Family Advent Calendar: Our Christmas Eve Checklist and A Lemon Bûche de Noël

2013Day24 last day of advent
It’s Christmas Eve! Time for cookies, merry-making, carolling, mass, a huge fish dinner, cozy pyjamas and some final Christmas preparations! And don’t miss our awesome new Bûche de Noël, The Lemon Edition!!!
2013 Christmas Eve Checklist 2013
Christmas Eve Checklist
□ Make sure there are enough cookies for Santa. If not, make some more!
□ Prepare the Lemon Bûche de Noël for tomorrow’s Christmas dinner. [See recipe and alt. links below]
□ Enjoy Toby’s Choir singing at Mass in the Cathedral!
□ Indulge in the Feast of the Seven Fishes [But, maybe, not at home! What? Are we going fishing? You’ll have to see!!]
□ Drink Hot Chocolate and Sing Carols in our Pyjamas!
□ Leave Cookies, Milk, and Reindeer Biscuits by the Fire!
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BÛCHE DE NOËL, The Lemon Edition
Each year we make a Bûche de Noel. This year we are going with a new lemon recipe!!
Don’t like lemon?
Check out our Cannoli Bûche de Noël and our traditional Chocolate Bûche de Noel Posts!
My full 2019 recipe card from my new website, Smelling Salts Journal, is here, followed by my original recipe.


Lemon Bûche de Noël with Lemon Mascarpone Icing

Servings: 12
Author: Roseanne Carrara, The Lunchbox Season

Ingredients

Lemon Jelly Roll Cake

  • 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 4 room temperature eggs separated
  • 1/4 c sugar to be added to the beaten egg yolks
  • 1/2 c sugar to be added to the soft peaked egg whites
  • 2 tbs lemon juice
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tsp lemon zest
  • icing sugar and clean towel for rolling the cake

Lemon Soak

  • 1/2 c sugar
  • 1/3 c water
  • zest of 1/2 lemon
  • 1/4 c lemon juice OR 1/8 c lemon juice and 1/8 c rum brandy, or other (non-creamed) spirit of choice

Lemon Cream Filling

  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • 2-3 tbs lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup sifted icing sugar
  • zest of 1/2 lemon

Lemon Mascarpone Icing

  • 16 oz ~475 g Cold Mascarpone Cheese [2 of the small tubs]
  • 1 c icing sugar
  • 3 tbs lemon juice
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • zest of 1/2 lemon if desired
  • 4-6 tbs milk or cream
  • Candied Lemon Slices
  • 1 lemon
  • Pot of Boiling Water
  • Ice Water Bath
  • 1 + c sugar
  • 1 c water

Make-Ahead Meringue Mushrooms

  • 2 egg whites room temperature
  • 1/8 tsp cream of tartar
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup white or semisweet chocolate pieces
  • lemon zest and/or icing sugar for dusting [optional]

