In the quest for the perfect baked Alaska, Heston first travels to the restaurant where it was first developed, Delmonico's in New York City. After tasting that dessert, he wants not only to maximize the hot and cold contrast between the baked meringue and the ice cream center, but to add an additional hot center inside the ice cream and to insert a textural contrast, neither of which are in a traditional version of dessert. The textural contrast is achieved by adding a hazelnut praline into a banana ice cream parfait, which will be the cold center of the dessert. The hot/cold interior contrast may be more difficult to accomplish. He first tests the insulating factor of different kinds of cakes to see which would be the best to use as the sponge base. Although he is able to make a more heat resistant ice cream, he may have met his scientific match in trying to heat some jam - his preferred center of the dessert - inside the ice cream. He also tests different types of eggs to see which whips up the best for the meringue. Regardless of issues with developing this recipe, the final baked Alaska will still have all the flourish of the flambé presentation.
—Huggo