Enjoy our Hazelnut Yule Log Cake this holiday season! This delightful Bûche de Noël is a quick and easy gourmet dessert, featuring a soft chocolate sponge cake, luscious hazelnut whipped ganache, and a crispy chocolate feuilletine crunch layer.
Perfect for Christmas celebrations and year-end gatherings.
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What is a bûche de Noël ?
The Christmas Yule Log, or "Bûche de Noël," is a cherished French holiday dessert traditionally enjoyed on Christmas Eve.
This delightful treat consists of a delicate, thin sponge cake filled with a velvety cream or ganache, and expertly rolled to resemble a festive wood log, creating a delightful visual and culinary experience.
Why you'll love this recipe
This hazelnut yule log cake is made of a chocolate Viennese sponge cake which, unlike the classic chocolate sponge, is made with egg whites separated from the yolks and then folded into the other ingredients when they are whipped. This gives a softer texture that is more often used in roll cake recipes.
It is also filled and decorated with a delicious and creamy hazelnut whipped ganache, a very easy to make recipe made with white chocolate, heavy cream and hazelnut praline paste.
And the whole thing rests on a layer of chocolate pailleté feuilletine that brings a crunchy touch to this holiday dessert!
Craving for more Christmas desserts? Give these a try: Triple Chocolate Yule Log, Christmas Rocher Log, Gingerbread Village Layer Cake, Gingerbread Christmas Cake, Candy cane pie, Chocolate Christmas tree cupcakes.
Ingredients you need
*You'll find quantities and full instructions in the recipe card at the end of this page.
Chocolate Viennese sponge
- Eggs: Use fresh eggs at room temperature for the best results.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar works well to sweeten the cake.
- Vanilla: Vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste adds a lovely flavor to the cake.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is typically used for this recipe.
- Cocoa: Unsweetened cocoa powder provides the chocolate flavor in the cake.
Praline White chocolate frosting
- Praline paste: This paste is a mixture of almond and hazelnut paste and adds a delightful nutty flavor to the ganache.
- White chocolate: Use high-quality white chocolate with a high cocoa butter content for a less sugary taste and a smoother texture.
- Heavy cream: Use full-fat heavy cream for a rich and creamy ganache.
Feuilletine crunch
- Praline paste: This adds a nutty flavor to the crunch and is a key ingredient.
- Crepe dentelle (Feuilletine flakes): These delicate, crispy flakes provide a wonderful texture and crunch to the dessert.
- Chocolate: The melted chocolate serves as a binding agent and adds a delicious chocolatey taste to the crunch.
Materials you need
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Chocolate sponge
- In the large bowl of a stand mixer, place the egg yolks and sugar, and beat at medium speed for 2-3 minutes until you obtain a homogeneous and shiny mixture.
- Gently fold in the egg whites that were previously beaten with an electric mixer.
- Finish by incorporating the flour mixture through a fine sieve, consisting of flour and cocoa, and mix with a spatula until you get a homogeneous batter.
Baking
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F) and prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Spread the cake batter on the parchment paper and smooth it out using a spatula to create an even layer over the entire surface.
- Bake in the oven for approximately 8-10 minutes, then let it cool slightly before gently removing the biscuit and placing it on a clean sheet of parchment paper.
Praline ganache
- Heat half of the heavy cream with the hazelnut praline until it boils, then pour it over the previously chopped white chocolate and mix with a spatula to emulsify.
- Then, add the remaining heavy cream, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Before assembling the log, whip it with a whisk to obtain a smooth whipped cream ganache.
Chocolate feuilletine crunch
- In a bowl, place all the ingredients: crêpes dentelles (crispy lace crepes) crumbled, hazelnut praline, and melted chocolate.
- Mix with a tablespoon until you get a homogeneous mixture.
- Spread the feuilletine preparation on a sheet of parchment paper to form a rectangle with the same dimensions as the log and place it in the refrigerator to cool.
Assemble the cake roll
- Trim the edges using a large knife and let it cool for about 10 minutes.
- Fill the inside with the ganache, applying an even layer over the entire biscuit.
- Roll the biscuit lengthwise, squeezing as tightly as possible to close the log.
- Cover the rolled cake with parchment paper or a kitchen towel and secure it to maintain its shape.
- Place it in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before decorating the outside with the remaining hazelnut praline ganache.
