Easy Mint Baked Alaska Recipe

There's nothing quite as rewarding as creating an impressive cake with low effort. Whether you choose to eat it piece by piece or share it with fellow cake lovers, the result will make you eager to start making the next one. While so many cake recipes rely on the perfect balance of time and oven temperature, this easy mint baked Alaska recipe only requires a flash of heat to develop a golden color on the top. 

Ausrine Zygaityte, recipe developer from Oceans of Food, chose a refreshing combination of mint ice cream and Oreo base for this cake. Chocolate and mint are such a perfect match, and this recipe is no exception. The stress-free preparation requires only a blender and freezer for total success. While you can use a kitchen torch to "bake" the top, it isn't essential, and the same effect can be accomplished with a standard oven. 

If you love serving ice cream with your cake, this mint baked Alaska is the perfect two-in-one solution. Just keep in mind that since the cake needs to rest in the freezer overnight, it's best to plan to start it a day before you wish to serve it (or get up at the crack of dawn!). 

Some of the ingredients are required for the first step, and the rest are for after the cake has spent the night in the freezer. To start, you'll need almost a whole package of Oreo cookies (without the cream filling) to form the base of the cake. That's 10 ounces, or about 25 cookies. Zygaityte loves them, and points out, "They are like digestive biscuits but a lot more tasty." If you have similar chocolate biscuits or find a package of chocolate cookie crumbs at your grocery store, you can use those instead. Crushed in a blender with melted butter (or try coconut oil), the cookies create a paste that is easy to press into the base of the pan. Not to mention, they're rich and decadent — the ideal pairing for the refreshing mint ice cream. 

And if mint isn't your thing, Zygaityte remarks that most ice cream flavors would work here. What doesn't go with chocolate? 

You'll also need egg whites, as well as simple white granulated sugar, which adds some sweetness to your meringue without affecting its color or texture. And for best results, you'll want a small amount of cream of tartar for whisking with the egg whites and sugar. Its not absolutely necessary, but its acidity helps stabilize the egg whites, ensuring that they remain nice and firm. Otherwise, they can deflate pretty easily. If you don't have any cream of tartar, the same quantity of white vinegar or lemon juice should do the trick.

First things first, you'll want to split all of your Oreo cookies in half and use a knife to scrape out the filling. Zygaityte explains, "I remove it in order to dial down the sweetness." Whether you discard it, use it for another recipe, or eat it by the spoonful is entirely up to you. 

Once you have separated all of the cookies from their filling, gather the dry biscuit halves. Instead of rolling out your dough, you're going crush every last cookie to form the chocolaty cookie base for the cake. 

Next you need to add the butter to a microwave-safe bowl and melt it completely. Once it's melted, you can add the Oreo cookies to your food processor and pour the butter in. 

Depending on the size of the food processor bowl, you might need to blend the cookies in batches. As they begin to form a paste with the butter, they'll take up less space and you can add the remaining cookies. If you notice that the mixture seems too dry, melt another tablespoon of butter and add it to the processor. 

Now you'll need to get a 7-inch springform pan ready — a bit of grease on the bottom will make it easier to remove the slices once the cake is ready. Using a spatula to get every last bit, scrape out the cookie butter mixture and spread it evenly over the base of your springform pan. This will be the base of the cake, so be sure to smooth out the top so that the remaining ingredients sit flat.

Grab your mint ice cream from the freezer and scoop it on top of the cookie base. If it's too firm, wait a moment or add some pressure with your spoon to spread it out. Keep adding ice cream until you cover the entire cake base, smoothing it evenly across the surface so it's touching the sides of the springform pan. Make sure the top is also flat and smooth since you will be adding another layer. 

Once it looks good, place the pan in the freezer overnight. If you are short on time and are making it the same day, try to keep it in the freezer for at least eight hours. 

If you are using whole eggs, you'll need to separate the egg whites for the cake and store the yolks for another use. 

Now heat some water in a pot over the stovetop and place a larger, heat-proof glass bowl on top. Make sure that the bowl does not come into direct contact with the water. Add the sugar, egg whites, and cream of tartar (if using) to the bowl. Continuously whisk the mixture until the sugar has completely dissolved. 

Once the sugar has dissolved, remove the glass bowl from heat. You'll want to use a whisk or a hand mixer on medium to high speed to beat the mixture to form stiff peaks. Keep a close eye on it so that you don't overmix the egg whites. This will take at least a few minutes, or longer if you're doing it by hand, so be patient. The stiffer the peaks, the better the cake will stand. We bet you don't want to witness this delicious mint baked Alaska falling apart! 

Once the stiff peaks have formed, set the bowl aside and remove your cake from the freezer. Carefully, using a knife to slide along the edges of the springform pan, remove the tin sides. It's best to go slowly with this step to avoid ripping off a chunk of ice cream from the side of your cake. Transfer the cake to a tray covered in aluminum foil to facilitate the next step where you will cover it with meringue and bake it. 

Using a spatula, spread the meringue evenly all over the cake. You'll want to spread it smoothly along the sides and the surface, keeping the thickness consistent so there's no exposed ice cream that can seep through when heated. To ensure everything stays firm, return the cake to the freezer for 30 minutes. Hopefully your freezer isn't stuffed to the brim! As the half hour is coming to an end, preheat your oven to the highest temperature or set it to broil on high. 

You want to give a golden color to the meringue, so you'll only want to place the frozen cake in the heated oven for maximum two minutes. Check it every 30 seconds to make sure it doesn't start to melt. In case you overheat it, Zygaityte has a quick fix: "Put it in the freezer for a couple of hours." 

If you happen to be equipped with a kitchen torch, you can use it to create the same effect instead of the oven.

Once the meringue is golden (and not a minute longer!), remove it from the oven. Since it has an ice cream filling, this is the kind of cake you want to dig into right away. With a sharp knife, cut some slices and plate them to serve. If you're presenting the whole cake at the table, you can remove it from the foil first. 

There's pretty much everything you could want in this cake already, but if you wanted an extra touch of decadence, a drizzle of chocolate sauce wouldn't be a bad idea!

Store any leftovers in the freezer, or else you'll find a melted pile of remains. This mint baked Alaska is so delicious that we doubt it'll last very long, but aim to eat it within a week, so that the meringue stays fresh.