Yule Log Cake

The main ingredients for this cake are a sponge cake baked on a cookie sheet, and chocolate butter cream frosting.  You can get elaborate with decorating your cake by adding meringue mushrooms, chocolate ganache for lettering and real greenery to surround your cake for presentation.  

Take out all your ingredients, especially the eggs and butter, for both the cake and the chocolate butter cream frosting while you read over your recipe and prepare your work areas.

Sponge Cake Ingredients:

¾ cup sifted cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
¼ cup milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 eggs
¾ cup sugar

Cookie sheet with edge (inside dimensions 10x15”) and waxed or parchment paper for baking.  Cool cake on a cooling rack lined with aluminum foil or another cookie sheet that is the same size and inverted, lined with foil.

Step 1:  Put milk and butter in small pan and heat on “Low” while preparing the other ingredients.

Step 2:  Sift cake flour and baking powder three times.

Step 3:  Mix together the sugar and four eggs.  I use a hand held mixer for approximately ten to fifteen minutes.  I usually check on the milk and butter mixture during this time and shut off the burner, once the butter has melted and then keep it on the burner to keep it warm.

Step 4:  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Step 5:  Using a sieve, sprinkle one third of the flour mixture over the egg and sugar mixture and fold in using a spatula.  Fold the remaining two thirds of the flour mixture, separately using the sieve to sprinkle over the sugar mixture and folding in.

Step 6:  Pour in the hot milk and butter mixture all at once into the flour mixture and use a spatula to scrape any remaining butter and milk from the pan.  Fold the milk mixture into the flour mixture until combined.

Step 7:  Line your cookie sheet with the waxed paper and pour the batter into the pan.  Using a spatula, make sure the batter reaches all the corners and is evenly distributed.

Step 8:  Bake for eight to 10 minutes, depending on your oven.  Do not over bake!  I usually bake it for nine minutes with my oven.  Insert a toothpick and see if it comes out clean.  (The cake will be somewhat moist and should be flexible.)  If you over baked your cake, you will need to brush on a simple syrup, recipe follows step 10.

Step 9:  Once out of the oven place your aluminum foil for cooling on top of the cake and invert cake on top of cooling rack or inverted cookie sheet.  Take cookie sheet used for baking the cake off.  Leave paper on cake until the cake is completely cooled.

Step 10:  Let the cake completely cool while preparing sugar syrup and chocolate butter cream.

Simple Syrup Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup water
¼ tsp. cream of tartar
Dash of vanilla extract, if desired.

Step 1:  Cook ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring continuously until sugar is dissolved.

Step 2:  Cover and simmer gently for about two minutes.

Step 3:  Cool syrup, add dash of extract if desired.

Step 4:  Gently peel off waxed or parchment paper from back of cake and leave loosely on top.  Using a cookie sheet invert the cake right side up with aluminum foil still attached.

Step 5:  Gently peel off the aluminum foil.  This should remove the lightly browned skin of the cake.

Step 6:  Brush the cake using a pastry brush or a small rubber spatula.

Step 7:  Cover loosely with the used foil while preparing the chocolate butter cream.



Chocolate Butter Cream Frosting/Filling Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
½ cup water
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
2 large eggs
3 sticks of unsalted butter
6 ounces semisweet mini chocolate chips (use any remaining chocolate for ganache      decoration)
2 tablespoons of water or freshly brewed coffee

Large heat proof bowl and skillet with about 1” water for mixing on stove.  Small sauce pan for making sugar syrup.  Small bowl for mixing chocolate and water or coffee.  I use water since most children do not like the coffee flavor, but the brewed coffee brings out the chocolate flavor in combination with the cake.  Candy thermometer.

Step 1:  Combine sugar, ½ cup water and teaspoon of cream of tartar in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer on medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.  Cover and simmer for two minutes.  Remove lid and boil until temperature reaches 225 degrees.  While syrup is cooking, prepare eggs.

Step 2:  Mix on high in large heat proof bowl, 2 large eggs.  While mixing eggs, bring large skillet with about 1 inch of water to a simmer on the stove.  Keep an eye on the candy syrup temperature.  The eggs will take about five to ten minutes to double or triple in volume.

Step 3:  Once syrup has reached 225 degrees, pour into the eggs in a steady stream, beating on high speed with a hand held mixer.  Once incorporated, put the egg mixture into the skillet of simmering water and using a hand whisk beat the egg mixture until the temperature reaches about 155 degrees.  I usually turn up the stove temperature to medium high.

Step 4:  The egg mixture now is cooled down to room temperature by whisking by hand for about ten minutes on top of a cooling rack.

Step 5:  Incorporate the three sticks of butter by hand whisking (or using the hand held mixer on low,) one to three tablespoons at a time.

Step 6:  Melt the six ounces of chocolate in the microwave with the two tablespoons of water or brewed coffee.  Microwave for about five to ten seconds and stir.  Do this about two times until chocolate is melted.  If you don’t have a microwave, put the chocolate in a heat proof bowl and rest the bowl over a small sauce pan of simmer water and stir until the chocolate is melted and mixed with the water or coffee.

Step 7:  Mix chocolate with butter cream mixture.

Cake Assembly: 

Step 1:  Spread chocolate butter cream onto cake, without going to the edge.

Step 2:  Gently roll cake, starting on the short side of the cake.

Step 3:  Roll cake in waxed paper and place in freezer for approximately twenty to thirty minutes.

Step 4:  Cut ends of cake at an angle place around or on top of cake in order to look like branches.

Step 5:  Frost outside of cake with remaining butter cream frosting and use a fork to make ridges of bark.  Put frosted cake in the freezer for approximately twenty minutes to solidify frosting.  Cover with plastic wrap, making sure it is completely sealed.

 

Step 6:  Use melted semisweet chocolate and water or ganache to write message, if desired.  Keep cake freezer until one hour before serving.

 

 

 

References:  Yule Log recipe based upon Buche de Noel recipe in All New All Purpose Joy of Cooking, Irma and Marion Rombauer, and Ethan Becker copyright 1997.

 

Date Published: 2008-01-02 09:49:34

Section: Food and Recipes, Photos: Yule Log Cake 8,