This seemingly simple cake was quite a project! Thanks to Tuesdays with Dorie, I pushed myself to make this recipe (which I initially overlooked immediately after seeing it in Baking Chez Moi because it looked too complicated for me). This cake turned out to be more fun to make than I thought! There were 4 steps to this cake: 1) Praline; 2) Cake; 3) Filling; and 4) Frosting.
Step 1: Make Praline. I like eating candied nuts, but I had never made my own. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. Just heat up your sugar/water, and add in the nuts!
These smelled so good as I spread them on the silpat...
So I chopped them into different sizes, trying my best not to eat them all before I got to use them in the cake. Praline, check!
Step 2: The cake. This cake was the most intimidating part for me. It's a sponge cake that's rolled up. Two things scared me: 1) I was afraid that I would not be able to turn the cake out nicely without it tearing in half; and 2) I was afraid that the cake would crack as I rolled it. Thankfully neither happened.
Whipping the eggs was fun to watch. It's amazing how much the size of the batter increased.
I was so nervous about turning the cake out, I forgot to take a picture of the cake when it came out of the oven. It was a beautiful sponge cake with lots of holes on top! I was so relieved when the cake came out in one piece.
I rolled the cake very carefully when it was still hot. Cake, check.
Time to unroll the cake and spread on the filling! 
...then time to roll it back up...
Step 4: Frosting. It was pretty much an Italian meringue. Frosting, check.
There were guests over for dinner this night so before this went on the dining table, I dressed it up with more pralines.
Gingerbread Buche de Noel recipe on page 86 of Baking Chez Moi.
Great step-by-step pictures! Time consuming, yes, but definitely not difficult. I hope you had a great holiday, Ryan.
ReplyDeleteDon't you love it when something turns out EXACTLY like it is supposed to, despite fears. I have learned to TRUST DORIE!! She never fails me. Cake looks great.
ReplyDeleteWonderful process shots and a beautiful cake! I had great fun with this challenge as well.
ReplyDeleteYour rolled cake looks great and really even. It's wonderful when something that is so much effort has a great result.
ReplyDeleteYour buche turned out beautiful. I enjoyed your photos all along the process.
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful New Year!
Daunting is definitely the word for this recipe but Dorie's great directions and suggestions made it all possible. Wonderful photos--I seldom seem to be able to take pictures during the process of baking!
ReplyDeleteYou took more photos than I did along the way! The volume of the cake batter was kind of miraculous, wasn't it? Your cake came out beautifully!
ReplyDeleteI know, so time-consuming...but delicious! I hope your guests enjoyed it! (And I wanted to eat all the pralines too. :)
ReplyDeleteNot eating the all the nuts before they went on the cake was the hardest part :-)
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!