Mont Blanc Bûche
Servings: 18 people
Calories: 385kcal
Cost: $35
The best of its kind
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Equipment
- 2 Yule log molds 3.5X11.5-inch/9X29cm lined with plastic acetate or freezer bag*
- 1 Rimmed sheet pan
- 2 Baking trays
- 1 Stand mixer
- 1 Food processor
- 1 Immersion blender
- 2 Saucepans
- 1 Rubber spatula
- 1 Offset spatula
- 5 deli containers
- 1 Narrow tall container
- 1 Sieve
- 1 Rolling Pin
- 4 Piping bags
- 1 0.39-inch/1cm Ø plain tip for the meringue and chestnut compote
- 1 Pastry brush
- 1 Kitchen blowtorch
- 1 Vermicelli piping tip 9 holes optional
Ingredients
Chestnut Compote
- 250 g Chestnut paste/pâte de marrons* at room temp
- 200 g Chestnut cream/crème de marrons at room temp
- 15 g Dark rum, cognac or whisky or orange juice
- 65 g Heavy cream
- 20 g Corn syrup/glucose
- 1 g Gelatin 200 bloom
Chestnut Sponge
- 280 g Chestnut cream/crème de marrons
- 4 ea. Eggs at room temp
- 2 g Fleur de sel
- 80 g Melted butter
- 90 g All-purpose flour sifted
- 10 g Baking powder sifted
Vanilla Mousse (Ganache Montée)
- 500 g Heavy cream hot
- 10 g Vanilla bean
- 280 g White chocolate
- 10 g Gelatin 200 bloom
- 500 g Heavy cream chilled
Punch
- 100 g Simple syrup
- 5 g Vanilla extract
- 15 g Rum, whisky or cognac optional
Chocolate Coating For The Meringue
- 50 g Cocoa butter or coconut oil
- 60 g Milk or dark chocolate
Instructions
Mont Blanc Cake vs Bûche de Noël
- When it comes to creating a Mont Blanc yule log, it's all about honoring the classic components while adapting them to fit the festive spirit of a Christmas dessert. The original Mont Blanc Cake is a masterpiece in itself, with its almond cream crust, crispy meringue, silky vanilla chantilly, and delicate chestnut vermicelli. In this unique yule log version, each element is reimagined to fit the cylindrical shape of the dessert. One notable transformation is the upgrade of the chestnut vermicelli into a gooey insert, adding a touch of indulgence to every slice. While the almond cream-crust is a signature feature of the mont blanc cake, it's interesting to note that it remains optional in this yule log adaptation, showcasing the versatility and creativity of this Christmas delight. This Mont Blanc yule log is a stunning fusion of tradition and innovation, offering a taste of nostalgia with a contemporary twist.
Chestnut Cream vs Chestnut Paste*
- When it comes to creating delightful pastries and desserts, it's essential to distinguish between chestnut cream (crème de marrons) and chestnut paste (pâte de marrons). Chestnut cream is known for its sweet and velvety texture, making it a perfect filling or topping for various treats. On the other hand, chestnut paste offers a denser and more concentrated flavor profile, ideal for adding depth to pastries. In many pastry recipes such as the Barquette Aux Marrons, a blend of chestnut cream and chestnut paste in a 1:1 ratio is often used to achieve the perfect balance of sweetness and texture. This combination enhances the overall taste and mouthfeel of the final product, creating a harmonious blend of flavors. Alternatively, you can make up your own homemade chestnut paste by processing cooked and hot chestnuts through a food mill. Finish the chestnut puree in the food processor with a touch of honey or corn syrup, and vanilla extract. Visit Agrimontana to discover all of these magical ingredients from Italy.
Mise-En-Place
- When preparing a complex dessert with multiple components, such as almond cream, French meringue, chestnut biscuit, and compote, the key is to plan ahead and make as many elements in advance as possible. This not only saves time but also allows you to focus on assembling and presenting the dessert when the time comes. One of the components that can be prepared ahead of time is the baked in crust almond cream. Similarly, the French meringue can be prepared in advance and stored in an airtight container. The chestnut biscuit and compote are also components that benefit from being made ahead of time. Additionally, chocolate barks can be made days in advance and stored in a cool, dry place until ready to use. The log can also be finished with chocolate velvet spray.
Punch
- The syrup from canned candied/confit marrons can be used in place of simple syrup. You may need to add a splash of water – add alcohol. Use the punch lukewarm.
Crispy French Meringue
- Draw four 11X2½-inch/28X6cm rectangle over 2 sheets of parchment. Oil both; the sheet pans and parchments.
- Make french meringue as directed and add one orange zest when folding in the sifted powdered sugar.
- Pipe out about 5 meringue bars. Bake meringue in a fan oven at 200ºF/90ºC for 60 minutes. Turn the oven off and leave the meringue inside.
Chocolate Coating For The Meringue
- Known as flocage, this mixture can indeed be sprayed over frozen cakes to create a velvet effect. It is also used to prevent inserts to become mushy when in direct contact with the mousse. Melt cocoa fat first, then add the chocolate. When chocolate mixture is at about 104ºF/40ºC, it is ready.
