Recipes for Yule

 Recipes for Yule and Christmas!

Check back often as new recipes will be added. 

Bûche de Noël/ YULE LOG!

Celebrate the holidays with a traditional Bûche de Noël! This chocolatey, creamy Yule Log is a festive French dessert that’s sure to impress your guests.

Ingredients

4 large eggs

¾ cup granulated sugar

¾ cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 cup heavy cream for filling and frosting

½ cup powdered sugar for filling

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease a 10x15 inch jelly roll pan and line with parchment paper.

2) Beat eggs and granulated sugar together until thick and pale.

3) Sift in flour and cocoa powder and fold gently into the egg mixture.

4) Pour batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly.

5) Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the cake springs back when touched.

6) While hot, turn the cake onto a kitchen towel dusted with cocoa powder or powdered sugar. Roll the cake up with the towel and cool.

7) For the filling, whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until thick.

8) Unroll the cake gently, spread the filling, and re-roll without the towel.

9) Frost with remaining whipped cream or your choice of chocolate ganache. 10) Create a bark texture using a fork. Chill before serving.

Notes

Ensure the sponge cake is cool before rolling to prevent cracking.

Dust your kitchen towel with cocoa powder or powdered sugar to help prevent the sponge from sticking when rolling.

The filling should be spread evenly, leaving a bit of space at the edges to avoid overflow.

For an authentic look, use a fork to create a bark-like texture on the chocolate frosting before chilling.

A Bûche de Noël is traditionally decorated with meringue mushrooms, but feel free to get creative with other edible decorations.

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Classic Yule Log

This chocolate yule log is a festive holiday cake. Merry Christmas!

You will need cinnamon red hard candies and snowmen candy for decorations.

Prep Time: 30 mins - Cook Time: 20 mins - Total Time: 50 mins

Servings: 10 - Yield: 1 15x10-inch yule log

Ingredients

Original recipe - yields 10 servings

½ cup sifted cake flour

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup white sugar

3 eggs, separated

¼ cup milk

1/8 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 ½ cups whipped cream

2 cups heavy whipping cream

8 (1 ounce) squares semisweet chocolate, melted

¼ cup butter, softened

1/8 cup confectioners’ sugar

½ teaspoon green food coloring

8 ounces marzipan

Directions

1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 15x10-inch jelly roll pan. Or Line with waxed paper. Grease paper.

2) Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.

3) Beat together sugar and egg yolks at high speed until light and fluffy. At low speed, alternately beat milk and flour mixture into egg mixture.

4) Using clean beaters, beat egg whites at high speed until stiff, but not dry, peaks form. Fold 1/3 of beaten egg whites into batter. Fold in remaining egg whites. Spread batter in prepared pan; smooth top.

5) Bake cake in the preheated oven until set, 12 minutes.

6) Dust a clean cloth with confectioners’ sugar. Turn cake out onto prepared cloth. Remove waxed paper. Trim cake edges. Starting with a long side, roll up cake, jelly-roll style. Transfer, seam-side down, to a wire rack for 30 minutes.

7) Unroll cake; remove cloth. Spread whipped cream over cake to within 1 inch of the edges. Re-roll cake. Place, seam-side down, on a serving plate.

8) For the frosting: In a small saucepan, bring heavy cream, melted chocolate, and butter to a boil over medium heat, stirring vigorously until blended. Remove from heat. Let stand until set. Spread frosting over top and sides of cake.

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Celtic Yule Cakes

Ingredients

2-3 Tablespoons Boiling Water

1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

3/4 Teaspoon Baking Powder

2 Cups Powdered Sugar

2/3 Cup White Sugar

Grated Orange Zest

Directions

Beat eggs, butter, vanilla, orange zest and sugar together. Add flour and baking powder. When well mixed add the tablespoon of milk and sultanas. Pour into a well floured/greased cup cake tin and bake in an oven preheated to 375 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes. In a small bowl blend boiling water and powdered sugar to make the icing. Lace over Celtic cakes in the form of a five-pointed star before serving.

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Hot Buttered Rum

A warm cup of buttered rum on a chilly winter night can really hit the spot, and this recipe is super easy to make. Leave the rum out if you like, and give it to your kiddos before they hit the sack on Yule! Buttered rum was a popular recipe in colonial America, and it’s easy to see why: It is excellent. You can brew this up in your crock pot, ladle out a nice big mug and sit by the fire on a chilly winter evening. It’s the perfect warm drink for your Yule celebrations. If you leave out the rum, your kids can enjoy it too.

Ingredients

2 quarts apple juice

2 cups firmly packed brown sugar

1 stick butter (BUTTER, not margarine)

3 tbsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. Nutmeg

2 cups your favorite rum

Refrigerated whipped dessert topping

Cinnamon sticks and nutmeg for garnish

Directions

1)Warm up the apple juice and brown sugar in a pot.

2)Add the butter (dice up the stick before you put it in there, so it’ll melt faster). Stir untilthe butter is melted.

3) Add the spices and the rum. Cover and allow to simmer on low for up to four hours.

4)Ladle into mugs for serving. Top each with a dollop of whipped topping and a cinnamonstick.

5)Sprinkle with a dash of nutmeg.

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Home-Made Butter

Why make butter at home? Making homemade butter is easier than you may think, it is a fun activity and a good skill to have. Plus, it is just so cool to see cream separate into butter right in front of your eyes. We can be thankful that we do not live in the day and age when churning butter is a necessity. The science behind homemade butter is interesting, and another way of working with food that connects us to the earth, our food, and the reaction of the process of how it is made. Making butter at home is a great way to get one step closer to the food production process and control the ingredients, saltiness, freshness and the texture of the butter. You are in charge of the process, salt, whip it (if you prefer), you can keep the leftover buttermilk and choose where you source your cream giving you control of your food.

Ingredients

2 cups heavy cream

Salt to taste

Directions

1) Add the heavy cream to an electric mixer. Start whipping the cream on low speed until itthickens slightly. Gradually increase the mixer speed to medium-high and continue to whip for 5-15 minutes, scraping down the sides every now and then. Continue mixing past the whipped cream phase, and you’ll see the cream begin to break into butter (fat molecules) and liquid (buttermilk). Note, it is a good idea to put a kitchen towel over the mixer to keep from splashing.

2)Remove the butter from the mixer (save the buttermilk for use later!) and squeeze out anyexcess moisture by repeatedly squeezing the butter through your hands.

3)Quickly rinse the butter under ice-cold water and add salt to taste. Store in either an air-tight container or parchment paper. Keep in the fridge and use within 14 days.