Please Don't Fall Apart

*UPDATED

It worked. The cake is filled and layered in a springform pan in the fridge where it will sit overnight giving the Bavarian a chance to set. Tomorrow, it will get frosted with whipped cream. Hooray!

I did have quite a bit of filling left, which I froze in a large souffle dish. I'll bet it will be a delicious frozen desert with chocolate sauce.

My one hesitation with it was the uncooked egg whites, but since Danny won't be eating it (he hates oranges) I figured we can take our chances. I still can't get over how easily it came together. By the way, this is the Orange Torte from Julia Child and More Company. She really did such an excellent job with the step-by-step instructions it would be difficult to mess it up....yikes, I hope I didn't just jinx it. I'm going to shut up now.

Anyway, just wanted to say it worked out well.

I held my breath as I unmoulded the blood orange genoise layers onto the cooling rack. So far so good-they're intact. I'll need to split them, and fit them into a springform pan layered with a ridiculously rich blood orange Bavarian cream, but what the hell-even if it falls apart at that point, I can place it back into the springform and no one will know. Yeah, I'll know. Yeah, I'll probably tell you. I don't think I've ever made a cake filling that called for a dozen eggs. It probably won't need it all-good thing I cleaned out the freezer this week!

Devoting three days to a dessert isn't ordinarily my thing, but we're nearly at the end of blood orange season. If I'm hell-bent on trying anything, this is my window of opportunity.

I have a bottle of orange blossom water I thought might work well in the cake syrup for brushing the layers. What, doesn't everyone obsess over the quality of their cake syrup? Gee whiz, what do you suppose I ought to obsess over-the height of my hair?

While I was cleaning the freezer, I discovered three bags of cranberries. I used half a bag chopped-up in cornbread, and it might just be the prettiest cornbread I've ever seen. Photos, and recipe later.

OK-I have to go split my cake layers. Keep your fingers crossed for me.