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Bûche de noël

9
Points®
Total Time
52 min
Prep
30 min
Cook
22 min
Serves
16
Difficulty
Difficult
Bûche de Noël is a traditional French Christmas sheet cake that is rolled into a form that resembles a yule log. It's traditionally rolled around buttercream and frosted with chocolate frosting. The surface is ridged using the tines of a fork pulled through the frosting to look like tree bark. While a classic Bûche de Noël may make you reach for the panic button, our version of the cake uses a sweetened raspberry cream filling and meringue topping instead of buttercream, so you can make the cake and eat some too.

Ingredients

Egg

6 large egg(s), separated

Cake flour

½ cup(s)

Sugar

⅓ cup(s)

Vanilla extract

1 tsp

Orange zest

1 Tbsp

Unsweetened orange juice

2 Tbsp

Powdered sugar (confectioner's)

2 Tbsp

Reduced fat cream cheese (neufchâtel)

8 oz

Jam

½ cup(s), seedless raspberry

Heavy whipping cream

¾ cup(s), yields 2 cups whipped

Egg whites

4 large

Sugar

½ cup(s)

Cornstarch

1 Tbsp

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 375°F. Line jelly-roll pan with parchment paper; coat paper with cooking spray.
  2. In bowl with mixer on medium-high speed, beat 6 yolks until thick, 3 minutes. Combine with flour on low speed.
  3. In another bowl with mixer on medium speed, beat whites until frothy. Beat in 1/3 cup white sugar, a tablespoon at a time, until stiff and glossy. Stir in extract, zest and juice.
  4. Fold egg white mixture into yolks, one third at a time. Spread in prepared pan. Bake until golden brown, 12 minutes, or until cake springs back in middle when lightly touched. Dust with powdered sugar; invert cake on towel; peel off paper. Roll from long side in tea towel.
  5. For filling, in bowl with mixer on medium speed, cream Neufchãtel until smooth. Add jam, beating until combined. In another bowl with mixer on medium-high, whip cream until soft peaks form.
  6. Fold cream into raspberry mixture, one third at a time. Unroll cake, spread with raspberry mixture and re-roll. Place parchment on baking sheet and move filled cake to sheet, seam-side down. Cut triangular piece off one end of roll. Position piece against cake to form tree branch.
  7. For topping, heat oven to 425°F. In small bowl whisk 1/2 cup white sugar and cornstarch. In bowl with mixer on medium beat whites until frothy. Add sugar mixture 1 tablespoon at a time. Beat until stiff and glossy. Cover cake with meringue, dust with powdered sugar. Bake until edges of meringue begin to lightly brown, 10 minutes. Serve at room temperature.

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