Buche de noel yule log cake with orange, chocolate and gingerbread
Spiced milk chocolate mousse, orange cream and madeleine sponge
Hello foodies,
it's time to start thinking about your Christmas yule log! We've fallen head over heels for the Lana buche mould from Silikomart. It looks like a thick ball of wool, and your guests are sure to be amazed when you unmould it.
For the flavour, we wanted something truly wintry: a spiced milk chocolate mousse with Gingerbread spice, a fresh orange cream as the filling and a moist madeleine sponge with hazelnut praline. Chocolate, orange and gingerbread, it doesn't get more festive than that!
The buche holds 1200 ml and serves 6 to 8 people. Plan 3 hours for the filling to set, one night for the finished buche and about 2 hours for preparation and baking. You'll find it most relaxed to spread the work over several days.
Ingredients
Orange cream (filling)
Madeleine sponge
Milk chocolate mousse
Step by step
Orange cream (filling)
Soak the gelatine and grate the orange
Soak 1/2 gelatine sheet in very cold water. Put 1 egg, 50 g sugar and the zest of one orange into a small saucepan. With a fine steel grater, you'll only pick up the aromatic orange peel and none of the bitter white pith.
RUF Gelatine sheets, 12 pieces
Steel grater
Add orange juice and heat
Squeeze one orange and add 40 g of juice. Whisk everything briefly. Then heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly with the Whisk so the egg doesn't set. Don't worry if it foams, that's completely normal.
Take off the heat at the first plop
As soon as the cream first goes "plop", take the pan off the heat immediately and keep stirring for another minute. In theory, the cream should reach 82 °C. With such a small quantity, however, the Thermometer isn't reliable, and the egg would overcook quickly. The plop trick works perfectly!
Squeeze out the soaked gelatine well, add it and stir everything thoroughly.
Stir in the aroma and butter
Stir 1 tsp of Mandarin liquid aroma into the cream with the Whisk. Once the cream is 60 °C or less, add 60 g of well-chilled butter and stir until it has completely melted. This makes the orange cream beautifully smooth and creamy.
Liquid aroma "Mandarin"
Fill the filling and freeze
Pour the cream into the small side (190 ml) of the multi-mould and place it on a perforated baking sheet in the freezer for at least 3 hours. You can make the filling several days ahead and keep it in the freezer.
Multi-mould for buche de noel
Aluminium perforated baking sheet 40 x 30 cm
Madeleine sponge
Cream the butter, sugar and baking soda
Weigh out 1.5 g baking soda. For such small amounts, a spoon scale helps enormously. Put the baking soda with 20 g brown sugar and 45 g soft butter into a large bowl and beat everything into a creamy mixture.
Baking soda 100g
Digital spoon scale
Add praline, egg and honey
Add 25 g hazelnut praline, 1 egg and 10 g honey. We used acacia honey, but you can use any honey you like. For such a small amount you don't have to make the praline yourself, the ready-made one from the shop does the job perfectly. Beat the mixture again until it is nice and homogeneous.
Hazelnut praline
Fold in flour and Gingerbread spice
Finally, add 50 g flour and 2 tsp Gingerbread spice and beat the mixture for 2 minutes this time. Preheat the oven to 200 °C fan.
Gingerbread spice, 60 g
Spread the batter in the sponge mat
Place the Jelly sponge silicone mat on a perforated baking sheet. This mat gives you an even thickness, and we also make jellies and bases for other desserts in it. Spread the batter evenly in the mat with an angled spatula.
Jelly sponge silicone mat - 33 cm
Aluminium perforated baking sheet 40 x 30 cm
Bake and let cool
Bake the sponge for 6 minutes in the oven preheated to 200 °C. Then turn it out onto a Cake rack and let it cool.
Cutting the sponge
Cut two strips from the cooled sponge: 23.5 × 6 cm for the base of the Bûche and 20 × 4 cm for the filling. Set the strips aside while you prepare the mousse.
