My bûche de Noël cake is a spectacular but do-able holiday dessert. This woodsy toasted hazelnut cake with chocolate hazelnut frosting tastes divine, and gets applause from the table every year.
bûche de Noël (yule log) is a favorite Christmas dessert
A traditional Bûche de Noël or Christmas Yule Log cake is a light sponge cake covered in frosting then rolled, carved, and re-configured to resemble a realistic log. The yule log is the mid-winter tradition of burning an oversized log in the hearth during the Christmas season that dates back to pagan celebrations of the winter solstice (the shortest day of the year, December 21-22)
A traditional bûche de Noël is super cool, but a bit of a project, I admit it….so what if I told you my recipe is a basic layer cake ~ no rolling, chopping, or pasting back together involved! But it’s still got all the drama, and even better flavor payoff, for a fraction of the effort.
This is an ingenious variation that dispenses with a lot of the fussy bits ~ we’ve pared it down to a basic hazelnut layer cake with, I guarantee, the best chocolate hazelnut frosting you’ve ever had in your life.
what you’ll learn in this post
- bûche de Noël ( yule log ) is a favorite Christmas dessert
- bûche de Noël ingredients
- How to create the ‘bark’ effect on your bûche de Noël
- bûche de Noël garnishes
- Meringue mushrooms complete the woodland scene
- Recipe for meringue mushrooms here
- Be sure to take a few shots to commemorate your cake before digging in (and tag us @theviewfromgreatisland on instagram! )
- More recipes that pair chocolate and hazelnut ~ yum!
bûche de Noël ingredients
for the cake
The base of this dessert is an incredible toasted hazelnut cake ~ ground hazelnuts give it a wonderful texture and flavor.
- butter
- sugar
- eggs
- vanilla
- baking soda, baking powder, salt
- half and half
- flour
- ground toasted hazelnuts
for the frosting
The rich frosting is a chocolate buttercream enriched with Nutella!
- semi sweet chocolate
- Nutella
- butter
- confectioner’s sugar
- cream or half and half
- salt
for the garnish
A few simple details convey the log theme in your bûche de Noël
- meringue mushrooms ~ recipe here
- confectioner’s sugar
- ground toasted hazelnuts
How to create the ‘bark’ effect on your bûche de Noël
The sides of the cake are frosted as usual, but instead of trying to make it smooth, use your spreading knife to pave rough swaths of overlapping frosting. See the photos for guidance.
The wood ring effect on the top of this cake is created by dragging the tines of a fork across the top of the frosting in a circular pattern to resemble the rings of a cut log. Start at the outer edge, and, turning the cake stand as you go, create a spiral pattern until you reach the center. Don’t worry about being precise, this is meant to be rustic.
bûche de Noël garnishes
The next effect is made by patting some ground hazelnuts up the sides of the ‘stump’ to resemble lichen or moss. Then a light dusting of ‘snow’ in the form of confectioner’s sugar brings it all to life. The powdered sugar really brings out the texture of the stump.
Meringue mushrooms complete the woodland scene
The final touch on this Christmas bûche de Noël cake are the meringue mushrooms ~ they’re so much easier to make than you think, and they’re so darned cute. Be sure to make extra because they’re actually crisp little cookies that make fun holiday gifts.
Recipe for meringue mushrooms here
Be sure to take a few shots to commemorate your cake before digging in (and tag us @theviewfromgreatisland on instagram!)
More recipes that pair chocolate and hazelnut ~ yum!
- Chocolate Hazelnut Torrone
- Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Fudge
- Outrageous Chocolate Hazelnut Blondies
- Homemade Ferrero Rocher Truffles
- Toasted Hazelnut Bark
- Banana Cake with Nutella Frosting
- Nutella Sandwich Cookies
- Nutella S’mores Bars
Bûche de Noël
Equipment
- 2 8 inch cake pans with 2-inch high sides
Ingredients
For the hazelnut cake
- 1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 3/4 cup (368 grams) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups (354 ml) half and half, or milk
- 3 cups (375 grams) all purpose flour
- 1 1/4 cups (150 grams) ground toasted hazelnuts
For the frosting
- 6 ounces (170 grams) semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 3/4 cup (222 grams) Nutella
- 1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 cups (315 grams) confectioner's sugar, sifted
- 1 pinch salt
- 3 Tbsp heavy cream (the cream should not be cold)
For decorating
- a few tablespoons confectioner's sugar for dusting
- 1 batch meringue mushrooms, Get the recipe here
- 1/4 cup (30 grams) ground toasted hazelnuts
Instructions
For the hazelnut cake
- Preheat oven to 350F. Butter two 8-inch cake pans and line the bottom of the pans with a circle of parchment paper. Note: make sure your cake pans have full 2 inch sides to accomodate this cake batter.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or with electric beaters, cream the butter and sugar together until very light and fluffy (4-5 minutes).
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract, and beat for another minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl to get everything incorporated.
- Add the baking soda, baking powder, and salt, and mix briefly to combine.
