THE FESTIVAL CARNET
Chocolate, Chestnut and Amaretto Yule Log on Dacquoise
Christmas recipe: Chocolate, chestnut and amaretto on dacquoise. Preparation: 80 min. Ingredients and detailed steps.
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Chocolate, Chestnut and Amaretto Yule Log on Dacquoise combines dark chocolate brown ganache and beige brown heart. The log takes place in a mould before a cold demoulding, then a slow thawing in the refrigerator.
Weigh all the ingredients before starting. The steps explain the essential cooling: a hot preparation should never meet the cream.
The decor remains deliberately simple: a surface worked with a spoon and a legible cut. The times are indicative; check the texture at each step. This creation is proposed for the domestic kitchen.
Organizes the components in parallel: during their cooling, prepares the rest of the weighing and the equipment. The displayed rest time assumes that the independent coolings overlap; if you prepare all the elements successively, add up the times of each step.
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The preparation step by step
Prepare the chestnut heart
Mix 180 g of chestnut cream with 20 g of amaretto. Pour into a small 22 x 3 cm insert mold and freeze for at least 4 hours. Alcohol is not cooked: indicate it before the service and keep an alcohol-free alternative for the people concerned.
Prepare the base of dacquoise
Preheat the oven to 170 °C in conventional oven setting (no fan). Draw a 28 × 14 cm rectangle on the reverse of a sheet of baking paper and place it on a baking tray. Sift the 40 g icing sugar and 10 g flour, then mix with the 50 g ground almonds.
Whisk the egg whites, then fold in to loosen the mixture
Pour the 80 g egg whites into a clean mixing bowl. Whisk on medium speed. When they become frothy, add the 40 g of sugar in three additions. Stop when a soft peak holds at the tip of the whisk. Fold in the dry ingredients with a spatula, lifting the mixture from the bottom over the top.
Cuis la Dacquoise
Spread the batter within the 28 × 14 cm rectangle without pressing out the air. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, until the top is pale golden and flexible and the edges release easily. Allow to cool for 30 minutes before removing the paper. A base that is still warm would melt the mousse.
Adjusts the sole to the mold
Cut a strip of 24 x 8 cm, or 5 mm smaller than the opening of the mold on each side. Set the offcuts aside to serve as a snack. Do not stack and compress several layers inside the log: keep the base thin.
Chop the chocolate
Finely chop the 200 g of dark chocolate and place them in a dry bowl. Heat the 120 g of cream in a saucepan until the first frizz. Turn off the heat immediately.
Emulsify the ganache
Pour a third of the hot cream over the chocolate. Stir in the centre with a spatula until a glossy core forms. Add the other two thirds one after the other while continuing to mix. Avoid whisking, so that no air bubbles are incorporated.
Mature the ganache
Add the 230 g of cold cream, mix, then press cling film directly onto the surface. Refrigerate for 8 hours. The mixture must be cold all the way through before whisking; half an hour in the refrigerator is not enough.
Whip the cold ganache
Pour the ganache into a refrigerated bowl. Whisk on medium speed for 1 to 3 minutes, watching continuously. Stop as soon as the whisk leaves trails and the mixture holds on the whisk. Overwhipped ganache becomes grainy; use it as soon as it is softly whipped.
Fill the mold without bubbles
Place the mold on a rigid board. Use a spoon to spread about half the mousse over the base and up the sides of the mould. Tap the mould gently to release large air pockets. Unmould the frozen insert and place it in the centre, pressing gently without letting it touch the bottom. Cover with the remaining mousse, leaving about 1 cm for the biscuit base. Pour any excess into a small serving glass and refrigerate.
Close with biscuit
Place the cooled biscuit base on the mousse. Press lightly to level the base without pushing it into the mousse. Smooth the edges, cover and freeze for at least 8 hours, keeping the mould level.
Unmould the frozen log
The next day, put a serving dish in front of you. Gently remove the mould from the completely frozen log, without pulling on the mousse. Remove any cling film and place the log biscuit-side down on the serving plate. A log that has only been refrigerated would be too fragile to unmould this way.
Let thaw in the cool
Refrigerate the demoulded log for at least 6 hours at 4 °C maximum before serving. Thaw in the refrigerator, not on the work surface. The centre should yield to the knife: if it is still hard, allow more time to thaw in the refrigerator.
Add the shavings
Draw a vegetable peeler along the edge of the dark chocolate bar to make 20 g shavings. Simply distribute them in the center of the cold log, without covering the entire surface.
Serve regular shares
Dip the knife blade in hot water, wipe it thoroughly, then slice without crushing the cake. Wipe the blade between slices to keep the layers clearly defined. Take out only the amount you plan to serve and return the rest of the log to the refrigerator.
Conservation. Before thawing, keep the log well protected in the freezer at 18 °C for up to two weeks. After 6 hours of thawing in the refrigerator, keep it covered at 4 °C maximum and consume it within 24 hours. Do not refreeze a thawed log.
Recipe proposal with quantities and step by step. Times vary depending on the material: follow also the markers of texture and cooking.
The benchmarks for success
Respect the format
1 log of 25 cm (mould of 1.3 liter), or 8 parts. Measure your mold before you start. A deeper mold increases cooling times; does not double quantities without recalculating its volume.
Working at the right temperature
The biscuit and fruity garnish should be completely cold before assembly. Never pour a warm preparation over a cream; let each component reach the indicated texture before continuing.
Alternative without alcohol
Replace the 20 g of amaretto with 20 g of whipping cream. Freeze the mixture in the same way. This variant remains milky.
Questions Before You Start
Can I prepare this log in advance?
Yes, assemble and freeze it up to two weeks in advance, well protected. Allow at least 6 hours of thawing in the refrigerator and add fragile finishes just before serving.
What to do if the trim becomes too soft?
Cool the ganache for 20 minutes if it heats up. A whipped ganache must have matured 8 hours and remain cold; stop whipping as soon as it holds. If it becomes grainy, do not prolong whipping. An unmounted ganache should simply thicken at the spatula.
Baking tips for this recipe
- Chop the chocolate into regular pieces to facilitate its melting on contact with the cream.
- Mix in the center and gradually widen the gesture to obtain a smooth ganache, without unnecessarily incorporating air.
- Respect the indicated rest and temperature of use: a warm, soft or cold ganache does not work in the same way.
Substitutions and variations
To replace a main ingredient, choose another sheet designed with the one you want to use. Changing the proportions of fat, sugar or liquid can change the hold of the dessert.
Keep the type of chocolate provided for the structure or ganache. Switching from dark chocolate to white chocolate changes the balance: the quantities do not transpose directly.
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