Masterclass
Bûche de Noël
Y
ou have to be a little bit cake-obsessed to make a Bûche de Noël. Like any worthwhile project, this dessert requires several steps. But if you enjoy baking, this holiday centrepiece is sure to put you in a festive mood. Who can resist a light chocolate sponge cake rolled-up with coffee buttercream, crunchy bits of toffee, and dark chocolate ganache, then decorated with chocolate “bark” and fanciful meringue “mushrooms”? (No one will guess how easily these edible garnishes came together.) This distinctive cake is a nod to the yule log, a traditional centrepiece for fireside gatherings and Christmas celebrations. Steeped in ceremony and superstition, the yule log’s fabled history is as diverse as it is quirky. From anointing the wood with holy water, or wine, to believing it would bring bad luck if it didn’t catch fire during the first lighting, the yule log was a solstice ritual. My favourite narrative credits the log for burning away the past year’s mistakes and bringing a fresh start to the new one. A Bûche de Noël might not unravel the year’s blunders, but it’s sure to delight family and friends. And with a bit of planning, you’ll be pleasantly surprised how easily each component comes together. It’s essentially a sheet-pan sponge cake, made with whipped egg whites and (separately) whipped yolks, and gently folded together with pastry flour. While the cake is still warm, it’s rolled-up in a tea towel to help maintain its shape. 28 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021
R ECIPE + T E X T
S T Y L ING + PHO T OGR A PH Y
Denise Marchessault
Deb Garlick
What makes this Bûche de Noël so special is the sumptuous coffee buttercream, a filling that smacks of French patisserie. Authentic buttercream has a luxurious mouthfeel (unlike the thick powered-sugar frostings that sometimes bear the same name). To make buttercream, sugar is heated in a saucepan until it liquefies and reaches 235-240°F, and then poured into whipped egg yolks. While this might sound complicated, it’s only a matter of clipping a candy thermometer to the side of your saucepan to gauge the temperature. Once the mixture cools, butter and coffee extract are added. For a delicious textural contrast, the buttercream is studded with bits of chopped toffee. I used chopped Skor bars but occasionally you can find chopped toffee in bulk bins. The log is covered in dark chocolate ganache and garnished with paper-thin chocolate “bark” for a double-chocolate punch. The bark is made by spreading melted chocolate onto a sheet of parchment and rolling the parchment up. Once the chocolate cools, it’s peeled from the parchment into lovely, curved shards. Mushroom meringue garnishes are easily created with a pastry bag: a little dab of meringue for the mushroom “cap” and a smaller dab for the “stem.” The meringue is baked in a low oven until crisp, and the caps and stems are joined together with a bit of chocolate ganache. There’s nothing like a holiday baking project to put you in a festive mood. And a Bûche de Noël could be the start of a new Christmas tradition.