Authentic Bûche de Noël Recipe Paris, France

Set the oven to preheat to 275°F/140°C and cover the bottom of a rimmed baking pan with greaseproof paper.

Whisk the egg whites with a mixer on medium speed until frothy, then, with the mixer running, start adding sugar, tablespoon by tablespoon. Once the volume has increased, up the speed of the mixer to medium-high and whisk until stiff peaks. Fold the confectioners' sugar into the whites, using a rubber spatula, taking care not to deflate them, and to scrape the bottom of the bowl as well.

Put the meringue into a bag fitted with a 1/4-inch (0.65 cm) plain tip, then holding the bag at a 90° angle, pipe dime-sized stems onto the greaseproof paper. Remember, meringue is prone to break easily, so pipe some more to have them in case it's needed.

Make the caps in the same way, except pipe them as 1/2-inch (1.25 cm) rounds, taking care there is no tip left at the top.

Lightly sprinkle the stems and the caps with cocoa using a sifter.

Bake for about an hour, with the door slightly left open so the moisture can leave the oven. In case the meringue starts going dark, it means you have to lower the temperature.

Once baked, leave them in the turned-off oven for an hour to cool completely.

Keep the meringues in a dry, airtight container until you're ready to use them.

Boil water and sugar in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat, remembering to stir occasionally until the sugar melts, at which point you should remove the saucepan from the stove.

Pour the syrup into a heatproof bowl and wait until it cools completely, then stir in the liqueur. If stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container, the syrup can keep forever.

Sieve two tablespoons of sugar and the cornstarch directly into a bowl.

Beat the egg yolks in a separate bowl until pale yellow and smooth.

Add the milk, two tablespoons of sugar, and the scraped seeds of the vanilla bean and the bean to a saucier. Cook over medium heat until it boils, then take off the heat.

While continually stirring, add 1/3 of the hot milk to the beaten eggs, then pour that milk and egg mixture into the milk, and stir.

Place the saucier over medium-low heat and cook while constantly stirring until thickened to the point that it coats the back of a spoon — however, once it comes to a boil, lower the heat and cook for about two more minutes.

Take the saucier off the heat, and strain the cream into a clean bowl, then cover it with cling film, taking care you press the foil on the surface of the cream, as in that case, the skin will not form on its surface. Set it aside until it comes to room temperature.

Melt chocolate in a bain-marie, then whisk the melted chocolate into the cream and cover with cling film so it sticks to the surface of the cream as that will prevent the formation of the skin.

It's best to use the cream immediately, but it can keep for up to 24 hours if refrigerated.

Beat the yolks and the eggs with a mixer until pale yellow and tripled in volume, for approximately 7 minutes.

Add the sugar and water to a heavy-bottomed pan and cook over medium-high heat until it starts boiling. Boil for approximately 12 minutes, or less or more, depending on when the syrup reaches the temperature of 250°F/120°C. Take off the stove.

While mixing the egg mixture with a mixer on low speed, slowly pour the syrup into the bowl in such a way that it flows down the side of the bowl, as that way, there's almost no chance that the hot syrup will spill on you and burn you.

Once you've poured in all the syrup, beat the cream for 3 more minutes, then beat in the butter, but now with the mixer on medium speed, until incorporated.

Now, up the speed to medium-high and mix for about 10 minutes until you get a smooth and thick cream.

Add the coffee extract, to taste, then mix. Take care not to overmix, as the cream will turn gritty.

Set the oven to preheat to 425°F/220°C. Cover the bottom of a 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 inch (40x27 cm) baking pan, which should be about an inch (2.5 cm) deep, with greaseproof paper.

Beat the whole eggs, the egg yolks, the 1/3 cup (65g) of sugar, and the milk in a bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale yellow, about 6 minutes approximately.

Whisk the egg whites with a mixer until frothy, then add the two tablespoons of sugar, one at a time, whisking continuously. Beat until the sugar has dissolved, and the whites reach the stiff peak stage.

With a rubber spatula, fold in half of the egg mixture into the meringue first to loosen it a bit, then fold in the rest, as that way there is less risk of losing volume.

Sieve the flour into the batter, then with a spatula, fold it in.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan, taking care it's spread evenly. Then, sieve the confectioner's sugar over the surface of the batter, taking care that it's spread evenly.

Bake for five minutes, or less, if the sponge starts to brown around the edges.

Then, take out of the oven and run a knife around the edges. Cover the top of the sponge with greaseproof paper, turn it over, and peel off the greaseproof paper that's on the bottom of the sponge. Let the sponge cool completely.

Place the sponge on a clean, flat surface, so its long side faces you.

Drizzle the syrup over the cake to moisten it. Spread the sponge with the pastry cream, taking care it reaches to the edges, then roll into a roulade. Place seam side down on a piece of greaseproof paper, then wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 4 hours.

Place the roulade on a serving plate, then cut a 1.5-inch (4 cm) thick slice off each end of the roulade and set them aside for later.

Spread the roulade with a cup of the buttercream, then attach the two slices you've previously cut off to the top of the roulade, one on each side, and coat them with buttercream as well. Run a fork through the buttercream so the surface resembles the bark of a tree.

Refrigerate for 15 minutes so that the buttercream can stiffen up a bit.

Assemble the meringue mushrooms by gluing the caps and the stems with a small amount of buttercream. Store them cap side down until you're ready to decorate the log.

Take the log out of the refrigerator, then peel the chocolate block using a knife over the cake, so the shavings fall on and around the cake. Then, arrange the meringue mushrooms around the cake for decoration, and serve.