Bombe Prophète

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Ice cream machine with at least 1-quart capacity
• •1.25-liter bombe mould or smooth stainless-steel bowl
• •Blender
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Small offset spatula or sturdy spoon
• •Long slicing knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Build two syrups

   Put the strawberry sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring them just to a boil, stirring until the sugar disappears, then pour the clear syrup into a bowl. Repeat with the pineapple sugar and water in the same pan. Neither syrup should color; caramel would trample the fresh fruit. Cool both completely, using an ice bath if you want to keep the evening moving.

2. 2

   Purée the fruits

   Blend the strawberries with their syrup and lemon juice until smooth, then press the mixture through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. Blend the pineapple with its syrup and lemon juice until no fibers remain; sieve it too if the fruit is coarse. Chill both bases thoroughly. Taste them cold: each should seem a little sweeter than you would serve as a drink, because freezing mutes sugar. If either tastes flat, ça se rattrape: dissolve 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 12 g) sugar in 2 teaspoons (10 ml / 10 g) hot water, cool it, blend it into that base, and taste again.

3. 3

   Churn strawberry ice

   Chill the bombe mould or stainless-steel bowl while you churn the strawberry base according to your machine's instructions. Stop when the ice has the close, pliable texture of firm soft serve. If it pours, it needs more churning; a loose ice cannot hold against the wall of the mould.

4. 4

   Chemiser the mould

   Chemiser, to clothe the mould, is the technique carried over from Another Method of Preparing Aspics de Filets de Soles (No. 916). Pack roughly three quarters of the strawberry ice over the bottom and sides of the cold mould, making an even layer about 1½ cm thick and leaving a hollow center. Reserve the remaining strawberry ice, covered, for the base. Freeze the clothed mould until the shell cannot be dented with a fingertip, about 45 minutes. If the ice slides down before it sets, don't scrape it out. Ça se rattrape: freeze it for 10 minutes, press it back into place, and build the thin spots in a second pass.

   Hold the mould up to the light as you turn it. Darker patches are thick and pale patches are thin; evening them now gives every slice its clean strawberry border.
5. 5

   Fill with pineapple

   Churn the pineapple base until it is firm but spreadable. Spoon it into the frozen strawberry shell, pressing gently into the curve so no large air pockets remain, and stop about 1½ cm below the rim. Soften the reserved strawberry ice for a few minutes if necessary, stir it smooth, and spread it over the pineapple to seal the bombe. Keep the colors distinct. Swirling them together may look merry, but it abandons the dish's whole architecture.

6. 6

   Freeze the bombe

   Press a piece of parchment directly against the surface, wrap the mould well, and freeze until completely solid, at least 4 hours. The original kitchen packed its mould into salt and broken ice under constant attention; a covered mould in the coldest part of a home freezer does the same work more evenly, with fewer hands.

7. 7

   Unmould and slice

   Chill the serving platter. Remove the wrapping, wipe the outside of the mould with a warm damp towel for 10 seconds, and invert it onto the platter. If it holds, repeat for 5 seconds rather than forcing it. If the surface begins to soften before releasing, return the whole mould to the freezer for 10 minutes and begin again. Let the unmoulded bombe stand for 8 to 10 minutes, then cut it with a long knife dipped in hot water and wiped dry between slices. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ripe strawberries are splendid here, but unsweetened frozen berries are more honest than pale fruit out of season. Thaw them with their juices. Pineapple canned in juice also works well; avoid fruit packed in syrup, which throws the sugar balance out of order.
• •Don't reduce the sugar. It carries flavor through the cold and keeps the ices fine enough to slice. Less sugar gives a hard, dull bombe rather than a restrained one.
• •A purpose-made bombe mould is handsome, not essential. A smooth 1.25-liter stainless-steel bowl freezes quickly and releases cleanly; avoid thick glass, which responds slowly to the warm towel and can crack under a sudden temperature change.
• •For outdoor dining, keep the bombe frozen until the table is ready and serve it in the shade on a chilled platter. Cut the first slices after 8 minutes, then return what remains to the freezer before the strawberry edge loses its clean line.

Advance Preparation

• •The strawberry and pineapple bases can be prepared and chilled up to 2 days ahead. Keep them covered and stir each thoroughly before churning.
• •The assembled bombe can be frozen up to 3 days ahead. Once solid, wrap the mould closely so the fruit does not collect ice crystals or freezer aromas.
• •Chill the serving platter and dessert plates shortly before unmoulding. A cold surface buys several useful minutes at an outdoor table.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 155g)