- Next, add the flour in a few stages, alternating with the half and half, mixing until all of the ingredients are combined. Finally fold in the ground hazelnuts. I like to finish mixing by hand with a silicone spatula to make sure everything on the bottom and the sides of the bowl is well incorporated.
- Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans and bake for about 35-40 minutes, until risen, golden on top, and the cake springs back when pressed lightly.
- Allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes or so in the pan, then remove the layers and place on a baking rack to cool completely before frosting. (Cake layers can also be made a day ahead, and wrapped and kept in the fridge until ready to frost.)
For the frosting
- Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in the microwave using short bursts. Stir until smooth and allow to cool to room temperature before adding to the frosting. Note: this is important because you don't want warm chocolate to melt the butter.
- Cream the butter and confectioner's sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or, if you have a food processor with a large enough bowl, you can use that, too).
- Add the salt, the cooled melted chocolate, and the Nutella, and beat together until the mixture is smooth and uniform. Add the cream and mix until smooth. Note: adding cold cream can cause the frosting to split, so I like to have it at room temperature, if possible.
- Frost between the cake layers, and then frost the sides and top of the cake. Pave the frosting along the sides to resemble bark. Use a fork to make a spiral pattern on the top of the cake to resemble the rings of a log.
- Gently pat ground hazelnuts in patches around the side and bottom of the outside cake, if desired.
- Dust the frosted cake with a little bit of confectioner's sugar to mimic freshly fallen snow. Place your meringue mushrooms on top and/or around the outside of the cake. Get ready for lots of oooohs and aaaahhhs!
Notes
- Take 1 1/2 cups whole hazelnuts, skins on, and place in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast in a 350F oven for 10-12 minutes, shaking the pan a couple of times during cooking, until fragrant. Let cool.
- To grind, put the cooled nuts in a food processor and pulse until finely ground.
- Measure out 1 1/4 cups for the cake, and reserve the rest for decorating.
- Make the cake layers up to a day ahead. Let the layers cool completely, then wrap in plastic. You can also freeze the layers at this point, but be sure to double wrap well.
- You can make the mushrooms a day ahead, but if you live in a humid climate, meringue can get soft. I like to keep the mushrooms uncovered, on the counter and they last just fine for me.
- Make the frosting and frost the cake the day you want to serve.
Nutrition
Can this be baked in a 9X13 inch pan? If so what would the time and temperature be? Thanks.
You can bake at the same temperature, and about the same time. Check at 35 minutes and go from there.
This was a beautiful recipe and it turned out wonderful. I usually make a traditional Buche de Noel for Christmas but I saw this and loved it. Hope you had a Merry Christmas!
Thanks Jenna, I’m so glad you loved it 🙂
Just baked the cake and will frost tomorrow morning. It smells divine! I did add frozen, thawed and drained cherries, which slightly increased the baking time. Can’t wait for the finished product! The mushrooms are too cute! Made a batch with monk fruit sweetener and, sadly, though they looked just like shiitakes:)), the texture was all wrong! Actually, quite like real mushrooms! But not good for meringue of course! Second batch are in the oven. Followed the recipe to a t, so fingers crossed! I love anything with hazelnuts, so I’m very excited to serve this for xmass dinner! Thank you!
OMGoodness! I just finished frosting this cake and am counting the minutes until dessert. Will I end up on Santa’s naughty list if I dig in before dinner? Merry Christmas, everyone and thank you, Sue, for this lovely recipe!
You’re welcome Rose, have a lovely holiday 🙂
Hi Sue, I really want to make this cake. Just wondering if it would be ok to frost it the day before serving? If so, should I refridgerate afterwards or leave out at room temperature? Thanks again!
Yes, you can frost the day before, that should be fine. You can leave it out at room temperature.
Oh my goodness! This is such a beautiful take on the age-old Bûche, Sue ! Kudos ! Can’t even tell you how inspired I am to try to duplicate this in some way or fashion !
I know you’ll have fun with this Susan, I promise it’s not hard, even the mushrooms!
Where in the recipe do you add the ground hazelnuts? I don’t see it mentioned in any of the steps. Also, do you add 1 1/4 cups to the cake and then an additional 1/4 cup for decorating? It’s not really clear. Thanks!
I clarified this Elaine, thanks. You’ll fold the hazelnut into the batter in step 5, and yes, the 1 1/4 cups of nuts go into the cake, and another 1/4 is for decorating.
Can this recipe be cut in half for a single layer cake? This layer cake would be too much for my husband and I, as well as my waist!
Yes, and that would be super cute, too.
This is stunning Sue! I love everything about your clever beautiful Christmas cake! I’ve got to give this a try!
The best part is that it’s really not tricky to do.
Hi Sue, Yummy! I want to definitely make this cake. Can I use/substitute Hazelnut flour? if so, what do you recommend in switching the ingredients/measurements? Wishing you a fa la la holiday!
Yes, you can substitute hazelnut flour for the ground hazelnuts. I think a coarser flour would be better than a finely ground one. Happy holidays to you too 🙂