Instructions

Lemon Jelly Roll & Assembly

  • Heat oven to 375.
  • Grease a 15x10x1 baking or jelly roll pan or spray it with baking spray.
  • Line it with a waxed or parchment paper rectangle cut 1/2 inch smaller than the pan (14×9).
  • Grease the paper or spray it with baking spray.
  • Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl or onto another sheet of waxed paper and set aside.
  • In a mixer, beat eggs yolks, lemon juice, and vanilla until thick and yellow.
  • Add the 1/4 cup sugar and beat on high until dissolved.
  • Add zest.
  • Pour mixture into a clean bowl and set aside.
  • Wash the mixing bowl and beaters.
  • Beat the egg whites on medium until soft peaks form.
  • Add the 1/2 c sugar by the tablespoon and beat until stiff peaks form.
  • Fold the reserved egg yolk mixture into the beaten egg white mixture quickly with the mixer or with a spatula.
  • Gently and quickly, fold in the flour mixture with a spatula.
  • Spread batter into the pan as evenly as possible.
  • Bake 12-15 minutes until center spring back when pressed lightly with a fingertip. [The cake may look a bit bubbly or even mountainous! No worries! It will flatten out with the folding, anyway!]
  • Immediately loosen the edges of the cake with a knife.
  • While the cake is still quite warm, Invert pan onto a clean towel dusted generously with icing sugar.
  • Peel off waxed paper.
  • Gently roll wider length of cake jelly roll style in towel. You want a long thin roll, not short and thick.
  • Cool rolled and wrapped cake completely on a wire rack. [You can store the cake like this for up to one day or re-roll the cake in wax paper, wrap wax-paper rolled cake in foil and freeze for 2-3 weeks.]
  • Unroll your cake from the towel.
  • [Optional] Using a pastry or basting-style brush, spread the Lemon Soak generously onto the [inside] surface of the roll cake. [I only used about 1/16 of a cup.]
  • Spread the inside/top surface of the unrolled cake with the Lemon Cream.
  • Gently re-roll the cake.
  • Place the filled cake on a serving plate.
  • Cut a 1/2in-or-thicker slice(s) from the ends of the cake roll to use as knot(s) or trimmed limb(s) of cake. Or, if using as a jelly roll, skip to Step 30.
  • Use the Lemon Mascarpone Icing to attach these knots and limbs to the cake roll.
  • Frost the cake roll with the remainingLemon Mascarpone Icing. You do not have to ice the open ends and open knots of the cake. This is a bit tricky, but can be done with a clean icing spreader.
  • If desired, use the tines of a fork or an icing spatula to make the icing look like realistic “bark.”
  • If desired, decorate with Make-Ahead Mushrooms, Candied Lemon Slices, and additional lemon zest.
  • Chill until 10-20 minutes before serving time.

Lemon Soak

  • Place the sugar and water in a small pan and heat until the sugar has dissolved completely.
  • You do not need to boil this.
  • Remove from heat.
  • Add juice and/or alcohol.

Lemon Cream

  • Combine all ingredients in a cold stand mixer or bowl and beat with cold beaters until stiff.

Lemon Mascarpone Icing

  • Beat the mascarpone, sugar, zest, vanilla, and lemon juice on high until incorporated.
  • Gradually add the milk or cream 1 tbs at a time until the icing becomes as spreadable as you would like.
  • You may also add additional icing sugar if desired.
  • Refrigerate until ready to use.

Candied Lemon Slices

  • Slice lemons into 10- 12 thin slices [use a mandoline if necessary].
  • Compost lemon seeds and top and tail of lemon.
  • Arrange a bowl of ice water on the counter.
  • In a pot of boiling water boil lemons for one minute.
  • Drain and place lemons in ice bath.
  • In a flat low pan, bring 1 c water and 1 c sugar to simmer to dissolve.
  • Reduce heat to medium low.
  • Drain lemon slices again.
  • Arrange lemon slices flat on pan in sugar syrup.
  • Simmer for 1 hour.
  • Remove slices to a parchment-lined rack or plate to cool.

Make-Ahead Meringue Mushrooms

  • Heat oven to 200.
  • Line two large cookie sheets with parchment.
  • Beat egg whites and cream of tartar at medium speed until soft peaks form.*
  • Increase speed and, one tablespoon at a time, sprinkle in the sugar until the sugar dissolves and the meringue forms stiff peaks. It will be thick and shiny, a cross between marshmallow fluff and taffy.
  • Attach a 1/2-inch round tip to a pastry bag or ziploc bag.
  • Fill the bag halfway with meringue and make an equal number of caps and stems, as described in the next two steps.
  • For the mushroom caps, squeeze meringue into 1.5-in rounds, pulling off to the side to avoid pointy tips.
  • For the stems, hold pastry bag upright and squeeze out meringue, creating either an elongated cylinder or a "kiss" shape with a fairly pointy tip, about an inch tall.
  • Place the sheeet sin the oven and bake for approximately 2 hours, until firm but not brown. You'll want to rotate the sheets at the first and third half hour and swap them at the 1 hour point.
  • Let the caps and tips stand for a few moments on the cookie sheets.
  • Then, remove the mushrooms on their parchment to wire racks to cool completely.
  • When the mushrooms are cool, you may store them in pieces in a spacious air-tight container or assemble right away.
  • To assemble, melt the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl over boiling water or in slow bursts at half-power in the microwave.
  • OPTION A: Carefully make a small indentation in the centre underside of each mushroom cap with the back of a spoon or the tip of a knife. Working one at a time, fill the hollow in a cap with about a 1/4 teaspoon of melted chocolate. Then, press the top of a stem into the indentation. If possible, cool cap-side down on a tray until the seal is firm.
  • OPTION B: Coat the undersides of the caps with a bit of chocolate. With snips or a sharp knife, cut off any of the pointy "tips" of the stems you might have made. Use additional chocolate to attach the stems to the caps. Cool completely until the seal is firm.
  • Store in a dry, air-tight container until ready to use.
  • If desired, dust with lemon zest and icing sugar when you assemble the cake.

