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The delicious but dreaded baked Alaska gives even the most confident cooks the willies, but the trick is simply patience and speed. You must wait until the ice cream has been frozen solid on top of the piece of cake. Then whacking it into a roasting hot oven to scorch the meringue as quickly as possible! Give it a try. It’s a lot less scary than it sounds!

1 loaf Madeira cake or sponge cake
4 tablespoons raspberry or strawberry jam
1 tub vanilla ice cream
4 large free-range egg whites
200g golden caster sugar

Cut the Madeira cake into 6 thick slices and cut a circle out of each. Spread 1/2 tsp jam over each one and put on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment. Put a scoop of ice cream onto each circle of cake and freeze for at least a couple of hours, until you are ready to serve.

Heat the oven to 240°C. Separate the egg whites and whisk with an electric mixer until firm and beginning to hold their peaks. Then gradually whisk in the sugar, one tablespoon at a time, patiently whipping until you have a stiff, shiny meringue, (don’t worry if you do it too early as this will sit in the fridge for a few hours). Cover each Alaska with a thick layer of meringue, making sure there are no gaps, and then bake for 3-4 minutes. The meringue should brown slightly without the ice cream melting. Remove form the oven and serve straight away.