Black Velvet Bûche de Noël (Yule Log Cake) with Eggnog Cream Filling

 

Made with Black Velvet Cacao powder, this Bûche de Noël is 
extra dark, super chocolatey, and filled with a wonderfully
spiced [and spiked] eggnog cream filling. 

 

 

Ingredients

 

Genoise Cake

2 large eggs, room temperature 

2 large egg yolks, room temperature

1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons whole milk

2 large egg whites, room temperature

1/4 cup cake flour

1/4 cup Weirdo Good Black Velvet Cacao

1/4 cup powdered sugar, for dusting

 

Eggnog Pastry Cream

4 egg yolks

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch

2 cups eggnog

2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

2 tablespoons rum 


* See note at the bottom of the recipe for an alternative to this pastry cream.

 

Double Chocolate Frosting

3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

2 tbsp Weirdo Good Black Velvet Cacao

1.5 tbsp softened unsalted butter

1 tsp instant coffee granules

2/3 cup heavy cream

1/2 tbsp Kahlua

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

 

Garnish

Cranberries and rosemary

 

 

 

Instructions

For Genoise Cake

1. Heat your oven to 425 degrees F. Line a jelly roll pan (approx. 15 1/2 X 10 1/2 X 1 inches) with parchment paper.

2. In a medium sized bowl, whisk the whole eggs, egg yolks, 1/3 cup of sugar and milk on medium-high for about 6 minutes. You want the mixture to be tripled in volume.

3. In a separate clean bowl, whip the egg whites and 2 tbsp sugar until it forms stiff peaks.

4. With a rubber spatula, carefully fold in half the whole egg mixture into the egg whites. Do not over mix the batter, you don't want to deflate the batter. 

5. Sift the flour and cocoa powder over the batter and then gently fold into the egg whites, scraping the bottom to make sure everything is combined.

6. Carefully scrape the batter onto the prepared baking sheet, spreading evenly without deflating. Using a sifter or fine mesh sieve, dust the powdered sugar over the top of the batter.

7. Bake for 5 minutes or until the cake begins to brown on the edges.

8. Remove from the oven and immediately flip the cake over onto a kitchen towel. Remove the parchment paper and carefully roll the cake along with the kitchen towel and let the cake be in the rolled shape until it’s completely cooled. Set aside.

 

For Eggnog Pastry Cream

1. Mix together the sugar and cornstarch. In a large heatproof bowl whisk together the egg yolks and sugar + cornstarch mixture. Beat vigorously until very smooth. Set aside.
 
2. In a medium saucepan, bring the eggnog to a gentle simmer. While whisking vigorously, slowly pour the hot eggnog over the whisked egg yolk mixture. 

3. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve back into the pot and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thick and smooth, about 2-3 minutes.
 
4. Remove from the heat and immediately stir in the 2 tbsp of butter pieces until melted and well incorporated. Let cool about 5 minutes, then stir in the rum. Transfer to a shallow dish and immediately cover the surface with plastic wrap. 

5. Set aside and let it cool completely at room temperature, or refrigerate until ready to use if using later.

 

For Double Chocolate Frosting

1. Add the chocolate chips, cacao powder, coffee granules, kahlua, unsalted butter, and vanilla extract to a medium bowl.

2. Heat the heavy cream over medium-low heat until it’s hot but not boiling (the edges should begin to simmer and steam should rise from the cream).

3. Pour this hot cream over the chocolate and contents in the bowl, then use a spoon to stir the mixture together until it’s completely smooth. Cover the bowl with a sheet of plastic wrap and refrigerate for no longer than 30 minutes.

4. Use a hand mixer to whisk the chilled frosting for 15 to 25 seconds, or until you can see the whisk leaving indentations in the frosting. Set aside.

  

Assemble the cake

1. Once your cake is cool, unroll your cake and using an offset spatula, spread the eggnog pastry cream all over the surface, leaving a very small border around the edges of the cake unfrosted. Gently roll the cake back up just like you did before (minus the towel), and finish the roll with the seam side facing down.

2. Take a sharp knife and cut off a 2-inch slice from one end of the cake, cutting at an angle so that one end of the slice is 2 inches and the other end is closer to 1 inch. Take this slice and place the side of it that isn’t cut/exposed and attach it to the main cake log somewhere near the middle of the log.

3. Use a rubber spatula or small offset spatula to smooth the frosting all over the cake log and its side stump. Try to leave nice streaks that give the cake a more natural look and make it look more like an actual log. Take a fork or toothpick and run it down the length of the cake log several times.

4. Garnish with rosemary sprigs, cranberries, and dust with powdered sugar mixed with granulated sugar on top to make it look like snow. 

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

* As an alternative to the eggnog pastry cream, you can simply whip some heavy cream with a bit of sweetener; add some spice if you'd like, such as cinnamon and nutmeg, or just add vanilla extract. Add a dash of rum. Fill the log with this whipped cream instead! To keep the whipped cream stable if not consuming shortly after preparation, consider stabilizing the whipped cream with gelatin or agar.