Grand Marnier and Orange Bombe

For the meringues
2 egg whites
100g caster sugar

For the orange curd
2 egg yolks
50g sugar
Zest of 1 orange, finely chopped or grated
50ml orange juice (half an orange)
25g butter

For the bombe
450ml double cream
150ml single cream
2 tbsp Grand Marnier
1 tbsp icing sugar, sifted

For the syrup
Zest of 1 orange
250ml orange juice (approx. 2.5 oranges)
2 tsp caster sugar

Grated dark chocolate for serving, optional

1. Turn your oven on to 110˙C.
2. Separate the egg yolks from the whites.
3. Put the whites into a large clean bowl and put the yolks into a small pan.
4. Whisk the egg whites until they are just stiff and holding their shape.
5. Add the sugar a teaspoon at a time until the mixture is thick and glossy.
6. Line a baking tray with parchment or silicone sheet.
7. Spoon the meringue onto the tray into about 6 or 8 large blobs – they’ll increase a little in size as they heat up and then dry out so leave some space around them.
8. Then put them into the oven to bake for 1.5-2 hours. They should be hard and a little golden in colour and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
9. When cool transfer to an air-tight container.
10. Next make the curd.
11. Zest the whole orange using a microplane so the pieces are tiny.
12. Put the zest into the small bowl and measure in the sugar.
13. Rub them together until fragrant.
14. Transfer to the pan with the egg yolks.
15. Next juice one half of the orange – you need 50-55ml so you may need to juice the other half too.
16. Add the juice and any pith to the pan too.
17. And finally add the butter too.
18. Put over a low to medium heat and stir using a heat-proof spatula until everything thickens. This can take 8-12 minutes. It can get warm enough to have some steam but don’t let it simmer. It should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon or the spatula and not dribble off.
19. Remove from the heat and keep stirring for a minute until the curd has cooled a little.
20. Allow to cool completely. It will thicken as it cools.
21. When the meringues and curd are cooled put the double and single creams into a bowl and whisk together until the mixture is like soft peaks.
22. Then add the Grand Marnier and sifted icing sugar and whisk to combine. It’s important to sift the icing sugar to remove the lumps.
23. Now crumble the meringues (not too small) and mix them into the cream.
24. And finally gently stir in the orange curd.
25. Taste!
26. Transfer into a 1.2l freezer-proof pudding basin or something similar
27. Cover with foil or cling film and freeze until firm.
28. This is when I make the syrup.
29. Juice the remaining half of the orange into a small pan.
30. Coarsely zest the two remaining oranges leaving the zest long and thin.
31. Put this into the pan.
32. Juice the same oranges and add this too.
33. Stir in 2 tsp of caster sugar.
34. Simmer over a medium heat for a few minutes until the zest is soft and the juice has reduced by about half and become syrupy. This will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks or more.
35. When ready to serve dunk the bowl into a larger bowl of hot water to release it.
36. Put a round serving plate on top of the bowl and invert it and allow the bombe to drop out onto the centre of the plate.
37. Put in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
38. Bring the syrup to room temperature and just before you are ready to serve pour over the top of the bombe leaving the zest on the top and letting it drizzle down the sides.

Serve with Christmas pudding or sliced oranges.

Alternative:
Use chocolate meringues and finely chop or grate some dark chocolate and fold through the cream before freezing