Best Recipe for Chocolate and Coffee Yule Log
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- 3 tablespoons coffee-flavored liqueur (recommended: Kahlua)
- Butter, for greasing pan
- 1/2 cup pastry flour or all-purpose flour, sifted, plus more for pan and dusting
- 1 teaspoon baking powder, sifted
- 1/4 cup cocoa, sifted
- 4 egg yolks, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar, divided
- 4 egg whites, room temperature
- 1 cup water, divided
- 3 tablespoons coffee grinds
- 1 cup fine granulated sugar
- 5 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 11 ounces dark chocolate (58 percent cacao)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- For Kahlua simple syrup:
- Add the granulated sugar and water to a small saucepan over medium heat and whisk until the sugar is completely dissolved. Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat and add the liqueur.
- Stir to combine and allow syrup to cool completely.
- For Biscuit Roulade:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter and flour a 15 by 10 by 1-inch jelly roll pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and butter and flour the paper.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, and cocoa in a small mixing bowl, set aside.
- Beat egg yolks in a medium mixing bowl with an electric mixer on high speed until thick and lemon colored, about 5 minutes. Gradually add 1/2 cup of the sugar, beating on high speed until the sugar is dissolved. Thoroughly wash and dry the beaters. Beat egg whites in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 5 minutes. Slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, beating on medium speed until stiff peaks form.
- Carefully fold the egg yolk mixture into the egg whites, using a rubber spatula. Once all of the egg yolk mixture has been incorporated, sprinkle the flour mixture over the egg mixture and fold in gently, just to combine.
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared jelly roll pan. Bake until the cake springs back when lightly touched near the center, about 12 to 15 minutes.
- Lay out a clean, thin cotton kitchen towel on a work surface; dust the top with confectioners' sugar and set aside.
- Immediately after removing the cake from the oven, loosen the edges of the cake from the pan using a knife.
- Turn cake out onto the sugared kitchen towel, parchment paper side up. Carefully pull off the parchment paper.
- Fold towel over the longest side of the cake and roll up the cake with the towel inside.
- Cool on a rack with the seam side down.
- For Coffee Buttercream:
- Bring 1/2 cup of water to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat. Remove from heat and add the coffee grinds; allow to steep for 5 minutes. Strain through a coffee filter into a small bowl and set the coffee concentrate aside.
- Mix the remaining 1/2 cup of water and sugar in a heavy 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Clip a candy thermometer to the pan and heat to 240 degrees F, soft-ball stage, 18 to 20 minutes. Keep the edge of the saucepan clean by brushing it with a pastry brush moistened with water, as needed.
- Once the temperature reaches 240 degrees F, remove the candy thermometer and remove the saucepan from the heat.
- Beat the egg whites in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 5 minutes. Gradually pour the hot mixture, in a thin stream, over the whites while continuing to beat for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed and continue to beat until a meringue forms.
- Add the butter all at once, and beat on medium speed until incorporated. Increase speed to high and continue beating until smooth and shiny, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the vanilla extract and coffee concentrate and mix for 1 minute until combined. Set aside.
- For Chocolate Ganache:
- Put the chocolate, butter, and honey in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- Heat the whipping cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to boil, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and pour the cream into the chocolate mixture. Whisk until smooth.
- Set aside and allow the ganache to come to room temperature.
- To Assemble:
- Unroll the cake and remove the towel. Using a pastry brush, "baste" the cake with the coffee-based liqueur simple syrup.
- Evenly spread the coffee buttercream over cake to within 1-inch of the edges. Reroll the cake to form the "log." Arrange, seam side down, on a serving platter.
- Spread the chocolate ganache over the top and sides of the cake. Score the ganache with the tines of a fork to resemble the bark on a log. Decorate as desired and refrigerate for 1 hour to let the ganache set.
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