all successful experiments with this dough will be shared on social media; mostly so I can copy your ideas. By the way, there seems to a little controversy on YouTube as to the exact number of layers we got, so what say you? I hope you give this butter puff biscuit dough a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups self-rising flour (You can make you own by sifting together 2 cups of all-purpose flour with 1 tablespoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon fine salt)

3/4 cup cold water (add enough water to make a soft, but not sticky dough)

*7 tablespoons frozen unsalted butter (a stick is 8 tablespoons)

*I grated on about 4 tablespoons for the first application, and about 3 tablespoons for the second.

- I generally bake this stuff at 400 F.  Time will depend on what it’s being used for.

Mocha Semifreddo – Bad Technique Makes for a Great Frozen Summer Dessert

I got a request for semifreddo recently, and since it is a massively underrated summer dessert, I decided to give it a go. I love the rich taste, and the fact that you get what’s basically an airy, custard-style ice cream, without having to use a machine. However, it all comes at a cost.

The classic procedure is a little bothersome, since you need to make three separate components – a zabaione, a meringue, and whipped cream – so, I decided to simply use the eggs whole, and make a “zabaringue.” I knew I wouldn’t get as much volume, but I didn’t care.

One of my issues with semifreddo is that they’re sometimes too airy, and the flavor gets spread too thin.That wasn’t a problem here, and yet this much simpler version retained a wonderfully light texture despite the shortcut. I decided on a mocha-flavored semifreddo, since coffee is a pretty manly ingredient, and this sure would make a nice Father’s Day dessert. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Warning: Answering questions about how to use this technique to make other flavors is tough, since there are many variables. Theoretically, if you replace the coffee and liquor, with other “stuff,” then you should get a similar product. Good luck!



Ingredients for 2 portions:
- For the egg/coffee mixture:
 2 large egg eggs
 2 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp instant coffee
1 tablespoon Kahlua
1 tsp unsweetened cocoa
tiny pinch salt
 - For the whipped cream:
1/4 cup ice cold heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp sugar
-Combine and freeze until firm. If using a loaf pan, line with plastic first!

Bacon and Egg Doughnuts! Perfect for Real and Made-Up Holidays

I’ve always wanted to try making some kind of sweet/savory bacon-studded fritter using pâte à choux, also known as that stuff you make cream puffs with. It’s such beautifully rich, eggy dough, yet fries up to a surprisingly light, puffy texture.

Today is National Doughnut Day, as you know if you’ve been on Twitter in the last 48 hours, and so I decided to give it a go, and called it a "doughnut" in a cheap attempt to garner extra National Doughnut Day web traffic. That's also why I keep mentioning National Doughnut Day.

I went full breakfast theme, and topped mine with a little maple syrup, but feel free to get your beignet on, and cover them with a pile of powdered sugar. That’s not my preference, due to the mustache issue mentioned in the clip, but people with hair-free lips seem to like it.

Whether you’re going to surprise dad with a plate of these for Fathers Day, or you just want to tell your friends and co-workers you made bacon and egg doughnuts, I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 8 to 10 small Bacon and Egg Doughnuts:

(this is a half a recipe, so I would highly recommend doubling everything)

6 strips bacon, sliced, browned, cooled, and chopped (save some for the tops)

1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp cold water

4 tbsp unsalted butter

1/8 tsp salt

1 tablespoon sugar

pinch of fresh nutmeg

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

vegetable oil for deep frying

maple syrup to garnish

- Fry at 350 F. for about 7 minutes, turning often, until puffed and well-browned

* If doing in batches, hold in a warm oven

Classic Strawberry Shortcake – Thanks, Grandpa!

I was visiting my mom last summer, and overheard her and my aunt talking about making strawberry shortcake using “dad’s” recipe. They were obviously talking about my grandfather, which was surprising, since I had no idea he baked.

I remember he did a lot of cooking growing up, but it was things like frittata, meat sauce, or polenta. I never once saw him bake anything sweet. Nevertheless, he apparently gets credit for inventing our official family recipe for strawberry shortcake, which I’ve adapted here.

What he had done was taken the strawberry shortcake recipe off the box of a certain, very popular premade biscuit mix, and added extra “everything,” as my mother put it. So, that’s what I did here, except instead of using the stuff in the yellow box, I used self-rising flour, which I’m pretty sure is basically the same thing.

The only other major change is the original recipe calls for regular melted butter, but as you’ll see in the video, I like to toast mine just a little, to bring out those subtle, nutty flavors. I'm hoping Armand Cianfoni would approve. I really hope you give “our” strawberry shortcake a try soon. Enjoy!

Makes 6 Large or 8 Normal Strawberry Shortcakes:

2 cups self rising flour ((You can make you own by sifting together 2 cups of all-purpose flour with 1 tablespoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon fine salt)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup milk

4 tbsp butter, melted, and lightly toasted to a golden-brown

4 pints fresh strawberries

1/2 cup white sugar

*add 1 tbsp water, if strawberries aren’t perfectly ripe

3/4 cup cold heavy cream, whipped with a tablespoon of sugar and a few drops of vanilla (watch demo here)

- Bake at 425F.  for 15-18 minutes or until browned.

