Raspberry Bûche de Noël
A Bûche de Noël is a must on the French Christmas table. But if the classic chocolate version is too rich for you, here is your answer… This lighter Raspberry Bûche de Noël features an airy Génoise cake rolled up with a subtle orange-flavored mascarpone filling with fresh raspberries. It is simpler and quicker to make than most Bûches recipes, but remains an ultimate show-stopper for the Holidays! Bûche de Noël : a French Tradition It is no understatement to say the Bûche de Noel is one of the Christmas…
- Prep time
- 1 hr
- Cook time
- 11 min
- Yield
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- For the Génoise cake:
- 4 large eggs, yolks and whites separated and at room temperature
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp (125g) sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (130g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- For the filling:
- 1 cup + 3 tbsp (275g) mascarpone (35% m.f - 54% moisture)
- Zest of an orange
- 1/2 cup (50g) powdered sugar
- 250g fresh raspberries
Instructions
- 1
For the Génoise cake:
- 2
Step 1 - Pre-heat your oven to 400°F (205°C) with a rack in the middle. Butter a 10x15-inch (25.5cm x 38cm) rimmed baking sheet and line it with parchment paper (the butter helps the paper "stick" to the pan).
- 3
Step 2 - In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until foamy and a ribbon forms when lifting the whisk. Whisk in the vanilla extract. Switch to a spatula and fold in the flour and salt. Stop mixing when just incorporated; the batter will be quite thick at this point.
- 4
Step 3 – In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until firm. Add a spoonful of the egg whites to the batter and mix to loosen the consistency. Add the rest of the egg whites and gently fold in with a spatula. Gently spread the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it out with a spatula so it covers the whole pan.
- 5
Step 4 - Bake for 10-11 minutes, until a tooth pick inserted in the center of the cake sheet comes out clean. Right out of the oven, lightly sprinkle a clean kitchen towel with water (to make it just humid, not wet), lay it onto your counter and turn the cake onto it. Peel off the parchment paper and immediately (and carefully) roll the cake with the kitchen towel, starting from the narrow (shorter width) side. Roll as tight as possible, without pressing onto the cake. Set aside on your counter. While the cake cools, make the filling.
- 6
For the filling:
- 7
Step 1 - In a mixing bowl, whisk together the mascarpone, sugar and orange zest. Rinse and pat-fry the raspberries.
- 8
Assembling:
- 9
Step 1 - Transfer the rolled cake onto a working surface and slowly unroll it. Evenly spread the mascarpone filling onto the entire cake sheet. Scatter raspberries evenly over top, slightly pressing them into the filling (keep a few for decorating the log later). Re-roll the cake into a log, as it previously was (minus the cloth). Wrap the log into a plastic film and chill for at least 4 hours before serving.
- 10
For serving, unwrap the log, trim off both ends, dust with powdered sugar and top with fresh raspberries.