- With the pastry brush, carefully paint the meringue bars on both sides – refrigerate to set and repeat. If it breaks, use the chocolate to glue broken parts.
- Reserve the crispy meringue bars in a cool area for up to 2 weeks. We would need one meringue bar per cake, so save extra for late use. These can be broken into chunks and re-used to make individual cakes, verrines etc…
Almond Cream Crust
- Roll out sugar dough (350g) into a ¼ inch/6mm sheet. Trim pastry into a 14X11.5-inch/35X29cm rectangle. Freeze for 15 minutes. Roll out again to create a perfectly even pastry sheet. Trim it into a 11.5X7.5-inch/29X19cm sheet. Prick pastry with a fork and keep frozen until ready to bake.
- Preheat fan oven to 330ºF/160ºC. Pre-bake pastry sheet naked for 15 minutes. Let cool before spreading over the almond cream.
- Create a border with the parchment and a strip of paperboard. Spread almond cream over the crust. Place a couple of cake rings against the edge. Put back in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool and refrigerate the until ready to use.
Chestnut Sponge
- In the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachement, beat eggs with the chestnut cream on full blast until light and fluffy for 8 minutes. Fold in the sifted powders and then incorporate the melted butter. Spread the chestnut mixture into a 11.5X7.5-inch/29X19cm slab.
Baking
- Preheat fan oven to 330ºF/160ºC. Bake chestnut sponge for 20 minutes. Let cool and freeze until ready to cut.
Vanilla Mousse (Ganache Montée)
- Soak gelatin in cold water to soften and drain. Crush white chocolate and place in the narrow and tall container. Bring to boil heavy cream along with the scrapped vanilla bean and seeds. Turn off the heat – cover and let infuse for 20 minutes. Remove and squeeze out vanilla bean, rinse the pod and dry it out in the oven after baking when it is still hot.
- Reheat the vanilla infused heavy cream, and pour it in the chocolate. Let stand a minute and mix with your immersion blender. Add the soften gelatin and the remaining chilled heavy cream – blend well and refrigerate overnight before whipping.
Chestnut Compote
- Soak gelatin in cold water to soften and drain. Next, heat up the heavy cream and corn syrup on low heat. While the cream is heating up, cut the chestnut paste into chunks. In the food processor, mix chestnut paste with the chestnut cream and the alcohol.
- Once your heavy cream mixture has come to a gentle boil, remove it from the heat and add the softened gelatin. Add it to the chestnut and mix until the mixture is completely smooth and velvety. Keep chestnut compote in a piping bag fitted with the open tip.
Montage
- To make the chestnut inserts, cut chestnut sponge into two 2X11¼-inch/5X28cm bars. Save leftovers for later use.
- Cover each sponge with 3 generous ropes of chestnut compote – keep inserts frozen.
- For the bottom of the cakes, trim and cut the almond-cream-crust into two 3.5X11.5-inch/8.8X29cm bars, and freeze.
- When all cake components are ready, whip vanilla ganache montée to medium-soft peaks.
- *No need to line cake mold with plastic sheet if using silicone mold. Fill the mold about halfway full with vanilla mousse. Coat the sides of the molds using the offset spatula.
- Place the frozen chestnut insert (chestnut compote side down). Gently press it down and moisturize the sponge with the punch.
- Cover with a layer of vanilla mousse.
- Top the crispy meringue.
- Cover with thin layer of mousse and place the crust over. Press down and smooth out edges; and freeze overnight.
- If you are working with a silicone mold, it is important to skip this step. For other types of molds, a quick pass of the blowtorch will help loosen the frozen dessert for an easy unmolding process. Once you have carefully removed the mold and any plastic wrapping, it's time to refine the shape of your dessert.
- Trim off any uneven ends to create a clean and polished look. At this stage, you can choose to leave the dessert as a whole log or cut it in half for individual servings. To prepare the dessert for final presentation, place each log on a cake board. A clever trick to ensure that the crust of your dessert sticks to the board is to use a dash of glucose.
Decorating
- Pass chestnut compote through a sieve. Next, prepare a piping bag fitted with a vermicelli piping tip and fill it with some of the chestnut compote. With steady hands, pipe a narrow eight swirling motion figures all the way down the cake, creating a beautiful and intricate swirl effect that will add a touch of elegance to your dessert. At this juncture, the mont blanc cake can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months (freeze it first and wrap cake in plastic film).
- Before adding the chocolate barks, allow the cake to thaw in the refrigerator overnight. Arrange milk chocolate barks artfully, and top with chunks of chestnut in Cognac or marrons glacés.
Storage
- Upon finished, mont blanc cake can be refrigerated for up to 3 days. Merry Christmas!
Nutrition
Serving: 150g | Calories: 385kcal
2 thoughts on “Mont Blanc Bûche”
Hi Bruno. What it is ”ea.” (for example you put this to the eggs, french merengue etc.). Au revoir!!!
Hi there!
It means each/one/un/uno/chaque 🙂