As you know, I grew up in Milan, in Northern Italy. Milan is in a fantastic area, just in the middle of Europe, which made travelling very easy even in the pre-low-flight-era. My parents have always loved Paris, so we would go there at least once a year, usually before Christmas. So, I have had my share of Yule Logs (or as they are locally known, Bûches de Noël). I also made it once, when I was a teenager. However, I had not eaten it in a very long time, and this year I decided to make it at home. Well, it is much easier than you think. There are hundreds of versions around, many of which use buttercream… but I am a huge chocolate lover, so I thought a chocolate ganache would work better. And it did! This easy Chocolate Yule Log was a super hit! I filled the Genoise cake with chocolate ganache and then I also used it to cover the log. To decorate it, I used icing sugar and fondant, but you can really use anything you like. It makes for a fantastic Christmas dessert! Enjoy and Merry Christmas everyone!
Chocolate Yule Log
Ingredients
Chocolate Ganache
- 300 gms – 10 oz. dark chocolate chopped
- 300 ml – 1 ¼ cup heavy cream
- 60 gms – ¼ cup butter
Genoise Cake
- 4 egg yolks
- 4 egg whites
- 120 gms – 1 cup icing sugar
- 80 gms – 2/3 cup flour
- 40 gms – 1 ½ oz. almond meal
- Fondant Decorations
- Icing sugar
Instructions
Chocolate Ganache
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Heat the cream in a saucepan until almost boiling. Put the fire off and add the chocolate to it. Leave it, without mixing, for 5 to 10 minutes.
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Add the butter and stir well until melted and the ganache is smooth.
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Then put it in the fridge until it thickens.
Genoise Cake
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In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and almond meal. Keep aside.
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Whisk together the egg yolks and the icing sugar until white and fluffy.
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In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites until soft peaks.
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Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the yolk mixture. Make sure not to deflate the mixture.
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Gently fold in the sifted flour and almond meal. Again, make sure not to deflate the mixture.
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Pour the batter into an oven tray lined with baking paper. Make sure to have a thin layer (about 5mm – a little less than ¼ inch) of evenly distributed batter.
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Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180°C – 355°F for 10 minutes.
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When ready, roll it on itself while still warm. This will help you not to break it when you have to roll it later.
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Let it cook down completely rolled on itself. Then unroll it and spread it with some of the chocolate ganache.
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Roll it again on itself. Cut out a slice at a 45-degree angle. Using some chocolate ganache, attach the slice on the top of the cake, to make it look like a cut-out branch.
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Use the remaining chocolate ganache to cover the whole yule log. Use a fork to trace lines on it and decorate the yule log with icing sugar. I also made some snowflakes, stars and other decorations using fondant and edible silver glitter.
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