Baked Apple Roses by Any Other Name Are Something Completely Different

Every once in a while, I post a video solely based on something I saw online, and these baked apple roses are the latest example. I saw a photo of these somewhere on social media, and using that one image as my only guide, I whipped up a batch, which was a tremendous disaster.

I assumed that I could figure these out just by looking at the finished product, but that did not happen. I tried doing them free-form, and they completely unraveled as they cooked. I wish I'd taken some photos, but they basically look like they exploded.

So, I decided to find the source of the photo, and see how these are actually supposed to be done, which led me to the blog, Italian Chips. It’s written by a woman named Ana, who’s a Brazilian living in Italy, so I knew I was in good hands.Thank you, Ana!

Other than a couple ingredients, I pretty much followed her technique exactly, except I didn’t use puff pastry.  As I mentioned in the video, I used a new dough I’ve been working on, which is much faster version of puff pastry, that uses biscuit dough. Stay tuned for that, and in the meantime, really hope you give these gorgeous looking, and very delicious apple roses a try soon. Enjoy!

Microwave Note: if you don't have a microwave, just sauté your apple slices in a little bit of butter over medium heat, for about half a minute per side, or until flexible, but not soft. 

Muffin Pan Note: If you use a metal muffin pan instead of a ramekin, I would reduce the heat to 375F., and cook about 45, or until the pastry is well browned.

For 2 Apple Roses:

1 large red apple

2 pieces rectangular puff pastry, rolled less than 1/8-inch thick, about 3” wide by 12 to 14” long

melted butter as needed

cinnamon sugar as needed (1/4 cup sugar with 1 tsp cinnamon)

powdered sugar, optional
- Bake at 400F. for about 45 minutes, or until the pastry is well browned.
- If using metal muffin pan: Bake at 375F. for about 45, or until the pastry is well browned.

Whole-Grain Blueberry Scones – Because a “Muffsconut” Isn’t a Thing

I was brainstorming some ideas for using up a cup of nearly perfect blueberries, and was waffling between muffins, donuts, and biscuits. I finally decided on a biscuit-like triangle, spiced subtly with essence of old-fashioned donut.

I’m calling it a scone because I cut it into a triangle. There’s just something un-American about a triangular biscuit, so you Brits will just have to keep a stiff upper lip about this not being an actual scone.

I used my new favorite, sprouted spelt flour, but I’m guessing this will work with whatever you roll with. You’ll also want to keep an eye on them in the oven, as the baking times will vary depending on the exact shape and thickness. They’re done when they’re well browned, and you see blueberry juices bubbling out through the top and sides.

These have that someone loves me look, especially if you do the recommended sugar-crust top, which is why I’m thinking these would be nice for Mother’s Day, or any other brunch/breakfast-in-bed type situations. I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 8 Whole-Grain Blueberry Scones:

2 cups spelt flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp fine salt

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

2 tbsp white sugar, optional

4 ounces ice cold butter (1/2 cup aka 1 stick) 
1 cup blueberries

3/4 cup cold buttermilk

- 425F.for about 20-25 minutes, or until well-browned and blueberry juices start bubbling out through the top and sides.

Baked Alaska with a Lighter? You Betcha!

I’ve always wanted to do a Baked Alaska, and with Valentine’s Day coming up, I thought it would be the perfect time to demonstrate this show-stopping dessert. I just didn’t anticipate coming up with possibly the greatest browning meringue hack in history.

As you’ll see in the video, I made two of these, so I could show you a couple different ways to decorate. After browning the first one with a blowtorch, my preferred method, I started on the second, and for whatever reason the torch stopped working.

I was just about to turn on the oven, where you can finish these at 500°F until browned, when I had an idea. I’d just bought a windproof lighter to use when grilling in the backyard, and wondered if the tiny jet flame that shoots out from the tip would be hot enough to do the job. It was, and it did.

As far as the actual recipe itself, there’s really not a lot that can go wrong. As long as you freeze your ice cream cake thoroughly before browning the meringue, and cook your sugar syrup to 240°F, yours will look just like mine, or better.

There are obviously unlimited combinations of cake and ice cream flavors you can use for this, so I suggest consulting with your Valentine, and giving this easy Baked Alaska technique a try very soon. Enjoy!

For 2 Baked Alaska:

Note: You can make these ahead, including the piping, freeze, and then brown the meringue before serving.

1 1/2 cups raspberry ice cream

1/2 cup vanilla ice cream

2 round thick slices chocolate cake

For the Italian meringue:

2 large egg whites

1 tsp lemon juice

- beat to soft peak, and slowly add 240 F. sugar syrup (see below)

- continue beating until you have stiff peaks that will hold a sharp line

For the sugar syrup:

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 cup water

FLAMBE NOTE: First of all, be careful. Pour an ounce or so of any liqueur (I used brandy but cherry liqueur or Framboise would be even better) into a pan and place on low heat. When it’s warm enough you can it ignite with a lighter, and spoon the flaming liquid over your baked Alaska. Just be sure to turn down the lights!