Gingerbread Yule Log Food

GINGERBREAD YULE LOG

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a bowl; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°. Line bottom of a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan with parchment or waxed paper. In a small bowl, whisk flour, spices, baking soda and salt., In a large bowl, beat egg yolks on high speed until thickened, about 3 minutes. Beat in molasses and melted butter., With clean beaters, beat egg whites on medium until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high after each addition until sugar is dissolved. Continue beating until soft glossy peaks form. Fold into egg yolk mixture. Fold in flour mixture. Transfer to prepared pan, spreading evenly., Bake 9-12 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched. Cool 5 minutes. Invert onto a kitchen towel dusted with confectioners' sugar. Gently peel off paper. Roll up cake in the towel jelly-roll style, starting with a short side. Cool completely on a wire rack., In a chilled large bowl, combine the first five filling ingredients; beat until soft peaks form. Unroll cake; spread half of the filling over cake to within 1/2 in. of edges. Roll up again, without towel. Place on a platter, seam side down. Spread remaining filling over cake. If desired, sprinkle with cinnamon. Refrigerate until serving.

GINGERBREAD YULE LOGS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk the first 5 ingredients. In a large saucepan, combine corn syrup, brown sugar and butter; cook and stir over medium heat until butter is melted. Transfer to a large bowl; gradually beat flour mixture into corn syrup mixture. Beat in cream cheese. Shape dough into a disk. Wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes or until firm enough to roll., Preheat oven to 350°. On parchment, roll dough into an 18x12-in. rectangle. Cut into three 12x6-in. rectangles., In a small bowl, mix Nutella and, if desired, lime zest; spread over rectangles. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch seams to seal. Cut each roll crosswise into 4 logs; place on greased baking sheets, seam side down. If desired, use the tines of a fork to make strokes in dough to resemble bark., Bake 20-25 minutes or until bottom and edges are light brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely., In a small bowl, mix confectioners' sugar and water until smooth; drizzle over cookies. If desired, decorate with sprinkles. Let stand until set.

GINGERBREAD YULE LOG

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, beat yolks on high until thickened, about 3 minutes.
• Beat in molasses and butter. In another bowl, beat whites until foamy;
• gradually add sugar, beating until soft peaks form. Fold into yolk mixture.
• Combine dry ingredients; gently fold into egg mixture until well mixed.
• Line a greased 15x10x1 in. baking pan with waxed paper; grease and flour paper.
• Spread batter into pan. Bake at 375'F for 9-12 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched.
• Turn onto a linen towel dusted with confectioners' sugar.
• Peel off paper and roll cake up in towel, starting with short end.
• Cool on a wire rack
• Meanwhile, beat the first five filling ingredients in a mixing bowl until soft peaks form.
• Unroll cake; spread with half the filling. Roll up.
• Spread remaining filling over cake.
• Sprinkle with cinnamon if desired.

YULE LOG

Steps:

