yule log | Bewitching Kitchen

Not my first time, in fact it is my fourth, but it is hard to resist such a classic for the holiday season.

So many components, but apart from the decorations, nothing is that complicated, and of course even the decorations can be simplified to a minimum: a dusting of powdered sugar. Your cake, your choice!

BUCHE DE NOEL
(cake component from Helen Fletcher’s Pastrieslikeapro)

for the chocolate sponge cake:
¾ cup sifted cake flour (75 grams)
¼ cup sifted cocoa (25 grams)
¼ teaspoon baking powder
6 eggs separated
⅔ cup sugar, divided (140 grams)
1 teaspoon vanilla

for the filling:
4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar (100g)
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract

for the buttercream frosting:
1 + ¼ cups unsalted butter softened (284g)
¼ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cocoa powder (48g)
2 + ¾ cups confectioners’ sugar sifted (330g)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
several tablespoons of heavy cream to adjust consistency

for the meringue mushrooms:
2 egg whites room temperature
⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar
6 tablespoons superfine sugar
cocoa powder for dusting
melted chocolate or Royal icing for assembling

Make the meringue mushrooms, the day before. In a large mixing bowl, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar. Beat on medium speed until frothy and doubled in volume. With the mixer running, slowly sprinkle in the sugar. Once all of the sugar is added, continue beating until stiff and glossy peaks form, about 5 minutes. Place the meringue in a piping bag fitting with a large round tip.

Pipe half of the meringue into stems by placing the piping tip on the parchment and squeezing the piping bag while slowly moving the tip up, creating a column of meringue. Pipe round tops. Dust the tops and stems very lightly with cocoa powder. Bake for about 2 hours or until the meringues easily release from the paper. Turn the oven off and let cool completely in the oven.

Once cool, use a sharp knife to make a little indentation on the bottom of the caps, brush with melted chocolate or Royal icing, and stick the stem into it. Set aside for at least one hour before moving them.

Make the cake: Heat the oven to 350. Spray the bottom of ½ sheet pan with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper and spray the paper. Do not spray sides of pan. Set aside.

Whisk together the flour, cocoa and baking powder, mixing well. Set aside. Combine the egg yolks, ⅓ cup sugar and vanilla in a mixing bowl fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat until very thick and very pale yellow.

In a clean mixing bowl with a clean whisk, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Slowly add the remaining ⅓ cup sugar and beat until fairly stiff. Place the egg yolks over the egg whites and sift half the flour/cocoa mixture over the beaten eggs. Fold together. Fold in the remaining flour/cocoa. Gently pour into the prepared pan and spread out evenly. Bake 10 to 12 minutes. The top will spring back when lightly touched. Immediately cover directly with foil and place on a rack to cool completely. When ready to assemble, it will roll out easily.

Make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer on low speed until just smooth. Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Gradually beat in the heavy cream 1/4 cup at a time. Increase the speed to medium high and beat until stiff peaks form, 2 to 4 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat just to combine.

Make the frosting: Place the butter and salt in a mixing bowl and beat on medium speed until smooth. Add the cocoa powder and beat until well combined, stopping to scrape down the bowl a few times, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low, beat in the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. Slowly stream in the heavy cream while beating. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat until fluffy and easily spreadable, about 2 minutes.

ASSEMBLE THE CAKE: Remove the cake from the pan, invert over parchment paper. Peel off the bottom paper. Add filling to the whole extension of the cake, then roll from the long side. Place in the fridge preferably overnight to completely set the rolled cake.

Cutting at a diagonal, cut about two inches off of one end. Place the log on a serving plate. Spread a few tablespoons of frosting onto the end of the cut-off and stick to the side of the log. Spread the remaining frosting all over the cake roll, leaving the ends exposed.

Run fork tines through frosting in one direction to give the appearance of bark. Trim the un-cut end of the log to expose a perfect swirl. Refrigerate the cake until ready to serve.

Just before serving, decorate the log with your choice of goodies.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love the method of cooling the cake completely, covered with aluminum foil. It rolls like a dream and the cake is not at all soggy from the steam generated during cooling. I am quite fond of the cream cheese filling, a nice contrast with the chocolate sponge cake.

