One of the best times of the year for those with a sweet tooth is Christmas, without a doubt. We can find a very wide and varied assortment, so that it is totally impossible not to feel satisfied. I include myself, because I have a sweet tooth.

When it comes to presenting desserts during these days, there is a classic that never fails and with which we will always look great, the famous Christmas log or Yule Log . This dessert has many advantages, starting from the fact that it is a very simple preparation to carry out, which allows us to prepare it in advance and, in addition, it is very versatile. Without forgetting that we can transport it to the house of friends or relatives knowing that it will arrive in perfect condition.

In my case I leave you with a filling of mascarpone cream and cherry, but you can change it for another if you wish; Pastry cream, Chantilly, cream with cocoa, coffee, caramel, nougat... The option that you like the most. The decoration is very simple and showy, it will give us little work. Something that is very important during these days, especially if we have to prepare dinners or meals at home.

Origin of the Christmas Trunk

The origin of this elaboration dates back to the pre-Christian tradition in which they burned a large trunk of wood, preferably fruit trees, to celebrate the winter solstice. The fire fueled the energy to start the new year, thus driving away the darkness that could haunt our lives.

To do this ritual, some specific steps had to be followed. The trunk had to be lit by the oldest or youngest member of the family and, on some occasions, it is carried out with ashes from the trunk burned from the previous year. This must burn for at least 3 days and during that period it must be watered with wine, oil or water.

This custom, so peculiar, was recovered by the Catholic Church and incorporated into the Christmas rituals.

In the S. XIX, with the arrival of stoves in homes, caused the tradition to be modified and this log of firewood was replaced by a dessert that simulated it, thus giving rise to the Christmas log

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 120 g of loose pastry flour
• 20 g cornstarch
• 5 L eggs (whites and yolks separated)
• 150g sugar
• 60g whole milk
• 80 g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 5 g of chemical yeast or impeller
• a pinch of salt

For the mascarpone and cherry cream:

• 200g mascarpone cheese
• 200 g of liquid cream to mount
• 90g cherry jam
• A few drops of cherry or sour cherry extract (optional)
• 4-5 candied cherries, chopped

For the chocolate ganache:

• 200 g of pure dark chocolate
• 135 g of liquid cream to mount

To decorate:

• fresh currants
• Rosemary sprigs, dill, fresh carrot stems/leaves…
• Pineapples and candles (optional)
• Golden sprinkles with Christmas motifs

Preparation

We prepare the cake

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC with heat up and down.
2. Line the 25 x 38 x 2.5 cm KitchenAid rectangular tray with baking paper, set aside. To encourage the paper to adhere, we will spread the tray with a little butter or release spray .
3. We sift the flour together with the Cornstarch, the chemical yeast and the salt. We booked.
4. We separate the yolks from the whites. We booked.
5. Beat the yolks together with the milk and the melted and cooled butter in a bowl .
6. Add the flour mixture to the yolk mixture. Mix until smooth and reserve.
7. We mount the egg whites, at the moment they begin to foam, we begin to integrate the sugar little by little until adding all of it. We will beat, gradually increasing the speed without reaching the maximum, until we obtain a meringue with soft peaks. We must not whip the egg whites to obtain a firm and dry meringue.
8. Once we have the meringue ready, we begin to incorporate it into the mixture of yolks and flour that we prepared previously. We will do it in batches and with soft and enveloping movements.

Pour into the pan and bake

1. Pour the mixture into the baking tray and smooth the surface with a spatula or scraper .
2. Place in the oven at medium height and bake for 17-18 minutes.
3. Remove, unmold and let cool on a rack.

Set of 5 KitchenAid metal pans , KitchenAid floral white ceramic bowl and set of 3 Küchenprofi scrapers .

We prepare the mascarpone and cherry cream

* The cream must be at least 24 hours in the cold.

* The bowl where we mount the cream must be cold. I recommend using an aluminum one and putting it in the freezer for 20 minutes before preparing to whip the cream.

1. Let's pour the jam together with the mascarpone cheese in the KitchenAId bowl and mix with the rod.
2. Add the cream and mix again with the rod, we will do it at medium high speed.
3. We beat until we obtain a full-bodied cream. Be careful not to over beat or we will make butter.
4. Transfer the cream to a bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.

We prepare the cake to roll

1. Carefully remove the parchment paper and prepare a new one.
2. We cut the ends of the cake to obtain a clean result.
3. Spread the mascarpone cream and cherries on the surface with the help of a spatula. We must have a greater amount of filling in the part of the cake that we will begin to roll. And, as we move forward arranging the filling towards the part that will be the final part of the roll, we will reduce the thickness of the filling. In this way we will avoid that when rolling it, we will have a surplus of cream in the final area.
4. Arrange the chopped candied cherries on the cherry and mascarpone cream.
5. We carefully roll up on itself. Once it is rolled up, we stretch the paper and use the scraper to adjust and tighten the roll.
6. Roll up in parchment paper, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 2-3 hours or overnight.

SECOND DAY:

We prepare the chocolate ganache

1. Chop the dark chocolate, reserve.
2. In a saucepan add the liquid cream, place over medium heat and let it come to a gentle boil.
3. Remove from the heat, add the chopped chocolate and let stand for 2 minutes.
4. With the help of a few rods we mix until we achieve a homogeneous and silky texture.
5. Pour into a bowl, cover with cling film and let cool.
6. Once cool, store in the fridge for 1-2 hours. We must achieve a spreadable consistency, but not hard. If we let it cool too much, it will take too much consistency and we won't be able to spread it on the Christmas log.

Cover with the chocolate ganache

1. We cut the ends of the roscón to give it a “cleaner” finish. In my case I cut a little more to be able to adjust it to the tray that I was going to use to present it. De Buyer Baking Mat
2. With the help of a spatula, we cover the entire Christmas log with the chocolate ganache.
3. We will try to be careful when covering the lower part trying to do the best possible.
4. As you spread the ganache over the surface, it will solidify. If you wish, you can grate the surface with the help of a fork to give the trunk more texture. In my case I gave texture with the help of the spatula.

De Buyer Baking Mat

We decorate the Christmas trunk

1. We put fresh currants, dill leaves and carrot stems (to simulate the leaves) on the trunk. You can use rosemary if you wish.
2. We can place some pineapple if we wish too and some golden sprinkles with Christmas motifs.
3. We stick some candles on the surface and light them.
4. We serve.

GRADES:

• We must be very careful when integrating the meringue into the dough to avoid lowering it and obtaining a very fluid dough that, in addition, will not have such a spongy result.
• If we do not have this baking tray, we can pipe the dough with the help of a pastry bag on a perforated tray, previously lined with baking paper.
• It is not necessary to roll the cake once cooked. The result is a very elastic cake that will allow us to roll it up without fear of cracking.
• If we wish, we can soak the sponge cake with a little syrup, even with a light touch of rum.
• The filling is completely optional, you can adapt it to your tastes.
• Keep an eye on the ganache when you refrigerate it to get the right consistency to coat the log. If we leave it too long, it can harden too much.
• The chocolate coating will help preserve the juiciness and tenderness of the cake.
• We can keep it, refrigerated, for 2-3 days.

A dessert with which you will undoubtedly surprise your friends and family, this Christmas log is a great option to end a meal, dinner or even to enjoy in the middle of the afternoon.

If you dare to prepare it, we will love to know how it went for you!