• Butter a jelly roll pan, line with parchment paper, butter the paper and sprinkle with flour, tapping to remove excess flour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks with 2 tablespoons of the sugar. Meanwhile, place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until soft peaks form. Turn the machine up to high, and beat in the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar, continue to beat until shiny but not stiff. Add the flour to the yolk/sugar mixture and whisk to combine. Add l/4 of the egg whites to the yolk mixture, whisking to lighten the mixture. Then return the yolk mixture to the egg whites, and fold gently. Scrape into the prepared pan and even the top by running a long offset spatula across the surface. Bake until cake is golden brown and springs back when lightly touched, l2 to l5 minutes. Cool on a rack. Set aside.
• Place cooled hazelnuts on a kitchen towel and rub together to remove skins. Place the skinned hazelnuts in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for l minute. Add the hazelnut oil through the feeder tube and process until a paste forms.
• Melt chocolate in a medium bowl placed over simmering water, or melt in a microwave oven. Add the melted chocolate to the hazelnut paste and set aside.
• Whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Fold in the hazelnut/chocolate mixture. Keep covered in the refrigerator until needed.
• To assemble the cake roll:
• Trim the edges of the sponge cake. Place the Hazelnut mousse on the cake layer. Spread the mixture evenly over the cake, leaving a l inch space along the long side. Using the parchment paper to aid you, carefully roll up the cake into a thick log, enclosing the mousse. Leave the wrapped, rolled-up cake on the sheet pan and refrigerate until filling is firm, at least 2 hours.
• Melt the chocolate. In a small pot, heat the coffee and cocoa. Add the sour cream. In the bowl of a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add the chocolate mixture and combine completely. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside until of spreading consistency.;
• Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Line l or 2 baking trays with parchment paper and set aside. Fit a large pastry bag with a #4 or #5 plain tip and set aside.
• Beat the egg whites on medium speed until frothy. Turn speed to high, slowly pour in half the sugar, add vanilla and continue to beat for l minute. Slowly pour in the remaining sugar and beat until the whites are very thick and shiny, about 3 to 4 minutes longer. Immediately spoon half the mixture into the prepared pastry bag. (Meringue will begin to break down if not used soon after it is ready.) Hold the pastry bag upright over the prepared baking trays, squeeze out 26 to 30 mushroom caps, making different sizes, placed about l inch apart. The caps can be different sizes, since real mushroom caps are never identical.
• Again, holding the bag upright over the other tray, lifting the bag as you squeeze out the meringue, form 26 to 30 stems, each l/2 inch to l inch high, placed about l inch apart.
• Place the trays in the oven and bake until the meringues are firm to the touch and can be lifted easily from the trays, about l l/2 hours. The meringues should be dry, but should not take on any color. Remove the trays to a cool dry spot. When cool, with a small knife, trim any pointed tips on the caps and stems, if desired.
• Melt the chocolate in a small bowl, and holding the caps upside down, spread a little chocolate on each one. Attach a stem and leave them upside down until the chocolate hardens. When ready, turn mushroom cap side up, and dust lightly with sifted cocoa.
• Set aside until ready to use for decoration.
• To decorate and serve:
• Remove pan with cake from refrigerator and place wrapped cake on a firm surface. Carefully unwrap cake. Using a serrated knife, from one end cut a 2-inch piece of cake on the diagonal. Set the cut piece aside.
• Cut out a piece of cardboard the length and width of the cake. Cover the cardboard with foil and place the cake on it. Spread a little frosting on the bottom of the small cut piece and set on top of the cake roll. Using a small spatula, spread the frosting over the entire cake as well as the small piece atop the cake. With a wooden skewer or the point of a small knife, make furrows to simulate bark along the sides and top of the cake.
• Arrange Christmas greens, plastic holly, and Meringue Mushrooms around the Yule Log. Sift powdered sugar over the whole thing to simulate snow. Fresh cranberries can be scattered around for added color.

CHOCOLATE GINGERBREAD YULE LOG

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350°. Line bottom of a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan with parchment; grease paper. Sift flour, spices and salt together twice., In a large bowl, beat egg yolks until slightly thickened. Gradually add brown sugar, beating on high speed until thick. Beat in molasses, oil and fresh ginger. Fold in flour mixture (batter will be thick)., Add cream of tartar to egg whites; with clean beaters, beat on medium until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating after each addition until sugar is dissolved. Beat on high until stiff, glossy peaks form. Using a large spatula, fold a fourth of the whites into batter, then fold in remaining whites. Transfer to prepared pan, spreading evenly., Bake 10-12 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched. Cool 5 minutes. Invert onto a tea towel dusted with cocoa. Gently peel off paper. Roll up cake in towel jelly-roll style. Cool completely on a wire rack., For filling, in a small bowl, mix mascarpone cheese, confectioners' sugar, cream and salt just until blended; stir in ginger. Refrigerate, covered, while preparing bark and buttercream., For bark, line the underside of a 15x10x1-in. baking pan with parchment. Using an offset spatula, spread melted chocolate in a thin, even layer on parchment. Refrigerate until set, about 30 minutes., For buttercream, place egg whites, sugar and salt in a heatproof bowl; whisk until blended. Place bowl over simmering water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Whisking constantly, heat mixture until a thermometer reads 160°, 1-2 minutes. , Remove from heat. With the whisk attachment of a mixer, beat on high speed until stiff glossy peaks form and mixture has cooled, about 5 minutes. Gradually beat in butter, a few tablespoons at a time, on medium speed until smooth. Beat in cooled chocolate., To assemble, unroll cake; spread filling over cake to within 1/4 in. of edges. Roll up again, without towel; trim ends. Transfer to a platter. Spread buttercream over cake., To decorate cake, lift chilled chocolate with fingers and break carefully into shards; arrange over buttercream, overlapping slightly. If chocolate becomes too soft, return to refrigerator as necessary., Refrigerate cake, loosely covered, until serving. Using a serrated knife, cut cake into slices., Freezer Option: Entire cake can be made up to 1 week before serving. Prepare and decorate cake as directed; freeze 2 hours or until firm. Wrap cake in several layers of plastic wrap. Return to freezer; freeze for up to 1 week. To serve, partially thaw wrapped cake in refrigerator overnight. Carefully remove plastic wrap; let cake stand at room temperature 15-30 minutes before serving.