Bonus: Mom’s Fourth of July Ice Cream Bombe

We are interrupting the previously scheduled Summer of Pie for traditional holiday desserts. This is an actual holiday dessert and not a test of the holiday dessert alert system. Please eat accordingly.

July is national ice cream month; I live in America’s Dairyland; this cannot pass unrecognized. In truth, July is also national hot dog month, national blueberry month, national anti-boredom month, and national cell phone courtesy month. Wow. That’s a lot of relatively pointless celebrating.

I meant to post this sooner, but vacations happened and, well, it’s a bonus, stop complaining. Anyway, my mom’s made this every July 4th for at least the last 15 years, and it’s always a huge hit. As in no matter how much you make, there’s never anything left. Definitely a family tradition well worth continuing.

Mom used to buy her pound cake (Sara Lee), but I’d get no end of grief if I didn’t make mine myself. This is a great recipe and can be easily modified to make all kinds of flavored pound cakes. A tip: use a really large bundt pan for this, it’s an enormous amount of cake. There will be leftover after you make the bombe, but leftover cake has never been a problem for me.

As far as the ice cream goes, I know what you’re thinking, don’t I make my own? I do. But the quantity of ice cream required for this is both time-consuming and expensive to make at home. Besides, I’m fortunate enough to live in close proximity to some of the best ice cream in the world, I’d be crazy not to take advantage of that. Feel free to copy my flavor choices, but the great thing about this dessert is the endless combinations of flavors that can be used. If you’re at a loss for ideas think of your favorite dessert in a non-ice cream medium and try to recreate that taste.

Now you’re set for the next time a nationally important ice cream month such as July rolls around. As for the other things? Surely, if you make ice cream desserts, you will not be bored. Hot dogs and blueberries usually take care of themselves. Oh and, maybe turn off your phone at the movies. Thanks Mom.

ICE CREAM BOMBE

Pound Cake

(from Epicurious.com “Elvis Presley’s Favorite Pound Cake”)

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened, plus additional for buttering pan
3 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising; sift before measuring) plus additional for dusting
3/4 tsp salt
3 cups sugar
7 large eggs, at room temperature 30 minutes
3 tsp vanilla
1 cup heavy cream

Special equipment: a 10-inch tube pan (4 1/2 inches deep; not with a removable bottom) or a 10-inch bundt pan (3 1/4 inches deep; 3-qt capacity)

Make at least one day prior to assembling the bombe.

Put oven rack in middle position, but do not preheat oven.

Generously butter pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess flour. Sift together sifted flour (3 cups) and salt into a bowl. Repeat sifting into another bowl (flour will have been sifted 3 times total).

Beat together butter (2 sticks) and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes in a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or 6 to 8 minutes with a handheld mixer. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low and add half of flour, then all of cream, then remaining flour, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down side of bowl, then beat at medium-high speed 5 minutes. Batter will become creamier and satiny.

How could this not be good?

Spoon batter into pan and rap pan against work surface once or twice to eliminate air bubbles. Place pan in (cold) oven and turn oven temperature to 350°F. Bake until golden and a wooden pick or skewer inserted in middle of cake comes out with a few crumbs adhering, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. Cool cake in pan on a rack 30 minutes. Run a thin knife around inner and outer edges of cake, then invert rack over pan and invert cake onto rack to cool completely. Once cooled, wrap in plastic and keep at room temperature until assembly.

Ice Cream

I used a 3.7 quart bowl, and needed almost 7 pints of ice cream to fill it. I bought a pint of each flavor, except for the outside layer of ice cream which required a full quart of a single flavor. My flavor choices (from the Chocolate Shoppe): Mackinac Island Fudge, Caramel Chaos, Zanzibar (dark chocolate), Triple M (espresso with caramel swirl and chocolate chunks).

Assembly

pound cake
5-7 pints ice cream (various flavors, there should be 1 quart of at least 1 of the flavors)
8 oz bittersweet chocolate
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
2 tsp vanilla

Special equipment: a 2 1/2- 4 quart bowl (about 8 inches in diameter)

Line bowl with plastic wrap (you’ll need the wrap later to help remove the bombe from the bowl).

Line the inside of the bowl with 1/3″ thick slices of pound cake. Try not to leave many gaps between the pieces. As you get toward the top of the bowl, you’ll have to start getting creative with the shapes of your slices. Think of it as food Tetris.

Melt 6 oz of the chocolate in a small dish in the microwave. With a pastry brush or small icing knife spread a thin layer of chocolate over the entire in side of the pound cake lined bowl. Place in refrigerator or freezer until chocolate has hardened (about 10 minutes in the freezer; 20-30 in the fridge).

Slightly soften (very slightly!!) one quart of ice cream and spread in an even layer along the sides and bottom of the bowl, leaving a large hole in the center. The idea here is to create concentric rings of ice cream. Transfer to freezer until firm (about 45 minutes). Repeat this step with remaining ice cream pints, freezing between each layer, until entire bowl is filled.

Cover over the ice cream with 1/4″ slices of pound cake, fitting them as before and using the remaining (melted) chocolate as mortar. Freeze until ready to serve.

Just before serving, place the cream, sugar and vanilla in a medium sized bowl and whip with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form. Set aside. Invert bombe over large platter and remove the bowl (using plastic wrap to assist if necessary). Frost entire bombe with whipped cream. Serve immediately!