Notes

*Note: If you're having trouble getting your egg-whites to peak, try incorporating 1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar.

ORIGINAL RECIPE

Lemon Buche de Noel with Full Recipe and Instructions Yule Log Cake here we come
LEMON BÛCHE DE NOËL
Lemon Bûche de Noel: Lemon Jelly Roll Cake, Lemon Soak, Lemon Cream, and Lemon Mascarpone Icing
If you’re not interested in making all of this from scratch, try our EASY SUBSTITUTIONS, in italics.

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STEP ONE: Bake and Roll the Lemon Jelly Roll Cake
EASY SUBSTITUTION: Feel free to bake a white jelly roll or substitute a white or lemon box mix here, just be sure to prepare it in a jelly roll pan and roll it to cool as described below.

Lemon Jelly Roll Cake Recipe
Lemon Jelly Roll Cake

Lemon Jelly Roll Cake Ingredients
.5 c all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 room temperature eggs, separated
.3 c sugar to be added to the beaten egg yolks.
.5 c sugar to be added to the soft peaked egg whites.
2 tbs lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp lemon zest
icing sugar and clean towel for rolling the cake

Lemon Jelly Roll Cake Method
In a mixer, beat eggs yolks, lemon juice, and vanilla until thick and yellow.
Add the sugar and beat on high until dissolved.
Add zest.
Pour mixture into a clean bowl.
Set the mixture aside in the refrigerator.Wash the mixer bowl and beater, dry it, and place the mixer bowl and egg beater/whip in the fridge or freezer for a moment.Heat oven to 375.
Grease a 15x10x1 baking or jelly roll pan or spray it with baking spray.
Line it with a waxed or parchment paper rectangle cut 1/2 inch smaller than the pan (14×9).
Grease the paper or spray it with baking spray.Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl or onto another sheet of waxed paper and set aside.In your cold mixing bowl, using cold beaters, beat the egg whites on medium until soft peaks form.
Add the .5 sugar slowly and beat until stiff peaks form.
Fold the egg yolk mixture from the fridge into the beaten egg white mixture with a spatula.
By hand, fold in the flour mixture.
Spread batter into the pan.
Bake 12-15 minutes until center spring back when pressed lightly with a fingertip.
[Optional] Cut around warm cake 1/4 in from the edges of the pan with a sharp knife.
Invert pan onto a clean towel dusted generously with icing sugar.
Peel off waxed paper.
Gently roll wider length of cake jelly roll style in towel.
Cool rolled and wrapped cake completely on a wire rack.
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STEP TWO: Make the [Optional] Lemon Soak, Lemon Cream, and Lemon Mascarpone Icing 
Lemon Soak recipe for Layer Cakes Jelly Roll Cakes and Sweet Bread Loves Recipe from Thelunchboxseason
Lemon Soak [Optional] 

Makes about .5 c
[
May Be Doubled] 

Lemon Soak Ingredients

.5 c sugar
.3 c water
zest of .5 lemon
.25 c lemon juice
OR
.125 c lemon juice
.125 c rum, brandy, or other fantastical (non-creamed) spirit of choice!

Soak Method

Place the sugar and water in a small pan and heat until the sugar has dissolved completely.
You do not need to boil this.
Remove from heat.
Add juice and/or alcohol.
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Quick Lemon Cream Filling for Jelly Roll Cakes
Quick Lemon Cream Filling
EASY SUBSTITUTIONS: use [store-bought or home-made] lemon curd in place of this quick cream, or combine a few tablespoons of lemon curd with store-bought or home-made whipped cream.