Milk chocolate mousse
Soak the gelatine and melt the chocolate
Last stage before assembling! Soak 3.5 gelatine sheets in cold water. Melt 228 g milk chocolate in the microwave for about 2 minutes at 600 watts. We prefer Callebaut.
RUF Gelatine sheets, 12 pieces
Milk chocolate 33.6% 400g - Callebaut
Stir in the Gingerbread spice
Once the chocolate has fully melted, stir in 2 tsp Gingerbread spice with a dough scraper.
Gingerbread spice, 60 g
Bring the milk to a boil and dissolve the gelatine
Bring 158 g milk to the boil in a saucepan and take it off the heat. Squeeze out the gelatine, add it to the hot milk, let it melt for a few seconds and then mix everything well with the whisk.
Stir the ganache in three portions
Pour the hot milk over the chocolate in 3 portions and stir well after each one. This creates a nice emulsion: the ganache becomes glossy and does not separate.
Then let it cool to room temperature. It must have dropped to 26 to 30 °C before the cream is added.
Whip the cream lightly
Whip 298 g double cream only lightly: as soon as the whisk leaves tracks, it is perfect. If you whip it too stiff, the mousse will end up too dense. If your ganache is not yet at 26 to 30 °C, put the cream in the fridge until it is.
Fold the ganache into the cream
Once the ganache is at the right temperature, pour it over the cream in 3 to 4 portions. Always add a little chocolate first, fold gently with the dough scraper, then add the next portion. This way the cream does not collapse from the warmth, and you get a creamy, airy mousse. Place it in the fridge for a few minutes.
Assembling
Get everything ready
Now it's time to assemble! Get the Lana mold, the frozen orange insert, the mousse and the two sponge strips ready.
Silikonform "Lana"
Place the insert on the small sponge
Remove the orange cream from the mold and place it on the small sponge strip measuring 20 × 4 cm.
Fill with mousse and press in the insert
Pour about 3/4 of the mousse into the Lana mold. Tap the mold a few times on the work surface so air bubbles rise and the mousse flows into every groove of the mold. Then press the insert with the sponge firmly into the mousse.
Silikonform "Lana"
Cover and add the sponge base
Cover the insert with the remaining mousse using an Angled spatula, then place the large sponge strip measuring 23.5 × 6 cm on top.
Press down and freeze
Press the sponge down lightly so the mousse rises at the edges, and scrape off the excess cleanly. Then into the freezer for at least 8 hours.
This is really important: if you unmold the bûche too early, it will crack and you will see many small flaws. If your freezer has a shock-freeze function, feel free to use it before unmolding.
Unmolding and decorating
Unmold the Bûche
Once the Bûche is frozen through, loosen the mould all the way around the edge. This way it slides out much more easily.
Prepare the velvet spray
We chose to decorate with white velvet spray. Set up a turntable lined with baking paper, a tall box, two angled spatulas and the spray. Place the spray can in a measuring cup of warm tap water for 10 minutes. This brings the cocoa butter inside to the right temperature so it sprays optimally.
Velvet Effect Spray white, 150 ml
Cake turntable 28 cm
Spray the Bûche
The tall box protects your kitchen, because the spray mist goes everywhere and is hard to clean up. The baking paper protects the turntable. Spray the frozen Bûche from a distance of 15 to 20 cm. If you come closer, the velvet becomes too thick and looks less attractive.
Handy tip: the sprayed Bûche can go back into the freezer. To do so, pack it well in a Yule log box.
Velvet Effect Spray white, 150 ml
Plating and finishing with gold
Carefully lift the Bûche onto a Yule log base or a nice plate using one or two angled spatulas. A few gold leaves give it a super chic finishing touch. Let it thaw in the fridge for 6 to 8 hours before serving.
3 edible gold leaves 22 carat
5 gold boxes for Christmas Bûche 29 x 10 cm
Orange, chocolate and gingerbread buche de noel yule log cake
Ingredients
Orange cream (filling)
Madeleine sponge
Milk chocolate mousse
Decoration
Method
- Orange cream: Heat the egg, sugar, orange zest and 40 g juice while stirring, remove from the heat at the first bubble, stir in the gelatine and mandarin liquid aroma, whisk in cold butter at no more than 60 °C, pour into the multi-mould (190 ml), freeze for at least 3 hrs.
