THE SOUFFLÉ ALASKA

If it hadn’t been for the BonSol, I probably would have never tried the Soufflé Alaska — a dessert straight out of the 70s and 80s, made of a sponge cake base, a layer of frozen vanilla ice cream, and a meringue topping that is baked just before serving.
In the 1970s it came back into fashion thanks to its flambé version, and since then BonSol has served it on several special occasions. Lately, however, it hasn’t had many opportunities to return to the dessert display, as it is best enjoyed when prepared freshly on the spot.

When restaurants began replacing cloth tablecloths with paper ones, BonSol laid them double. When bars started dropping formal uniforms, the hotel in Illetas added bow ties. And when even Michelin-starred restaurants began allowing “smart casual” attire, BonSol still required long trousers in its main restaurant.
When live pianists were replaced with background music, BonSol brought in a live orchestra to accompany guests during dinner.

It was the same with the Soufflé Alaska: while it was disappearing from restaurant menus for being seen as something from another era, BonSol kept serving it until quite recently — and in this blog, we want to share its fascinating story: the story of a theatrical dessert that has witnessed an era and its great moments.

The Baked Alaska was created in 1867 by chef Charles Ranhofer to celebrate the purchase of Alaska by the United States from the Russian Empire that March. However, the original recipe at the restaurant was called “Alaska Florida” (because the inside was cold like Alaska and the outside hot like Florida).

This dessert is also known as omelette à la norvégienne or “Norwegian omelette” (probably because it resembles a snowy island of meringue). During the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris, the chef of the Grand Hôtel decided to create a “scientific dessert” using Benjamin Thompson’s discovery about the low thermal conductivity of egg whites. Thompson was living in Bavaria at the time; since the chef mistakenly thought Bavaria was in Norway, he decided to call the dish “Norwegian omelette.”

The Baked Alaska, also known as Bombe Alaska, omelette surprise or omelette sibérienne depending on the country, is a dessert made of ice cream and cake covered in golden meringue. It is prepared by placing the ice cream on a sponge or Christmas pudding base, covering it with meringue, and freezing it. The whole dessert is then baked at a very high temperature for a short time — just long enough to brown and caramelise the meringue without melting the ice cream. Another common method is using a blowtorch to toast the meringue, and sometimes it is even flambéed for dramatic effect.

There are famous variations created by Michelin-starred chefs using Madagascar creams and other gourmet delights. And even though this dessert may no longer be trendy, BonSol has decided to bring it back for the upcoming season — perhaps during the gala evening — because it is a marvellous dessert, with a rich story behind it, that deserves to return to our menus.

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