The Moulding of Bombes

Moulage des bombes (moulding frozen bombes) teaches one true thing before you reach for the mould: the outside and the centre have different work to do. The thin outer coat must freeze firmly enough to hold the dome, while the richer Bombe preparation or one of the Mousses (light aerated preparations) supplies the soft, generous heart. Make both layers equally rich and the bombe slumps before the first slice reaches the plate.

The original entry assumed a lidded metal bombe mould, finished ices waiting from separate stations, and a mould buried in a powerful freezing mixture. At home, use a chilled 1¼ litre metal bowl or bombe mould and an ordinary freezer. The round of white paper and hermetic lid were brigade scaffolding; parchment pressed to the surface and a snug lid or double foil do the same work. The thin shell, richer centre, full freeze, and tepid-water release are the dish itself, so all four stay. One cook, one stove, one evening, though tonight the freezer carries the heavier pan.

Keep each preparation cold and soften it only until it yields to the spoon. If either one becomes glossy or fluid, stop and chill it again. Ça se rattrape. The step that decides the bombe is clothing the mould with one thin, even coat, without bare patches and without melting the ice.