The decorations are a lot of fun to plan and make. I used Royal icing piped as transfers, made several days earlier, and meringue mushrooms which are of course a classic.

We wish you a wonderful Christmas!

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Not my first time making it, but in the past I was not fully happy with the results. I show you two ways to decorate it, but will share only the most recent recipe, cake portion courtesy of Helen Fletcher, my beloved virtual mentor!

BUCHE DE NOEL
(adapted from Helen Fletcher’s Pastrieslikeapro)

for the chocolate spongecake:
¾ cup sifted cake flour (75 grams)
¼ cup sifted cocoa (25 grams)
¼ teaspoon baking powder
6 eggs separated
⅔ cup sugar, divided (140 grams)
1 teaspoon vanilla

for the filling:
1 cup unsalted butter softened (226g)
3 cups confectioners’ sugar (380g) or more if needed
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup 60-80ml heavy cream (60mL) or more if needed
1/3 cup black cherry jam or other jam of your choice

for the ganache coating:
170g semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 cup (180ml) heavy cream

Heat the oven to 350. Spray the bottom of ½ sheet pan (11×17 inches) with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper and spray the paper. Do not spray sides of pan. Set aside.

Whisk together the flour, cocoa and baking powder, mixing well. Set aside. Combine the egg yolks, ⅓ cup sugar and vanilla in a mixing bowl fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat until very thick and very pale yellow.

In a clean mixing bowl with a clean whisk, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Slowly add the remaining ⅓ cup sugar and beat until fairly stiff. Place the egg yolks over the egg whites and sift half the flour/cocoa mixture over the beaten eggs. Fold together. Fold in the remaining flour/cocoa. Gently pour into the prepared pan and spread out evenly. Bake 10 to 12 minutes. The top will spring back when lightly touched. Immediately cover directly with foil and place on a rack to cool completely. When ready to assemble, it will roll out easily.

Make the filling: In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the butter and confectioners’ sugar. Begin on low speed until crumbly, and then increase to high and beat for 3 minutes.
Add vanilla extract and beat again for another minute. Add heavy cream 2 tablespoons at a time while mixing on high until the mixture is light and fluffy. Transfer the frosting to a piping bag.

Make the ganache: Place chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan until it begins to simmer. Pour over chocolate, then let it sit for 2-3 minutes to gently soften the chocolate. Slowly stir until completely combined and chocolate has melted. Refrigerate, uncovered, for about 1 hour to thicken.

ASSEMBLE THE CAKE: Lay a large piece of aluminum foil and dust it with powdered sugar. Remove the foil on top of the cake and go around the edges of the pan with a spatula. Pick the spongecake up by the parchment and turn it out onto the powdered sugar lined foil. Remove the parchment paper. Spread the jam over the surface of the cake, then the buttercream, starting by piping large stripes of the cream over the surface (see my composite photo after the recipe). Using the foil as an assist, roll up the spongecake jelly roll style. The last roll should put the spongecake on the board. Cut the ends of the cake at a diagonal and use one or both cut pieces to make branches sitting next to the main log.

Cover the log with ganache, making a design on top with the tines of fork. Decorate with fondant pieces or meringue mushrooms, sugared cranberries, chocolate leaves, whatever you desire. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving, and allow to come to room temperature before cutting your first slice.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I advise you to go to Helen’s site to get all the details of making her cake. She uses a different method to deal with the sponge cake, and it does work like a dream. The cake is covered with aluminum foil as soon as it gets baked, and is allowed to cool like that. As a result, it steams during cooling and becomes very flexible. No harm to the texture of the cake in the finished product.

I have made a Buche de Noel in the past using a different recipe for the cake, but I am much happier with Helen’s version, that calls for a classic sponge cake. You can also find in her blog post a detailed recipe for the meringue mushrooms, which I did not use this time. They are fun to make, for sure.

I love making fondant pieces, so that is what I went with… I cannot show you a picture of the cut cake because I donated it whole, but I got very nice feedback about it, and that of course made me super happy!