Bombe Marie Louise

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •1.5 litre (6-cup) metal bombe mould or stainless steel mixing bowl
• •Ice cream machine or shallow metal freezing tray
• •Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
• •Sugar thermometer
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Cold spoon or small offset spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Make raspberry syrup

   Combine the ¾ cup caster sugar and ½ cup water in a small saucepan. Stir over medium heat only until the sugar dissolves, then boil for one minute and cool completely. Purée the syrup with the raspberries and lemon juice until vivid and smooth, then press it through a fine sieve to remove the seeds. Taste it cold. It should seem slightly sweeter and sharper than a dessert served at room temperature because freezing quiets both sugar and fruit. Chill the mixture thoroughly.

   Frozen raspberries are an honest choice outside the berry season. Use unsweetened fruit and keep every drop of the juice released during thawing.
2. 2

   Churn raspberry ice

   Churn the cold raspberry mixture in an ice cream machine until dense, smooth, and spreadable, about 20 to 25 minutes. Without a machine, pour it into a shallow metal tray, freeze for 45 minutes, then beat it thoroughly with a fork or hand mixer; repeat every 30 minutes until the crystals are fine and the ice holds on a spoon. If it freezes into hard flakes, let it soften in the refrigerator for 10 minutes and beat it again. Ça se rattrape.

3. 3

   Clothe the mould

   Freeze a 1.5 litre metal bombe mould or mixing bowl for 20 minutes. Reserve about ¾ cup of raspberry ice for closing the base, then press the rest over the bottom and sides in an even layer about 1 cm thick. This is chemiser le moule, the operation borrowed from Another Method of Preparing Aspics de Filets de Soles (No. 916). That referenced aspic supplies the technical model only; its repeated broken-ice rocking is brigade scaffolding, and no fish or jelly belongs here. Smooth the raspberry ice with the back of a cold spoon and freeze for at least 45 minutes. If the lining slides, the mould or ice is too warm; freeze both for 10 minutes, then patch the bare place.

4. 4

   Infuse vanilla syrup

   Split the vanilla pod lengthwise. Scrape its seeds into a clean small saucepan, add the pod, the ⅔ cup caster sugar, and the ¼ cup water, then bring just to a simmer. Cover, take the pan off the heat, and leave it for 15 minutes so the hot syrup draws out the vanilla. Remove the pod, return the pan to the heat, and boil without stirring to 118°C (244°F), the soft-ball stage. If crystals form before the syrup reaches temperature, add the optional tablespoon of water, cover for 30 seconds, and begin boiling again without stirring. The syrup is rescued.

5. 5

   Whip pâte à bombe

   Begin whisking the egg yolks at medium speed until loosened and slightly pale. With the mixer running on low, pour the 118°C vanilla syrup in a thin stream down the inside of the bowl, never directly onto the moving whisk. Increase to high speed and whisk for 8 to 10 minutes, until the pâte à bombe is thick, pale, and cool, and a ribbon from the whisk remains visible for several seconds. If syrup catches on the whisk and forms hard threads, stop pouring, move the stream farther down the bowl, and continue; leave the hardened threads behind. If the bowl remains warm, set it over cold water and keep whisking. Warm pâte à bombe melts the cream.

6. 6

   Fold in cream

   Reserve 2 tablespoons of the liquid cream, then whip the remainder to bec d'oiseau, a soft peak whose tip bends like a bird's beak. Whisk one-third of the whipped cream into the cool pâte à bombe to lighten it, then fold in the rest with broad strokes until no white streaks remain. If the cream was whipped too far and looks grainy, fold in the reserved liquid cream a spoonful at a time until it becomes supple again. We don't apologize for cream, and we don't waste it.

7. 7

   Fill and freeze

   Touch the raspberry shell with a fingertip; it must feel completely hard. Spoon in the vanilla pâte à bombe, pressing it gently against the fruit lining so no hollow pockets remain, and stop about 1 cm below the rim. Soften the reserved raspberry ice just enough to spread, then close the exposed vanilla with an even cap. If the vanilla filling begins to soften the shell, stop and freeze the whole mould for 15 minutes before adding the cap. Cover closely and freeze for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.

8. 8

   Unmould and serve

   Chill the serving platter for 20 minutes. Dip the outside of the mould in warm, not hot, water for 5 to 8 seconds, wipe it dry, and invert it over the platter. If the bombe resists, wrap the mould briefly in a warm towel rather than soaking it again; if an edge softens, return it to the freezer for 20 minutes. Let the unmoulded bombe stand for 5 minutes, then cut it with a knife dipped in warm water and dried between slices. Serve it promptly, especially outdoors. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Don't reduce the sugar. In a frozen dessert sugar controls texture as well as sweetness; too little turns the raspberry shell hard and icy, making clean slices nearly impossible.
• •Split the vanilla pod into the hot syrup and leave it there for the full infusion. Vanilla extract stirred into a cold filling tastes thin after freezing, while the pod gives the pâte à bombe enough depth to meet the raspberries.
• •Use metal for the mould. A stainless steel mixing bowl is the honest home equivalent of a bombe mould because it freezes quickly and releases cleanly; thick glass responds too slowly when you unmould.
• •For guests who need extra protection from lightly cooked eggs, use pasteurized yolks and keep the same hot-syrup method. The technique and texture do not change.
• •For outdoor dining, keep the bombe frozen until the table is ready and serve it in the shade. A chilled platter buys useful minutes, but this dessert waits in the freezer, never on the sideboard.

Advance Preparation

• •The raspberry purée can be prepared up to 2 days ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Churn it only when you are ready to line the mould.
• •Assemble the bombe the day before serving. Overnight freezing gives the cleanest layers and removes the last-minute work from a dinner party.
• •The covered bombe keeps well in its mould for 3 days. For longer storage, press a layer of parchment against its exposed base and wrap the mould closely to prevent ice crystals.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 175g)