To start with, I want to wish you an excellent 2022. May it be filled with happiness and sweetness (we clearly need it).
Normally, I don’t publish Yule log recipes after New Year, but you should know that this year I ran into a few problems with my 2 exotic Yule logs (a gelling problem with the insert, I won’t even tell you what the log looked like after thawing :O).
So, since I can’t offer you those exotic recipes, I’m offering you a different recipe that I really loved, a dark chocolate, vanilla crème brûlée and pecan Yule log.
It’s actually a recipe by Nicolas Léger (taken from the magazine Fou de Pâtisserie #40) that I took inspiration from.
I simply made one change to the recipe for the pâte à bombe-based chocolate mousse, because the proportions in the magazine’s recipe seemed very strange to me. So I went back to the recipe used for the trianon, already published on the blog. The mousse is very airy, it holds very well (it doesn’t collapse), it has a lovely texture and lots of flavour, it’s the perfect recipe for an entremets. Admittedly, it requires a bit more technique than Grandma’s chocolate mousse, but I assure you it’s worth going to a tiny bit of trouble. It’s actually a matter of making a sabayon (a cooked sugar syrup poured over egg yolks) which is then mixed with whipped cream and melted chocolate.
I didn’t make the chef’s crème brûlée recipe either. I really didn’t understand how it was made. He says to bake the crème brûlée in an ovenproof dish but then to put it in a container, add gelatine and blend before putting it (back) into an insert mould. It may well work very well, but I didn’t take the risk 😉
And finally, the last difference from Nicolas Léger’s recipe: I didn’t make the cocoa mirror glaze but a velvet spray finish. It’s up to you to choose the final decoration. By the way, I had a go at making a few chocolate feathers, which I then dusted with gold powder. The result is fairly minimalist but I like it 🙂 I’ll point you to an article and an explanatory video for making this chocolate decoration. I used a stainless steel knife designed for making feathers, but you can just as easily do it with an ordinary knife, as in the video.
Finally, I used the Elégance Yule log mould, which was developed in collaboration with Yann Brys and which I find absolutely stunning. Thank you to my friend MD’Rékréation for lending it to me for the occasion. Of course, you can make this entremets in another mould or in an 18 cm diameter ring. For someone who isn’t much of a chocolate fan (I used to be, though…), I really loved it. It’s indulgent, certainly, but without being too heavy or too sweet.
Ingredients & Method
6 components · Full recipe
Vanilla crème brûlée (make the day before)
Ingredients
- 330 g (11.6 oz) full-fat whipping cream
- 30 g (1.1 oz) whole milk
- 60 g (2.1 oz) egg yolks
- 30 g (1.1 oz) light brown sugar
- 1 vanilla pod
Method
1
Preheat the oven to 90°C / 194°F.
2
In a saucepan, heat the milk, cream, scraped vanilla pod and half the brown sugar. Bring to a boil.
3
Meanwhile, in a bowl, mix the egg yolks and remaining brown sugar and whisk.
4
Pour the hot cream mixture over the yolks while whisking. Remove the vanilla pod.
5
Pour the crème brûlée mixture into an insert mold (one that can obviously go in the oven).
6
Bake for about 30 to 40 minutes. The cream should still be slightly wobbly.
Flourless cocoa sponge
Ingredients
- 16 g (0.6 oz) sugar (1)
- 40 g (1.4 oz) egg yolks (2 large yolks)
- 60 g (2.1 oz) egg whites (2 whites)
- 47 g (1.7 oz) sugar (2)
- 18 g (0.6 oz) unsweetened cocoa powder
Method
1
Preheat the oven to 190°C / 375°F.
2
Separate the whites from the yolks then start whipping the whites with an electric beater or stand mixer at low speed to incorporate as much air as possible. The whites will begin to foam.
3
Gradually add sugar (2) once the whites are already starting to stiffen.
4
Continue whisking to firm up the whites. When you lift the whisk, the bird’s beak shape should appear.
5
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar (1) with the egg yolks and whisk until the mixture ribbons, doubling in volume and turning pale.
6
Gently fold the meringue into the whipped yolks in several additions.
7
Finish by gently folding in the sifted cocoa powder.
8
Pipe a rectangle of choux pastry using a piping bag fitted with a smooth 15 mm nozzle. You should have some dough left — you can pipe a second rectangle and use the more successful of the two 😉
9
Bake for about 9 minutes (adjust to your oven).
Pecan praline crunch
Ingredients
- 67 g (2.4 oz) pecan praline
- 23 g (0.8 oz) hazelnut paste
- 45 g (1.6 oz) milk chocolate
- 45 g (1.6 oz) white chocolate
- 18 g (0.6 oz) cocoa butter (or butter)
- 35 g (1.2 oz) crushed crêpes dentelle (feuilletine)
- 35 g (1.2 oz) crushed baked shortbread (or, failing that, crushed pecans)
- 50 g (1.8 oz) crushed pecans (personal addition)
Method
1
In a bowl, combine the two chocolates with the cocoa butter and melt in the microwave.
2
Add the hazelnut paste and pecan praline and mix with a spatula.
3
Add the crumbled crêpes dentelle, the crushed cooked shortbread pastry and finally the crushed pecans. Mix then spread over the cocoa sponge rectangle.
Dark chocolate mousse with pâte à bombe base
Ingredients
- 200 g (7.1 oz) dark couverture chocolate (50–60% cocoa)
- 400 g (14.1 oz) full-fat whipping cream
- 115 g (4.1 oz) egg yolks (6 to 7 yolks)
- syrup: 30 ml (1 fl oz) water + 45 g (1.6 oz) sugar
Method
1
Pâte à bombe is a mixture of egg yolks over which a sugar syrup cooked to 115°C / 240°F is poured (same process as Italian meringue). Melt the chocolate in a double boiler.
2
Whip the heavy cream and refrigerate.
3
Prepare the syrup. Pour the water and sugar into a saucepan and cook until reaching 115°C / 240°F.
4
As soon as the thermometer reads 110°C / 225°F, whisk the egg yolks with the stand mixer (or electric whisk), then at 115°C / 240°F pour the syrup in a thin stream over the yolks and whisk until the mixture cools down.
5
Pour the pâte à bombe over the melted chocolate (or vice versa) and mix gently.
Assembly
Ingredients
- Aucun
Method
1
Line a yule log mould with acetate (I use a silicone mould, so I don’t need acetate).
2
Pour the chocolate mousse into the yule log mold (up to halfway). Tap gently to release air bubbles then run the mousse up along the sides with a spatula for a clean finish.
3
Remove the crème brûlée insert and press it gently into the mousse.
4
Cover with chocolate mousse, leaving room for the sponge and crunch base.
5
Finish with the cocoa sponge topped with the crunch (crunch side against the mousse). Press lightly to embed. Smooth the surface with a spatula.
Chocolate velvet
Ingredients
- 140 g (4.9 oz) dark chocolate
- 60 g (2.1 oz) cocoa butter
Method
1
Melt the dark chocolate and cocoa butter in a double boiler or in the microwave. Stir with a spatula.
2
Strain then pour the mixture into the reservoir of your spray gun (ideally use a container smaller than the reservoir, such as a jam jar, placed inside the larger reservoir).
3
Remove the entremets from the freezer, unmold them carefully and place them on a rack. Don’t forget to protect your work area well. Personally, I stopped spraying directly on the rack.
Gallery
