Last week, I was telling you about the 2 latest Yule logs I’d made, which were enjoyed with my colleagues at school: a pear and speculoos Yule log and a Dulcey, maple and pecan Yule log. Only having time to publish one of the 2 recipes before Christmas, I asked you which was your favourite recipe, and it was the Dulcey, maple and pecan Yule log that won over your taste buds (well, mostly your eyes :P).
Apologies in advance to all those who voted for the pear and speculoos Yule log, you’ll have to be (very) patient…
And it was on Instagram that I asked you to help me find a little name for this dessert (I’m really not good at that). Thank you all for your ideas and in particular to Emilie from the blog Entremets et délices who suggested “la Dulcérable”, which I really liked.
To make this dessert, I really wanted to use my latest Silikomart insert mould, which is really handy since it is made up of 2 parts. Either you choose to make a small insert with the small mould, or to make a large insert with the large mould or, like me, to use both and make a double insert (nice when you cut into it, isn’t it?).I thought about this recipe for a long time, I wanted to use pecan and Dulcey chocolate, which I love enormously, and then after some thought, I added a third flavour, maple, which I had discovered 2 years ago with Pascal Lac’s “la Canadienne” Yule log. That said, I had been a little disappointed when tasting it, it was too strong in maple for me as I was discovering this flavour. The guests, on the other hand, had loved it! Here, the maple is present but knows how to stay discreet, and all the flavours can express themselves.A few recommendations/tips:
- The pecan is very much present (personally, I love it) but if you want it to be a little more discreet, you can leave out the pure pecan praline inside the Yule log.
- If you’re more of a maple fan, you can adapt this recipe and swap the Dulcey and maple mousses. Simply halve the quantities for the Dulcey mousse and double those for the maple mousse. The Dulcey mousse will then be in the insert and the maple mousse on the outside.
I used the maple and pecan crémeux recipe from the blog La cuisine de Déborah.
So here is the last recipe on the blog before Christmas. I hope you’ll find what you’re looking for among all the recipes on the blog. Don’t hesitate to come back to the blog and leave me a comment telling me what you thought of it ????
I wish you a very happy festive season and a very merry Christmas!
Ingredients & preparation
8 components · Full recipe
Pecan Praline (approx. 200 g (7.1 oz) of praline, can be made in advance)
Ingredients
- 150 g (5.3 oz) of pecans
- 100 g (3.5 oz) of sugar
- 25 g (0.9 oz) of water
- 1 pinch of fleur de sel
Method
1
Toast the pecans in the oven for approximately 10–15 minutes at 150°C / 300°F.
2
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the water and sugar to the boil. At 116°C / 241°F, remove from the heat, pour the nuts onto the liquid sugar and stir so the sugar coats all the nuts. The mixture will turn whitish — this is normal.
3
Return to a medium heat and stir until the sugar liquefies again and caramelises (this can take a little time). You must not stop stirring, to prevent the nut mixture from burning.
4
At the end of the cooking time, the nuts should be shiny and have taken on a lovely auburn colour. Spread them out on greaseproof paper and leave to cool.
5
Once completely cool, break up the nut slab and place it in a food processor with the fleur de sel.
6
Blend, pausing regularly (to prevent the paste from overheating), until a praline consistency is achieved. The longer you blend the mixture, the more liquid it will become. You can therefore choose between an “old-fashioned” praline with a little texture or a very smooth praline.
7
Transfer to an airtight jar and store at room temperature. It will keep for 3 weeks.
Maple and Pecan Cremeux (to be made the day before)
Ingredients
- 40 g (1.4 oz) of full-fat liquid cream
- 60 g (2.1 oz) of milk
- 30 g (1.1 oz) of pecans
- 2 egg yolks
- 20 g (0.7 oz) of maple syrup
- 2 g (0.1 oz) of powdered gelatine (1 sheet)
- 12 g (0.4 oz) of water (to rehydrate the gelatine)
Method
1
Rehydrate the gelatine in the water.
2
In a small saucepan, heat the milk and cream with the pecans until boiling.
3
Pour into a tall container and blend with a hand blender, then strain through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the pecans.
4
Return the resulting cream to a small saucepan and heat over a medium heat.
5
In a bowl, mix the egg yolks with the maple syrup.
6
Pour the contents of the saucepan over the egg yolk and maple syrup mixture, mix well with a whisk and return everything to the heat.
7
Cook to 83°C / 181°F, stirring constantly with a spatula, making small figure-of-eight movements. Take care not to let the cream boil (you risk scrambling the eggs).
8
Off the heat, add the rehydrated gelatine and stir.
9
Strain through a fine-mesh sieve again to remove any lumps.
10
Fill the smaller of the 2 moulds with the cremeux and freeze for at least 2 hours.
