Yule Log

Yule Log or Buche de Noel is a distinctive old traditional cake made to celebrate Christmas and the winter solstice simulating the burning of a wooden log in the hearth. This is a very popular cake for a Christmas buffet.

Ingredients

Chocolate sponge sheet

Chocolate buttercream
Coconut
Green colour
Meringue mushroom
Strawberries
Cocoa powder
Icing sugar
Dark chocolate

Method

Make a chocolate sponge sheet and allow cooling. Turn the sponge upside down on a piece of baking paper and remove the paper the sponge has been baked on. Spread chocolate buttercream evenly on the sponge sheet and roll up to make a Swiss roll. Cut the roll into 1 long and 2 short pieces. Place the long piece in the middle of the serving plate and adjoin the other 2 smaller pieces with chocolate buttercream. Cover the log with chocolate buttercream and scrape with a pastry comb. Place the meringue mushrooms on the plate next to the log. Place some coconut in a plastic bag with some green colour and mix until it has an appearance like green grass. Place this around the log with some chocolate and strawberries. Finely dust with some icing sugar.

Note: This is a family style cake, however with addition of other flavours like cognac to the buttercream, it becomes more adult orientated.