In each step of this You Can Do This series about making a bûche de Noël from scratch, we’ve walked you through the steps for baking (and then rolling) the perfect vanilla chiffon cake, whipping up the easiest buttercream, and piping cute little decorative meringue mushrooms. And now comes the fun part — putting it all together into a yule log.
Frosting the outside of the rolled-up cake with buttercream can be done up to one day ahead of serving. Let the frosted cake chill until the buttercream has hardened (about 1 hour) and then you can wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and keep it refrigerated until about an hour before serving. Don’t put the meringue mushrooms on the cake until you are almost ready to serve it, otherwise they will lose their crunch.
Bûche de Noël with Nutella Buttercream and Meringue Mushrooms
Step 1: Make the filling: Transfer 1 cup (200g) of the Nutella buttercream to a medium bowl. Add the ¼ cup (75g) of Nutella and stir thoroughly to combine.
Step 2: Carefully unroll the cake. Use a pastry brush to brush away any excess confectioner’s sugar. Don’t worry if the cake has a slight curl to it. With the short facing you, drop big blobs of the filling evenly over the cake. Use an offset spatula to spread the filling evenly, leaving a ½-inch border around the long edges. Put a tad more frosting on the short end closest to you (that’s the center of the spiral). Carefully roll the cake up into a fairly tight, even cylinder.
Step 3: Carefully place the cake seam side down in the center of a serving platter or board. Spread the remaining buttercream over the top and sides of the cake. Use an offset spatula to drag lengthwise marks in the frosting to resemble tree bark.
Dina Ávila is a photographer living in Portland, Oregon.
