Serves 4
Ingredients:
305 g (11 oz) Raspberry and rose gelato
Chocolate cake
175 g (6 oz) unsalted butter, cubed
225 g (8 oz) dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), broken into small chunks
6 eggs, separated
4 tablespoons cornflour (cornstarch)
150 g (5 ½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar
75 g (2 ¾ oz) dark muscovado sugar
pinch of salt
Italian meringue
165 g (6 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
1 tablespoon glucose syrup
150 ml (5 ½ fl oz) filtered water
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
pinch of salt
pinch of cream of tartar
1 For the chocolate cake, preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F/Gas 5) and line a 20 x 30 cm (8 x 12 in) greased baking tin with baking paper.
2 Place the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set over a saucepan of boiling water. Stir with a spatula until almost melted, then remove from the heat and continue to stir until melted completely. Leave to cool slightly.
3 Place the egg yolks in a large mixing bowl and the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer. Sift the cornflour into the bowl with the egg yolks, add the caster sugar, muscovado sugar and salt and mix until smooth, then stir in the melted butter and chocolate to form a smooth batter.
4 Turn the electric mixer onto the highest setting and whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Fold the egg whites gradually into the chocolate mixture, then pour the batter into the prepared baking tin. Bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, then remove the cake from the oven, place a 340 ml (11. fl oz/11/3 cups) dariole mould in the centre and use it as a template to cut out a circle of sponge. Transfer the cut sponge to a wire rack and leave to cool (eat the remainder – it’s delicious on its own), then transfer to a suitable container until needed.
5 Fill a 340 ml (11 ½ fl oz/11/3 cups) pre-cooled dariole mould with the raspberry and rose gelato, pushing it down firmly with a spoon to ensure there are no air pockets and flattening it with a spatula or palette knife. Transfer to the freezer for 2 hours to harden.
6 Once the gelato has hardened, briefly place the mould gelatoside up (and being sure that no water touches the gelato) in a container of warm water. Remove the mould from the water, turn it upside down and rub it with a wet cloth, scraping the rim of the mould with a paring knife to remove the gelato from the mould (if it doesn’t come out repeat this process until it does). Place the moulded gelato on top of the sponge circle, then transfer the bombe to a stainless steel tray and return to the freezer for at least 3 hours, or until needed.
7 45 minutes before you are ready to serve, make the Italian meringue. Whisk the sugar, glucose syrup and water together in a saucepan over a high heat until combined. Insert a sugar thermometer and bring the syrup to 248°C (480°F).
8 Meanwhile, put the egg whites, salt and cream of tartar in the clean bowl of an electric mixer and start whisking the eggs on slow speed. Whisk until the egg whites are frothy and starting to form soft peaks.
9 Increase the speed to high and slowly pour the sugar syrup over in a thin stream, whisking all the while until all the syrup is used. Continue to whisk on high speed for 30 minutes, until the bowl feels cold and the meringue is smooth, glossy and holding stiff peaks. Transfer the meringue to a piping bag with a medium-sized nozzle attached.
10 Remove the hardened bombe from the freezer and immediately pipe the meringue over to cover completely – starting from the bottom of the cake and going up to the top and being careful not to leave any gaps in between pipings. (Don’t delay this step as the meringue won’t be smooth if you do). Use a blowtorch to give the meringue a nice caramelised colour. Serve immediately.
This is an edited extract from Pidapipo by Lisa Valmorbida published by Hardie Grant Books NZD $44.99 and is available in stores nationally. Copyright Photography © Lauren Bamford and Jesper Hede 2017. Illustrator: © Jean Jullien.
