So, I spent most of Saturday working on a victoria sponge sandwich - the easy bit unless you forgot that you put the oven on higher to get it heated quicker (the joys of a sharp knife to trim off the burnt edges); oh so trendy macaroons (apparently cup cakes are so last year darling); orange ice cream and grapefruit sorbet.
The orange ice cream involved loads of processes - infusing a cream mixture, making the custard then chilling it, reducing orange juice, churning the ice cream - so it was my main priority and I fitted everything else around it.
The results were pretty damn good.
The cake looked rustic but tasted exactly as it should, particularly with a buttercream and homemade victoria plum jam filling.
The macaroons were mint flavoured. I had intended them to be pale blue, but either I was too shy of the colouring or it cooked out somehow during the baking - worth remembering to make them technicolour next time. They were crunchy on the outside but chewy in the middle with a hint of almonds that even my usually marzipan hating family loved.
The orange icecream was my favourite - zingy and sweet at the same time. It hadn't set much so was melty and delicious, just as I like it. DH said it reminded him of childhood mivvis - what could be better? The helping we had were eaten too quickly to get a photo, but there is more in the freezer so I might get a pic - not that it looks like anything much.
The grapefruit sorbet was made last and hadn't frozen. I suspect that I was a bit wild with my juice squeezing and have made it too bitter, but will have to try it to find out. The freezing process damps down the flavours, so I might be being a bit hard on myself
