Complex Desserts to Make if You’re Up for a Challenge in the Kitchen

It’s difficult to forget the many memorable episodes of MasterChef Australia where chef Heston Blumenthal has completely stumped everyone with the dessert challenges he’s set for the contestants. Every recipe involves at least ten ingredients or more, application of diverse techniques, and a time limit. For novice home cooks up for an adventure and experiment, here are some classic desserts that are comparable to Blumenthal’s challenges in complexity minus the competitive edge and time constraints.

Meringue: If you’re hearing of this dish for the first time, then the concept of creating a sweet out of egg whites might seem bizarre. Meringue, used in pies, cookies, and frosting, relies on two ingredients - egg whites and sugar. But there’s a science to creating it perfectly. The process involves whipping air into the egg whites to create foam, causing denaturing or unfolding (breakdown of protein). Unfolding can be expedited if you add an acidic element like lemon juice or cream of tartar, which certainly are mentioned in a lot of meringue recipes. To preserve the foam’s structural integrity, sugar is added. The same principles apply to eggless meringue, usually made from aquafaba, the leftover liquid from cooking white chickpeas. It’s the closest vegan alternative to egg whites, although soy protein egg whites are also gaining popularity. Meringue can be difficult when you first try to make it because you might just end up over whipping it. Continue practicing to get the perfect soft yet stiff peaks.

Macarons:

These are delicate and crispy French desserts made with almond flour and powdered sugar. The texture is soft and chewy in the middle but crisp on the outside without being too crunchy like a cracker or potato chip. No rising agents are used, so the macarons get their lift from whipped egg whites. Macaronage is the process of getting the batter soft, shiny and glossy without deflating the batter a lot. Knowing when to stop mixing the batter is key because if you have too much air, the heat of the oven will give you cracked macaron shells.

Baked Alaska:

Baked Alaska is simply a spectacle of a dessert. It’s flamboyant and a great party trick for hosts to sneak in their final hurrah of the night. The story of this dessert goes back to New York City in the 1800s where a cook came up with this creation to celebrate the acquisition of Alaska into the United States. That’s just one origin story, and we’re sure there are plenty of similar ones. This dessert contains ice cream sitting on sponge cake that is shrouded under a thick layer of meringue. This is put in the oven to cook, but the ice cream is insulated from the sponge underneath and the meringue on top and doesn’t melt. A reasonably short baking time is required to get the meringue caramelized outside and chewy on the inside.

Eclairs:

These are another classic that will take you back to your childhood. Eclairs are made from choux pastry that has a notorious reputation of going wrong, giving you flat and rubbery eclairs. Flour, butter, eggs, sugar, and water are cooked on a stovetop. The eggs have to be cooked through without scrambling so consistent application of heat and constant stirring is essential. No raising agents are used but what makes the eclair choux puff up is the gelatinization of the flour, which creates air pockets that allow the steam to hold on. The key to get the choux pastry right is to weigh the ingredients instead of going for cup measures.

Baklava:

This Middle Eastern dessert has a satisfying crunch owing to the pastry and the mix of nuts sandwiches in between each layer. However, phyllo dough can be very complex to make, even though it’s a three-ingredient pastry. If patience is one of your virtues, then you will be needing a lot of it when you make phyllo for the first time. It requires rolling out the dough into multiple, ultra thin sheets. Dust your work surface liberally, as we mean liberally, with flour so the sheets don’t stick to your work surface. Working with filo can also be challenging because it dries out quickly. The ultimate result however of the hard work is amazing.

Ghevar:

It is an indulgent, ghee, nuts and syrup laden Indian sweet which resembles a circular honeycomb. It’s somehow crunchy in parts and also soft and chewy. It’s usually made in large batches all across North India, especially Rajasthan where it likely originates from. Though some people dispute this claim and say that its roots lay in Uttar Pradesh. Getting the texture right without creating a soggy pancake is essential here.