Tiramisu Christmas log: Buche de Noel au tiramisu

The log is a very traditional french Christmas dessert. A lot people buy it nowadays, and it used to be made traditionally with butter cream, which although very tasty, is not the lightest of dessert after a meal.
These days there are many variations to be bought, based on other cakes, or totally new creations. French patisseries have gorgeous logs for sale, but I do tend to like a good homemade log.

And I have a very simple and rather fast recipe for you, a tiramisu log. A great success in the family. It was born from teamwork with my mum, she provided the rolled biscuit recipe, and I provided my tiramisu recipe, that I learnt from a Turkish friend, who herself obtained it from her italian boyfriend who was a cook.

...Anyway, it's very easy, and very tasty!

For the rolled biscuit you need:
- 4 yolks
- 4 egg whites
- 75g+1tsp cassonade (raw, unrefined sugar, with a 'blond' colour)
- 50g butter
- 25g sugar
- 75g flour

Beat the yolks with the cassonnade until the mix is white and creamy. Add the flour and mix well.

Beat the egg whites

Add the melted butter to the mix, and incorporate the white delicately.

Place cooking paper on the oven plaque, with the sides covered. Mark the corners with your thumbs. Pour the mix in, make sure the corners are filled. Cook between 12 and 15 minutes in a preheated oven at 180 degrees centigrade (thermostat 4).

Take the biscuit out when it has raised and is slightly golden and still supple. cover it with a moist cloth. Let it cool down a little. Remove the cloth.

Sprinkle cassonnade on a large baking paper sheet and turn the biscuit over it quickly. Humidify the baking paper the biscuit cooked on, and separate it from the biscuit slowly and delicately. use a round patisserie knife if you need to.

Now, whilst the biscuit was cooking, you prepared the filling:
- 2 tubs of mascarpone
- 2 tblspn of sugar
- 100% cocoa powder
- 1 fresh espresso
- water
- a swig of Amaretto (or else if you don't have this alcohol)

Mix the mascarpone with the sugar
in a shallow dish, mix espresso, alcohol and water down. Sprinkle on the biscuit evenly to avoid making it soggy, or it would make it too fragile for the next phase.

Spread 2/3 of the mascarpone the biscuit, and sprinkle with cocoa powder.

Then proceed to roll the biscuit delicately:


To make as if it was the stump of a cut branch you can cut the end of the log and place it on top for decoration, so that it looks like a real log. I am generally not too fussed about details like that, as it means wasting a bit of this precious time I so lack. And anyway, the eaters don't care very much, they are already very happy with it as it is. But it is up to you indeed and how much you want to impress your guests!

When it is rolled, cover the log with the rest of the mascarpone and make marks with a fork.

Then sprinkle it with the cocoa powder so:
Keep it in the fridge for 1 hour or more before eating! Done

Bon appetit!

Christmas in the south of France...

Source: my mother and I, as a creative and happy team