The log is generally eaten on December 24, during the Christmas meal.
The cake was born around 1870.
Several pastry chefs are fighting over paternity.
But it seems they had the idea at the same time for a wrap that looks like a log.
Previously, Christmas desserts were very rich in ingredients, such as mince pies or pudding in the UK, stollen in Germany or panettone in Italy.
But beware, the star Christmas dessert has its own history, spanning over several millennia.
Why a log?
The origin is linked to the winter solstice.
For the longest night of the year, a huge log was being burned.
The log was carried by the eldest and youngest of the family.
There was quite a ceremony.
The log could burn from Christmas Eve only or until Epiphany depending on the region.
Here I give you the log recipe that I make every year for Christmas.
Ingredients for the roll cake
½ cup of sugar
5 eggs
1 cup of flour
1 tsp of vanilla sugar
Ingredients for the cream
½ cup of sugar
3 eggs yolks
¾ cup of black chocolate
Half cup of water
0.07 oz of coffee extract
1 cup of soft butter
Equipment
A robot (if you don't have a robot, your hands and arms will do just fine)
A spatula
2 bowls
A mixer
Two rectangular plates or one rectangular plate and a drip pan
An oven
A towel
A whip
Recipe steps
To make the cake, here are the different steps:
Separate the whites and yolks of 4 eggs.
Beat the egg whites with a mixer.
Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
Mix 4 egg yolks with the sugar and vanilla sugar
When the mixture is creamy, add a whole egg.
Mix for a few minutes with a spatula or food processor.
Gradually add the flour to the mixture.
Lightly add the egg whites.
Put a baking paper, lightly buttered, on a rectangular plate,
Roll out the dough evenly.
Put the baking sheet in the oven and cook for 10 minutes.
Take the cake out of the oven.
Turn the cake over on a cold surface, without removing the foil, and cover it with a cloth softened by the steam (it will be easier to roll).
To make the buttercream, here are the different steps:
Melt the sugar in the water over low heat to obtain a thick syrup.
Slowly pour the hot syrup over the egg yolks, stirring constantly with a whisk, until completely cool.
Add the softened butter in ointment.
Mix to obtain a smooth cream.
Divide the preparation in half.
Flavor one half with coffee, the other half with chocolate melted in a little water.
Log Assembly
To assemble the log, you must:
Remove the baking paper from the cake.
Spread with coffee cream, and roll everything lengthwise.
Equalize the ends. The dough, which will remain, will be used to make "knots" for the decoration of the log.
Cover the log with chocolate cream.
Add the "knots" for the decoration of the log.
Mimic the bark using a fork gently pulled lengthwise. Decorate as you wish.
Keep cool
We wish you a very happy Christmas, hoping to see you again or meet you soon.
We are always happy to receive your comments and photos, so please don't hesitate!
If you come to my place for an immersion stay in Provence, I will make you discover the different aspects of Provence: the landscapes and the scents, but also the culture, the gastronomy... while helping you to improve your French. See you soon in Provence!
Virginie In Provence