- Sponge: Beat the baking soda, brown sugar and butter until creamy, add praline, egg and honey, work in flour and gingerbread spice for 2 min., bake in the sponge mat for 6 min. at 200 °C fan, cut strips measuring 23.5 × 6 cm and 20 × 4 cm.
- Mousse: Melt the milk chocolate, add gingerbread spice, stir hot milk with gelatine in 3 portions, cool to 26 to 30 °C, fold into lightly whipped cream in 3 to 4 portions.
- Assembly: Place the filling on the small sponge, spread 3/4 of the mousse into the Lana mould, press in the filling, cover with mousse, place the large sponge on top, freeze for at least 8 hrs.
- Finish: Unmould while frozen, spray with white velvet spray, add edible gold leaf, thaw in the fridge for 6 to 8 hrs.
Nutrition per 100 g
Storage & shelf life
Everything for this recipe
Recommended by our bakery team: exactly the sizes this recipe was tested with.
Ingredients
RUF gelatine sheets, 12 pieces
Liquid aroma "Mandarin"
Baking soda 100g
Hazelnut praline
Gingerbread spice, 60 g
Milk chocolate 33.6% 400g, Callebaut
Velvet effect spray white, 150 ml
3 edible gold leaves 22 carat
Accessories
Silicone mold "Lana"
Multi-use mold for buche de noel yule log cake
Steel grater
Perforated aluminium sheet 40 x 30 cm
Digital spoon scale
Jelly and sponge silicone mat - 33 cm
Cake turntable 28 cm
5 gold boxes for buche de noel yule log cake 29 x 10 cm
Delivery in 1 to 2 working days · Free shipping from CHF 100
To make sure it turns out perfectly
With such a small amount of orange cream, the thermometer isn't reliable. Trust the first "plop" in the pot instead: then take it off the heat straight away and keep whisking for 1 minute, so the egg doesn't set.
The ganache should be 26 to 30 °C when you fold it in, otherwise the cream will collapse. And only whip the cream lightly: overwhipped cream makes the mousse dense instead of airy.
You'll find everything about moulds, fillings, unmoulding and Velvet spray in our Christmas bûche tips & tricks.
Frequently asked questions
Orange blossom liquid aroma works beautifully, or you can use a mandarin flavour paste. If you leave the aroma out altogether, the cream will still work, it just won't taste quite as intense.
You can replace the hazelnut praline with pistachio paste or almond purée. If you're allergic to all nuts, leave out the paste and flavour the sponge only with the Gingerbread spice.
Yes, both work. You can unmould the bûche, freeze it in a box and spray it a few days later. Or you can spray it straight away and freeze it again afterwards. The mousse handles freezing without any problems and stays airy. Just remember to allow 6 to 8 hours to thaw in the fridge.
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Comments
Question de Aline
By: Aline J. On 2024-12-18Bonjour,
J'ai fait la recette avec le biscuit brownies en fond (celui de la buche 3 chocolats). A chaque entremet que je fais, j'ai le même souci: Je la sors vers 8h-8h30, je la floque, je la mets au frigo et à 16h lorsqu'on veut la manger, l'insert est encore gelé. Cette année, j'aimerais la mettre à la cave après l'avoir floquée (espace non chauffé). Est-ce une bonne idée?
Merci beaucoup pour vos recette et le matériel
Replied by: Karin On 2024-12-19
Question de Amandine
By: Amandine C. On 2024-12-14Bonjour !
Je vais tester cette recette pour ce Noël ! Je n'ai pas d'arôme mandarine et je vois que vous êtes en rupture de stock !!! Avec quoi pourrais-je le remplacer ? Je ne sais pas où en trouver d'autre (j'en ai trouvé sur un autre site de pâtisserie mais également en rupture ... ) merci !
Replied by: Karin On 2024-12-16
Question de Aurélie
By: Aurélie V. On 2023-12-21Bonjour,
Je me demandais si on pouvait démouler la bûche sans la sprayer, la laisser au congélateur et la sprayer quelques jours plus tard?
