The Gold Bar Yule Log

Let's start the recipe!

1. Read the recipe and weigh the ingredients

   Make room in the refrigerator for the serving plate. Weigh each group of ingredients separately: keep the decoration chocolate separate from the chocolate for the ganache. Cut a sheet of baking paper to the dimensions of the baking tray, with a small edge. Prepare a second sheet of baking paper for turning out the sponge. Cooling stages can overlap; never fill a warm sponge with cream.

2. Prepare the ganache first

   Chop the 300 g of dark chocolate and put them in a dry bowl. Pour the 300 g of cream into a saucepan and heat until the first small bubbles around the edge. Remove from the heat. Pour a third of the cream over the chocolate, wait 30 seconds and then stir with a spatula in small circles in the center. Add the second third and then the last in the same way. The mixture should become smooth and glossy, with no lumps. Do not whisk it.

3. Let the ganache become spreadable

   Pour the ganache into a large container, press cling film directly onto the surface and let cool for about 20 minutes. Then place it in the refrigerator for 30 to 60 minutes, stirring every 10 to 15 minutes. It should hold on the spatula but spread easily without tearing the sponge. If it is runny, chill it longer; if it becomes too firm, leave it at room temperature for a few minutes. Times vary depending on the chocolate.

4. Preheat the oven and crack the four eggs

   Preheat the oven to 180 °C, conventional setting (no fan). Position the oven rack in the middle. Break the 4 eggs one by one in a small bowl to easily remove any shell, then pour them into the large bowl. Add 100 g of sugar and a pinch of salt. It is not necessary to separate the whites from the yolks.

5. Whisk to the ribbon stage

   Beat the eggs and sugar with an electric mixer for 7 to 10 minutes. The mixture should become pale and increase significantly in volume. When you lift the beaters, the falling batter should leave a visible trail on the surface for a few seconds: this is the ribbon stage. If it disappears immediately, whisk for another minute before checking again.

6. Fold in the dry ingredients without deflating the mixture

   Sift the 100 g flour over the bowl in three additions. After each addition, slide the spatula down to the bottom, lift the batter over the top and turn the bowl slightly. Do not use the whisk again. Stop as soon as no pockets of flour remain, checking the bottom of the bowl too. Immediately spread the batter evenly over the entire 30 x 40 cm tray, including the corners.

7. Bake until set but still flexible

   Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Check after 10 minutes: the surface should be set and spring back slightly when touched, with no wet batter. An overbaked sponge will crack when rolled. Use oven gloves to remove the tray. Rest for a minute, then turn the sponge out onto the second sheet of baking paper. Gently peel off the original baking paper, pulling it back almost flat.

8. Cool and then cut three rectangles

   Let the cookie cool well flat for 25 to 30 minutes. With a clean ruler, mark three strips of 30 x 10 cm, then cut them with a bread knife without crushing them. The remaining strip is used for tasting drops; do not overlay it on the cake. Mounting is deliberately low and stable.

9. Assemble the three layers and chill

   Place a first strip of 30 x 10 cm on the plate and spread 120 g of ganache without going quite to the edges. Lay the second, spread another 120 g, then add the third, face the most even upwards. Press gently with the palm flat. Reserve 300 g of ganache for coating and about 60 g to stick the decorations. Cool the assembly for 45 minutes before trimming or covering it.

10. Cut the shape of the ingot

    Put the cold cake in front of you. With a bread knife, remove a thin strip along the two upper edges, then at both ends: the upper side becomes slightly smaller than the base. Cut gradually, 5 mm at a time, without removing an entire layer. The log must remain low; the offcuts can be tasted separately.

11. Smooth the underlayment

    Spread the reserved 300 g of ganache in a regular layer on the top and sides. Pass the spatula in long movements and closes the hollows. Cool down for 20 minutes: the surface should be firm, but not covered with condensation when placing the fondant.

12. Spread the yellow cover

    Mix the 400 g of yellow paste between your hands for one minute. Powder very lightly the worktop with a portion of 10 g of icing sugar. Spread about 3 mm, in a sheet larger than the cake: measures its length and width, then adds twice its height and 2 cm of margin. Turn the dough between the passages of the roller to prevent it from sticking.

13. Cover without enclosing folds

    Lift the dough with the roller and center it on the ingot. First smoothes the top with dry hands, then angles and sides from top to bottom. Lightly lift a fold before smoothing it: do not crush it against the cake. Cut the excess to the level of the dish. Keep the offcuts packed for another decor.

14. Mark the letters and then brown

    Before the dough dries, mark FINE GOLD and 999.9 with food stamps or the rounded tip of a clean tool, without going through the cover. A date is optional; inscriptions are decorative. Shake or mix the edible golden paint as indicated on its package leaflet. Apply a first thin layer with a brush, let dry the time indicated, then a second if necessary. Do not wet the fondant.

15. Let dry and cut

    Place the log in its box in the refrigerator once the finish is dry to the touch. Take it out 15 minutes before serving. If condensation appears, wait without rubbing. Cut with a long knife by first crossing the thin cover, then the three layers. The golden tint depends on the product used; it does not need to be perfectly metallic.