Quick Lemon Cream Ingredients
1 cup whipping cream
2-3 tbs lemon juice
1/2 cup sifted icing sugar
zest of .5 lemon
 
Quick Lemon Cream Method
Combine all ingredients in stand mixer or bowl and beat until stiff.
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Lemon Mascarpone Icing for our Lemon Buche de Noel from The Lunchbox Season
Lemon Mascarpone Icing
EASY SUBSTITUTIONS: use store-bought lemon icing, mix store-bought vanilla icing with a few tbs lemon juice, or try our recipe for lemon cream cheese icing

Lemon Mascarpone Icing Ingredients
~16 oz/475 g Cold Mascarpone Cheese [2 of the small tubs]
1 c icing sugar
3 tbs lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
zest of .5 lemon, if desired
4-6 tbs milk or cream
        
Lemon Mascarpone Icing Method
Beat the mascarpone, sugar, zest, vanilla, and lemon juice on high until incorporated.
Gradually add the milk or cream 1 tbs at a time until the icing becomes as spreadable as you would like.
You may also add additional icing sugar if desired.
Refrigerate until ready to use.
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STEP THREE: Assemble & Decorate the Lemon Bûche de Noël
   Buche de Noel Assembly from thelunchboxseason
Lemon Bûche de Noël Assembly
Unroll your cake from the towel.
[Optional] Using a pastry or basting-style brush, spread Lemon Soak generously onto the [inside] surface of the roll cake.
[We only used about 1/16 of a cup of our syrup]
Spread the inside/top surface of the unrolled cake with the Lemon Cream [or with one of our suggested substitutions].
Gently re-roll the cake.
Place the filled cake on a serving plate.
Cut a 1/2in-or-thicker slice(s) from the ends of the cake roll to use as knot(s) or trimmed limb(s) of cake.
Use the Lemon Mascarpone Icing to attach these knots and limbs to the cake roll.
[Optional] Take a small bit of the Lemon Mascarpone Icing and “dirty ice” the exposed/cut cake edges with a thin coating of ocing.
Frost the cake roll with the remaining Lemon Mascarpone Icing.If desired, use the tines of a fork or an icing spatula to make the icing look like realistic “bark.”
If desired, sprinkle the ends of the roll and/or the knots/limbs with white mini chips, shaved or diced white chocolate, lemon zest, icing sugar or chopped pistachios.
If desired, decorate with All-White Make-Ahead Meringue Mushrooms and Candied Lemon Slices.
Chill until 10-20 minutes before serving time.
   
Make-Ahead Meringue Mushrooms, The “All-White” Version
 Easy Make-Ahead Meringue Mushrooms    
Mushroom Ingredients
2 egg whites
1/3 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp almond or vanilla extract
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup white chocolate pieces or additional cake icing
Icing Sugar for dusting
*
Mushroom Method

Line two large cookie sheets with parchment.
Beat egg whites, cream of tartar and extract until foamy white and double in volume.
Sprinkle in the granulated sugar, 1 tbs at a time, until sugar dissolves and meringue forms stiff peaks.
Attach a plain icing tip to a pastry bag or ziploc bag. Spoon meringue into bag.
For mushroom caps: press meringue into 1.5in rounds. Smooth top of each with a knife but don’t flatten.
For stems: hold pastry bag upright and press out meringue, pulling straight up about 1.5 inches.
Bake at 250f for 30 minutes until firm but not brown. Let stand a while on cookie sheets.
Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
Melt white chocolate in a cup over hot water or in the microwave or set aside about .25 c icing.
Carefully make a small indentation in the underside of each cap with a teaspoon or with the handle of a wooden spoon.
Fill hollow with melted chocolate or icing.
Press stem into hollow.
Let sit until chocolate or icing is firm.
Dust with icing sugar if desired.
Store in a dry, air-tight container.
Easy Candied Lemon Slices from The Lunchbox Season
Candied Lemon Slices
Ingredients
1 lemon
Pot of Boiling Water
Ice Water Bath
1+ c sugar
1 c water
*
Method

Slice lemons into 10- 12 thin slices [use a mandoline if necessary].
Compost lemon seeds and top and tail of lemon.
Arrange a bowl of ice water on the counter.
In a pot of boiling water boil lemons for one minute.
Drain and place lemons in ice bath.
In a flat low pan, bring 1 c water and 1 c sugar to simmer to dissolve.
Reduce heat to medium low.
Drain lemon slices again.
Arrange lemon slices flat on pan in sugar syrup.
Simmer for 1 hour.
Remove slices to a parchment-lined rack or plate to cool.

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