En effet j aimerai faire 2 bûches mais je n ai qu un moule et je trouve plus facile de les sprayer en même temps...
Merci pour votre aide ?
Replied by: Karin On 2023-12-21
Question de Jenifer
By: Jenifer G. On 2023-12-15Bonjour !
Après de nombreuses recherches, je ne suis toujours pas sûre de bien comprendre la différence entre une mousse au chocolat et une ganache montée pour entremets.
J'essaie de composer une buche en y associant des composants de différentes recettes, mais je ne sais pas si pour ma bûche ce serait une ganache montée au chocolat (mascarpone) qui correspondrait le mieux ou une mousse au chocolat comme décrit ci-dessus, par exemple...
Merci d'avance pour votre réponse !
Replied by: Jenifer G. On 2023-12-15
Replied by: Cakelicious-Team On 2023-12-15
Réponse
By: Karin On 2022-12-23On peut bien mélanger la préparation mais il n'y a pas d'astuce cela va dépendre également de la préparation. Si celle-ci est plus épaisse, le zeste se mélangera plus.
Belles fêtes de fin d'année.
Question de Anne-Christine
By: Anne-Christine G. On 2022-12-23Bonjour, merci pour la recette ! En sortant l'insert du congel pour le montage j'ai remarqué que tout le zeste d'orange est resté au fond. Comment faire pour qu'il se disperse dans la masse et qu'il ne retombe pas lors de la congélation ?
Replied by: Karin On 2022-12-23
Replied by: Anne-Christine G. On 2022-12-23
Question de Karin
By: Karin D. On 2022-12-04Hello, pour ma toute première tentative en pâtisserie viens de faire cette recette .. je me suis régalé en la préparant tellement tout est délicieux !! Etant coeliaque, j'ai fait le biscuit avec de la farine sans gluten et il était parfait ! Merci pour vos conseils, pour une première suis trop fière de moi ?
Replied by: Laura On 2022-12-04
Question de Natacha
By: Natacha V. On 2021-12-18Bonjour, je souhaite faire cette recette en avance, la mousse ne risque pas de grainer ou être trop compacte à décongelation ? J'ai toujours peur de ça avec la gélatine. Merci d'avance pour votre réponse. Et j'en profite pour dire à Caroline Rion, que je la fais sans lactose, avec du chocolat noir étant moi même intolérante :)
Replied by: Karin On 2021-12-18
Replied by: Natacha V. On 2021-12-18
Question de Severine
By: Severine A. On 2021-12-11Bonjour ! Que pensez vous d'employer du chocolat dulcey au lieu du blanc? Les proportions de crème restent elles le mêmes? C'est la première fois que je vais employer du spray velours... Est-ce qu'on peut congeler la bûche une fois sprayée? Ou faut il sprayer au dernier moment. D'avance je vous remercie
Replied by: Karin On 2021-12-12
Question de Carole
By: Carole R. On 2021-11-24Bonjour, elle m’a l’air délicieuse cette bûche. Je suis tentée de la faire pour Noël mais j’ai deux personnes intolérantes au lactose. Est-il possible de faire ce genre de dessert sans lactose ?
Replied by: Laura On 2021-11-25
Question de Chantal
By: Chantal G. On 2020-12-20Bonjour,
Je n’ai pas d’arôme de mandarine pour mettre dans le crémeux orange, puis-je le remplacer par l’arôme de fleur d’oranger ou simplement ne pas mettre d’arôme?
Replied by: Karin On 2020-12-20
Question de Nadine
By: Nadine D. On 2020-12-07Bonjour, génial vos recettes! Je vais faire cette bûche également ce Noël, malheureusement je ne peux utiliser le pralin (allergie aux noisettes). Peut-on juste l'enlever ou faut-il le remplacer par autre chose? Par exemple le caramel au beurre salé de l'autre recette de bûche?
Replied by: Karin On 2020-12-07
Replied by: Nadine D. On 2020-12-09