T
his is a tale of two logs, one a pagan ritual and the other
the Christian baker’s edible reimagining. The original
Yule log was a special stump of wood pagan familieswould burn during the Yule season to bring fortune and
good luck. Over time, this pagan rite was absorbed by the
Christian celebration of Christmas, and the need for the
log became more of a symbolic tradition. Nineteenth-
century French pastry chefs shrewdly adapted this symbol
into a delectable piece of pastry illusion, a decadent cake
masquerading as freshly cut tree log. One of the earliest
recipes recorded for the bûche de Noël is from Pierre
Lacam’s cookbook Le mémorial historique et géographique de la
pâtisserie. Genoise sponge cake was cut into rounds and
sandwiched together with chocolate cream, forming a
cylindrical log, and fi nally adorned with green almond
paste leaves and fi nely chopped pistachios. Eventually, it
transformed into the roulade we know today, but it has
kept its iconic shape in homage to its ancient, uh, roots.
The elements required for crafting a proper bûche de Noël
are a genoise sponge that is light and elastic but still a joy to
eat; a simple syrup to moisten said genoise sponge, ensuring
it stays tender during its time as the holiday centerpiece,
and to enhance the sponge’s fl avor profi le; and a rich
buttercream fi lling and outer coat that must be sweeter
than the sponge cake but not cloying, and fi rm enough to
withstand slicing and styling. Finally, there is the whimsical
decoration: handcrafted chocolate bark, cocoa-dotted
mushroom-shaped meringues, nutty pistachio moss, and
a delicate frost of confectioners’ sugar. Our two bûche
de Noëls—one delightfully traditional and one radically
vertical—bring all this and more to the table. Follow
along so you can create your own version of the ultimate
Christmas centerpiece.