Buche de Noel... what, no, it's like a big HoHo.

I LOVE feeding people. It brings me such joy to cook and entertain, and what better time of year than Christmas!? (OK, I'm not fooling anyone, every holiday and non-holiday is an good excuse to bake...)

To date I've tackled a few excellent cookie recipes, but what about that one big SHOWSTOPPER dessert that you roll out after the holiday feast!? That's when you announce to your dinner guests that you've prepared a Buche de Noel; a classic French Christmas roulade of chocolate sponge cake filled with buttercream or whipped cream coated in a rich chocolate ganache... Drooling yet?

I've made this gorgeous show stopping dessert in the past with rave reviews.... and LOTS of cream and chocolate. I was eager to make it again this year with the hope that my chocolate loving brother in law and sister in law could bliss out in a chocolate coma after Christmas Eve dinner. Alas, my milk free diet doesn't exactly allow for mounds of pillowy sweetened whipped cream rolled up in a chocolate sponge cake and smothered in chocolate....

As you know I've been hunting down the elusive ideal frosting for my cupcakes and have eagerly been searching for a fluffy sweet sub for my sweetened whipped cream. My experience with the faux cream cheese was borderline traumatic; my experiment with shortening based frosting left me feeling like trans fats weren't exactly a "healthy" substitute for the dairy I had given up; and commercially produced frostings have that unpleasant "hint" of preservatives and plastic. What's left?

Martha Stewart to the rescue!! I don't know where I stumbled upon this recipe... whatever, you know I was on Pinterest, but I was reminded of a fluffy white frosting I'd used in the past called Seven Minute Frosting. Sweet? Check. Fluffy? Check. Milk free? Check. Game on.

MARTHA STEWART'S SEVEN MINUTE FROSTING
Makes 8 cups

• 6 large egg whites
• 2 tbs light corn syrup
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1. In the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer set over a saucepan of simmering water, combine sugar, corn syrup, 1/4 cup water and the egg whites. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture registers 160 degrees on a candy thermometer, about 2 minutes.
2. Attach bowl to a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat mixture on high speed until glossy and voluminous, about 5 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Use immediately.

Next to tackle the chocolate sponge cake. This too was easily accomplished without milk as the original recipe was already dairy free. The recipe for my favorite Buche de Noel (or Yule Log as it's called here) is from Jenny Hughson on Allrecipes.com http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chocolate-yule-log/detail.aspx

CHOCOLATE YULE LOG

Makes one 10 x 15 sponge cake

• 5 eggs separated 
• 1 cup white sugar (divided)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup cake flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

1. Line a 10 x 15 x 1 inch baking sheet with parchment paper, grease the paper. Place egg whites in a small (medium at least) mixing bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, beat egg yolks on high until light and fluffy. Gradually add 1/2 cup sugar, beating until thick and lemon-colored. Combine flour, cocoa and salt. (I sifted these together to prevent lumps.) Gradually add to egg yolk mixture until blended. 

2. Beat the egg whites until foamy, add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, beating on high until stiff peaks form. Stir a fourth into the chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining egg whites until no streaks remain. 

3. Spread batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the cake springs back (do not over bake it will get crumbly). Cool 5 minutes. Invert onto a linen towel dusted with confectioners' sugar. Peel off parchment paper. Roll up in the towel starting with a short side. Cool on a wire rack. 

4. Unroll the cooled cake, spread the filling (Seven Minute Frosting) to within 1/2 inch of the edges, roll up again and chill. 

Here's where you smother it in chocolate... Typical chocolate ganache involves taking a small amount of heavy cream, heating it just until you start to get small bubbles on the stove top, taking it off the heat and stirring in chocolate until melted. Here's how I prepared my chocolate ganache. 

CHOCOLATE GANACHE

Smothers one yule log 

• About 6-8 oz of dairy free chocolate chips
• About 1/4 cup Silk Original Unsweetened Almond Milk

Directions:

1. Heat the almond milk in a small heavy bottomed sauce pan just until small bubbles start to form. You don't want to boil the milk. 

2. Stir in the chocolate chips until smooth and about the consistency of hot fudge sauce. You can keep adding chocolate until it's thick enough. 

3. Smother your Buche de Noel with the chocolate sauce and refrigerate until firm. 

Show-stopping success! I think we have a winner. I served mine with a handful of fresh raspberries because I love the combination of fresh fruit with chocolate. It was beautiful and delicious!

I hope you've enjoyed a beautiful holiday season with friends and family!

Peace,
Laura

Cookie Swap {Formerly known as Butter Bonanza}

Swapping cookies? Nope! Swapping ingredients? Yes!

In my previous life as a milk-aholic this would be the perfect season for fresh baked Christmas cookies, rich with butter, and washed down with a cold glass of milk. I'd cozy up to watch the snow fly, put on some Christmas tunes, grab a stack of snickerdoodles, cut-outs, peanut butter blossoms, chewy gingerbread, my tall glass of milk (or hot cocoa, or egg nog or... sigh, I really have a problem) and settle in for a long winter's nap.

I guess if it's currently pushing 50 degrees in Ohio in December, and no snow in sight, there's room for adaptation in other areas as well. At least I have my Christmas music!

So I found this recipe on Pinterest (Surprised! No, I'm sure you're not) and it sounded delicious! So I fired up the oven.

CRANBERRY ORANGE OATMEAL COOKIES
from http://trickschefs.com/showthread.php?tid=1056

Makes 4 Dozen

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened (I used 1/2 cup coconut oil + 1/2 cup Earth Balance)
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tbs grated orange zest (I used the zest of 1 whole orange)
• 1 tsp orange extract (I used orange juice)
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• (1/2 tsp salt, I added because I always put salt in my cookies)
• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup dried cranberries

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
In a large bowl, cream the butter (oil/Earth Balance), brown sugar and white sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla, zest, and orange extract (juice). Combine the flour, baking soda and cinnamon; stir into the butter mixture. Stir in the oats and cranberries.
Drop by rounded tablespoon onto an un-greased cookie sheet.
Bake 10-12 minutes (13 worked well for me), or until golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool for 1 minute before moving to a cooling rack.

Wow, these were OUTSTANDING! Chewy and crispy, sweet with a hint of orange. I sent a batch in with Hubby to work and they were DEVOURED! Definitely on the Christmas Cookie Swap list for years to come! As an added bonus I recently picked up some SoDelicious brand Coconut "Nog" and I must say I was pleasantly surprised! So today I can settle in with a cold glass of "Nog" a stack of Christmas cookies, and hope for a White Christmas!

Happy Holidays to ALL!

Peace,
Laura