How to decorate the Yule log
Traditional logs are usually decorated with a simple chocolate ganache that you can scratch with a fork to replicate the texture of a wooden log. Here I simply decorated with chocolate curls, cocoa powder and confectioner's sugar to give a snowy effect.
Other ideas for decorating :
- Homemade meringue cookies in the shape of mushrooms etc.
- Sugar decorations
- Gingerbread Christmas cookies
- Seasonal fruits
- Chocolate decorations, stars, Christmas trees, shavings, etc.
- Crushed Hazelnut
- Sugared cranberries and rosemary
Storage and Freeze
Fridge: Store in the fridge, wrapped in cling film or in a tin, for 3-4 days.
Freezing: You can keep it up to 3 months in the freezer, well wrapped in plastic wrap or cut into portions in conservation bags or a box. Leave it in the fridge overnight.
Tips for this recipe
- Rolling the log: Roll the log in a kitchen towel while it's still warm to help it keep its shape and prevent it from cracking during the rolling process.
- Whipping the ganache: Use an electric mixer to whip the ganache, keeping an eye on its texture to avoid it becoming grainy.
- Chill before decorating: After filling and rolling the log, let it set in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before trimming the ends and moving on to decorating the outside.
Recipe Variations
Buche chocolat praliné: Replace the white chocolate praliné ganache with a milk chocolate ganache or a chocolate ganache with homemade praliné.
More Hazelnut Recipes
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Hazelnut Yule log cake (Bûche de Noël)
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings
Description
Delicious recipe for a homemade Buche de Noël (yule log), easy and quick to make with a chocolate sponge cake, a hazelnut praline whipped ganache and a chocolate praline crisp (for 8-10 serving)
Ingredients
Whipped hazelnut praline ganache
- 150 g (1 cup) White chocolate
- 300 ml (1 ¼ cups) Heavy cream - divided in 2 - Full fat
- 75 g Hazelnut praline paste
Viennese chocolate sponge cake
- 4 Eggs - room temperature
- 100 g (½ cup) Sugar - granulated
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 60 g (½ cup) Flour - all-purpose
- 30 g (¼ cup) Cocoa powder - bitter and unsweetened
Instructions
Crunchy hazelnut praline
- Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix with a wooden spoon until smooth.
- Spread the mixture on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper to a thickness of about 5 mm in the shape of a large rectangle
- Place in the fridge to firm up the praline crisp then cut with a large knife to obtain a rectangle of about 4 inch / 10 cm wide by 12 inch / 30 cm long.
Whipped hazelnut Praline ganache
- Chop the white chocolate finely with a knife and place it in a container.
- Place half of the heavy cream with the praline paste in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
- Pour it all at once over the white chocolate and mix with a wooden spoon or spatula until the mixture is liquid and smooth without lumps.
- Add the other half of the heavy cream and mix, cover with cling film and place in the fridge for one night (or 1 hour in the freezer)
- Before assembling, place the cold ganache in the bowl of a mixer and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes until you have a smooth ganache.
Viennese chocolate sponge cake
- In a bowl, mix together the cocoa powder and flour.
- Preheat the oven to 355°F / 180°C and prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Separate the egg whites from the yolks and whisk them with an electric whisk until stiff and set aside.
- In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and vanilla for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add ⅓ of the stiffly beaten whites and fold in with a spatula.
- Add the dry ingredients, flour and cocoa through a sieve and fold in gently with a spatula.
- Finish by adding the remaining egg whites and fold in gently with a spatula.
- Pour the batter onto your parchment paper-lined baking sheet and spread in an even layer along the length of the sheet.
- Bake for about 8 to 10 min max and let cool slightly for a few minutes.
- Gently peel the soft chocolate sponge off the parchment paper and place it on a clean sheet of parchment paper.
- Trim the edges with a knife to make a straight rectangle and let it cool for a few more minutes.
- Garnish the inside of the chocolate sponge with a layer of whipped ganache spread over the entire surface and roll the log lengthwise as tightly as possible and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Place the log on a dish or baking tray and cover entirely with ganache and decorate with chocolate shavings.
Notes
Conservation: about 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: bundt cake, Dessert
- Cuisine: american
Nutrition
- Calories: 333
- Sugar: 26
- Sodium: 52
- Fat: 21
- Saturated Fat: 12
- Carbohydrates: 34
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 6
- Cholesterol: 110
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