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–+ servings

Yule Log

Print Recipe
Servings 12

Ingredients
  

Chocolate Cake Roll

  • 4 large eggs room temperature
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • Pinch of salt
  • ⅓ cup all purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1-½ t grated orange peel

Orange Buttercream

  • 1-½ cups plus 1-½ tablespoons sugar
  • 1-½ cups water
  • 5 large egg yolks room temperature
  • 6 tablespoons Cointreau or other orange liqueur
  • 2-¼, cups 4-½ sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 4-½ tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate thawed
  • 4-½ ounces unsweetened chocolate melted and cooled

Chocolate Buttercream

  • ¾ cup plus ¾ tablespoons sugar
  • ¾ cup water
  • 3 large egg yolks room temperature
  • 3 T Cointreau or other orange liqueur
  • 2-¼ sticks unsalted butter room temperature
  • 2-¼ T frozen orange juice concentrate thawed
  • 2-¼ ounces unsweetened chocolate melted and cooled

Meringue Mushrooms

  • ¼ cup egg whites about 2 large
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 T sugar
  • 2 T powdered sugar
  • 1 T powdered sugar mixed with ¼ teaspoon egg white paste
  • Unsweetened cocoa powder

Assembly

  • ⅔ cup toasted macadamia nuts coarsely chopped
  • Fresh holly leaves
  • Whole cranberries

Instructions
 

Chocolate Cake Roll

  • Preheat oven to 400°F.
  • Line 11 x 17-½ inch jellyroll pan with parchment. Using electric mixer, beat eggs, yolk, sugar and salt at medium speed until stiff peaks form. Sift in flour and cocoa. Add orange peel; gently fold together. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake until cake is springy to touch and just begins to pull from sides of pan, about 7 minutes. Cut around edges to free cake. Transfer cake and parchment to another baking pan or work surface and let cool.

Chocolate and Orange Buttercreams

  • Bring sugar and water to boil in heavy medium saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves. Continue boiling without stirring until thermometer registers 240 °F (soft-ball stage), brushing down sides occasionally with damp brush.
  • Meanwhile, beat yolks with electric mixer until thickened. Add Cointreau. Gradually beat in hot syrup. Continue beating until bottom of bowl cools to room temperature, about 5 minutes. Add butter 3 tablespoons at a time, beating at medium speed after each addition until smooth. Mix in orange juice concentrate. Transfer 3-¼ cups buttercream to small bowl. Mix chocolate into remaining buttercream.

Meringue Mushrooms

  • Preheat oven to 150°F. Line baking sheet with parchment. Using electric mixer, beat whites and salt 1 minute to blend. Combine 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 tablespoons powdered sugar. Add to whites in 3 additions, beating for 20 seconds after each. Continue beating until meringue is stiff and glossy. Transfer mixture to pastry bag fitted with l/2 inch plain tip. Pipe about fifteen ½- to 1-inch domed rounds on prepared sheet for mushroom caps. Smooth top of each with damp finger. Pipe about fifteen ½ - to ¼ inch-high peaked mounds on prepared sheets for stems. Bake until meringues are dry and beginning to color, about 1-¾ hours. Let cool completely.
  • Using small knife, cut small hole in bottom of each mushroom cap. Dip peaked end of stem in sugar paste and push into hole in mushroom cap. Repeat with remaining stems and caps. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Store in airtight container.) Dust mushrooms with cocoa powder before serving.

Assembly

  • Invert cake onto sheet of plastic wrap. Carefully remove parchment. Spread orange buttercream over cake, leaving 1-inch border on one long side. Sprinkle with macadamias. Roll up jellyroll fashion, starting with long side and rolling toward side with uncovered border, using plastic wrap as aid.
  • Trim to make ends of roll even. Cut 2 inches off each end of roll at 45° angle. Transfer roll to platter using plastic as aid and arranging seam side down. Spread some chocolate buttercream on cut ends of 2-inch pieces. With buttercream touching cake, place one piece atop cake off center and the second on one long side of cake to resemble tree stumps. Transfer 1 cup chocolate buttercream to pastry bag fitted with inch plain tip. Spread remaining buttercream over cake. Pipe buttercream in spirals over ends of buche and stumps, starting at center of each. Run fork tines through buttercream to simulate bark. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 2 hours before serving.)
  • Arrange holly and cranberries decoratively on buche. Garnish with Meringue Mushrooms just before serving.