Maple Mousse (to be made the day before)
Ingredients
- 105 g (3.7 oz) + 30 g (1.1 oz) of full-fat liquid cream
- 40 g (1.4 oz) of maple sugar
- 50 g (1.8 oz) of mascarpone
- 3 g (0.1 oz) of powdered gelatine
- 18 g (0.6 oz) of water (to rehydrate the gelatine)
Method
1
Rehydrate the gelatine in cold water.
2
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the 105 g (3.7 oz) of liquid cream with the maple sugar and mascarpone. Whisk, gradually increasing the speed, until a slightly firm (but not too firm) cream is obtained.
3
Meanwhile, heat the remaining 30 g (1.1 oz) of liquid cream in the microwave for a few seconds. Add the rehydrated gelatine and mix well.
4
Gradually add the gelatine cream to the whipped cream, stirring gently with a spatula.
5
Fill the larger of the 2 moulds halfway with the maple mousse, then press in the frozen maple and pecan cremeux insert. Press down lightly to bring the mousse up the sides, then top up with the remaining mousse. Smooth the surface and return to the freezer overnight.
Maple Génoise Sponge
Ingredients
- 50 g (1.8 oz) of marzipan
- 60 g (2.1 oz) of egg
- 35 g (1.2 oz) of maple sugar
- 40 g (1.4 oz) of butter
- 35 g (1.2 oz) of flour
- 1 g (0 oz) of baking powder
Method
1
Preheat the oven to 170°C / 340°F fan-assisted/convection.
2
Melt the butter, then leave to cool.
3
In a blender, first blend the marzipan with the maple sugar and eggs until a smooth, homogeneous paste is obtained.
4
Pour this paste into a bowl while sieving it (a few small pieces of marzipan may remain). Whisk this mixture for 5 minutes to aerate it.
5
Add the melted butter (which should be around 45°C / 113°F), then the sifted flour and baking powder mixture. Fold in gently with a spatula.
6
Pour the batter into a rectangular mould (a loaf tin will work, or a silicone yule log base mould). The quantity of batter is small, which helps minimise waste.
7
Bake for approximately 20 minutes. Unmould and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.
Pecan Praline Crunch
Ingredients
- 40 g (1.4 oz) of Dulcey chocolate
- 40 g (1.4 oz) of pecan praline
- 30 g (1.1 oz) of feuilletine (gavottes)
Method
1
Melt the Dulcey chocolate in the microwave.
2
In a bowl, combine the pecan praline and feuilletine, then add the melted chocolate. Fold together gently with a spatula.
3
Spread the crunch over the maple sponge using a small offset spatula and set aside in the fridge.
Dulcey Blonde Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
- 210 g (7.4 oz) of Dulcey blonde chocolate
- 110 g (3.9 oz) of milk
- 225 g (7.9 oz) of full-fat liquid cream
- 5 g (0.2 oz) of powdered gelatine
- 25 g (0.9 oz) of water (to rehydrate the gelatine)
Method
1
Rehydrate the gelatine in the water.
2
Break the chocolate into pieces in a bowl and melt gently in the microwave.
3
Bring the milk to the boil, then off the heat, add the rehydrated gelatine.
4
Pour the milk in three additions over the melted Dulcey chocolate, stirring with a spatula to create an emulsion.
5
Whisk the full-fat liquid cream to a chantilly but do not over-whip — it should be foamy.
6
Once the chocolate mixture has cooled to 20°C / 68°F, fold in the whipped cream gently.
7
Set aside until assembly.
Assembly of the Dulcey, Maple and Pecan Yule Log
Ingredients
- None
Method
1
Place the textured mat inside the mould (make sure the texture is facing inwards).
2
Pour the Dulcey mousse into the yule log mould, spreading it well up the sides with a spatula for a clean finish (if needed, place the mould in the freezer for 5 minutes so the mousse sets slightly).
3
Remove the insert from the freezer (cremeux + maple mousse) and press it gently into the mousse, centring it carefully.
4
Add pecan praline along the full length of the yule log and place in the freezer for about fifteen minutes to set the praline.
5
Add the remaining Dulcey mousse, leaving approximately one centimetre at the top, then press in the sponge/crunch base with the crunch side facing down into the mousse.
6
Smooth the surface with a spatula.
7
Cover with cling film and set aside in the freezer overnight.
Decoration
Ingredients
- None
Method
1
Print the maple leaf template
2
Remove the yule log from the freezer and take off the mould and the textured mat.
3
Place the yule log on a serving dish and decorate as you wish. Leave to defrost for 6–7 hours in the refrigerator.
4
Personally, I drew maple leaves with Dulcey chocolate. If you would like to do the same, I have included the template I used below (it is the right size — at least for my yule log mould, the dimensions were perfect). Simply print the sheet, slide it under a guitar sheet and follow the pattern. Use a cocktail stick to achieve sharp pointed leaf tips. Print the maple leaf template
Gallery
