Bombe Tosca

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1.4 litre metal bombe mould or deep stainless-steel bowl
• •Small heavy saucepan
• •Digital sugar thermometer
• •Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Small offset spatula or sturdy spoon
• •Piping bag with a large star tip
• •Freezer-safe serving dish

Instructions

1. 1

   Chill mould and fruit

   Place a 1.4 litre metal bombe mould or deep stainless-steel bowl in the freezer for 30 minutes. Chill the serving dish as well. Toss the diced glacé fruits with 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of the Maraschino and leave them for 20 minutes, then drain them in a fine sieve; reserve the liquid and combine it with the remaining Maraschino. The fruit should carry the perfume without dripping syrup into the filling.

2. 2

   Clothe the mould

   Let the apricot ice soften for 5 to 10 minutes, only until a spoon passes through it without cracking. Use the mould-clothing method cross-referenced in Another Method of Preparing Aspics de Filets de Soles (No. 916): press the apricot ice over the bottom and sides of the frozen mould in a continuous layer about 1 cm thick, leaving the centre hollow. This citation supplies the technique only; nothing from the aspic enters the dessert. Freeze for 20 minutes, hold the mould toward a light, and patch any thin or translucent places. If the ice slides toward the bottom, both mould and ice became too warm. Freeze them for 10 minutes, lift the pooled ice back into place, and continue. Ça se rattrape.

3. 3

   Cook the pâte

   Beat the egg yolks in the mixer just until loosened. Put the sugar and water in a small saucepan, bring them to a boil without stirring, and cook the syrup to 118°C. With the mixer running at medium speed, pour the syrup in a thin stream down the inside of the bowl, keeping it clear of both whisk and hands. Increase the speed and beat for 6 to 8 minutes, until the pâte à bombe is pale, thick enough to fall in a ribbon, and no longer warm. If the syrup crystallizes in the pan, add a spoonful of water and dissolve it gently before returning it to temperature. If only a few cooked yolk threads appear, pass the base through a fine sieve while it is still supple, then continue beating.

4. 4

   Fold the filling

   Whip the cold cream to soft peaks in a clean bowl. Fold one-third into the completely cooled pâte à bombe to loosen it, then fold in the remainder with broad strokes. Add the drained fruit and all the measured Maraschino, including the liquid reserved from macerating. Stop as soon as the fruit is evenly distributed. The filling should hold a soft mound; if it turns loose because the base was still warm, chill it for 10 minutes and fold it once more. Do not add extra liqueur, since too much alcohol prevents a clean freeze.

5. 5

   Fill and freeze

   Confirm that the apricot shell is frozen hard. Spoon in the fruit pâte à bombe, pressing it gently against the curved shell so no large air pockets remain, then level the surface at the rim. Cover the filling directly with reusable freezer wrap or parchment, cover the mould again, and freeze for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. If the centre still yields deeply when pressed after 6 hours, give it more time; the freezer finishes this dessert, impatience does not.

6. 6

   Turn out cleanly

   Fill a basin with warm, not hot, water. Uncover the bombe, dip the outside of the mould to just below its rim for 5 to 8 seconds, and dry it at once. Invert the chilled serving dish over the mould, turn both together, and lift gently. If the bombe resists, wrap the mould in a warm towel for 2 or 3 seconds and try again. Never pull at the dessert. If the surface softens during release, return the turned bombe to the freezer for 15 minutes before decorating.

7. 7

   Finish with lemon ice

   Soften the lemon ice just until pipeable, then work quickly on the turned bombe, exactly in the source sequence. Pipe generous fluted rosettes around the crown and base with a large star tip, or form neat scallops with two chilled spoons. If the lemon ice begins to slump, freeze everything for 10 minutes and resume with cold tools. Hold the finished bombe in the freezer until 5 minutes before serving, then cut it with a hot, thoroughly dried knife. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Choose apricot and lemon ices with strong fruit flavour and no dairy. Sherbet or ice cream makes the shell heavy and blurs the clean contrast the source intends.
• •Glacé or carefully drained preserved fruit stays pleasantly chewy inside the frozen cream. Raw berries and cut fresh fruit contain too much free water and become hard little stones in the freezer.
• •Maraschino means the clear cherry liqueur, not red cocktail-cherry syrup. Its almond-cherry perfume is part of the filling, and its alcohol also keeps the centre softer than the sorbet shell.
• •Test your mould's capacity with water before beginning. A deep 1.4 litre stainless-steel mixing bowl is an honest substitute for a dedicated bombe mould, but glass chills slowly and makes unmoulding less predictable.
• •For clean portions, dip the knife in hot water and dry it between every cut. Water left on the blade freezes against the bombe and tears the next slice.

Advance Preparation

• •Assemble and freeze the filled bombe up to 3 days before serving. Keep it tightly covered so the apricot shell does not collect freezer aromas.
• •Chill the mould, serving dish, spatula, and piping tip for at least 30 minutes before they touch the ices. Cold tools buy you working time and preserve distinct layers.
• •Unmould the bombe up to 2 hours ahead and return it to the freezer on its serving dish. Apply the lemon ice after unmoulding, as the source directs, then cover without touching the decoration.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 175g)