Daring Bakers: French Yule Log

This month's challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux. They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.


Holy cow, what a challenge this yule log was! It had so many different elements, many of which I had never tackled before, that had to come together to form this beautiful dessert.

Besides being challenged by the recipe, I was also facing the issue of time. This month, we were allowed to post on any one of three days (thanks Lis and Ivonne!!) and even still, I'm getting my post in just under the wire.

Of course there was Christmas to deal with this month that took up a whole lot of my time, but there was another obstacle - an ice storm that left us without power for six ... count them SIX ... days. I had already begun my holiday baking by the time the storm hit and without power, I wound up having to throw away the entire contents of my refrigerator and freezer.

Seven garbage bags of food in the dumpster. What a crying shame! (Lovely image to share when you're expecting a beautiful dessert, no?)

I know, I know ... I was not alone in this storm and many others had it far worse than I did. I should thank my lucky stars that there was no damage to my house or car and that the power was finally restored in time to restart my holiday baking and get my gifts completed (again, in the nick of time - 4 a.m. on December 25!).

When I finally had the time to begin the challenge, I was daunted by the 18-page recipe. But I forged on and went shopping for the ingredients for the log. Two ingredients specified by the recipe were not available in my area but with recipes for each, I proceeded in making the missing ingredients.

This was my first mistake.

Missing ingredient #1: Praline paste
No problem, I thought. It's basically just a brittle that gets spun in the food processor until it becomes a paste.

Except it never became a paste.

I spun that crap around and around for what seemed like 45 minutes (with little breaks here and there for my poor old food processor) and it never changed beyond finely ground nut powder.

With advice from Linda, I added a few drops of vegetable oil. Then a few more. Then a few more. What the frick?! I must have added half a cup of oil before I got a paste. Finally - paste.

A lot of paste. What the heck do I do with all this extra paste?

If only I had seen earlier that Nutella is an acceptable replacement. I had a brand new jar sitting in my pantry the whole fricking time.

Missing ingredient #2: Gavottes or lace crepes
For this ingredient, the recipe specified that Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies or Special K could be substituted. But stubbon me said, "nah, I'll just make the gavottes with the recipe included in the challenge."

Um, yeah. So the lace crepe wound up thick and pliable instead of thin and crisp. In the trash it went and out came the Rice Krispies and Corn Flakes. Lucky I had them on hand (I usually don't).

So steps one and two were done - kind of - and I proceeded with the rest of the recipe.

Next up, step 3: Make the vanilla creme brulee insert.
Mixing this one up was no problem but when it came to pouring it in my mold, it seeped behind the parchment so when I unmolded it later, I lost a chunk to the mold.

My second issue with the brulee was in the cooking. Either the temperature was too low or the time was too short. Either way, I checked it after 1 hour - still liquid. I checked after another 30 minutes - still liquid. What the hell?

I looked to Alton Brown for answers and decided to crank up the heat for 30 minutes or so. Finally the stupid thing set ... um ... maybe too much. The very top of the brulee was overcooked but underneath was perfect. Screw it ... in the freezer it went!

Step 4: Dark Chocolate Mousse
My chocolate seized. Damn. I added more cream which smoothed it out some but not completely. Luckily, Julie had experienced the same thing and advised that I continue on. The chocolate smoothed out in the following steps and came out fine. Though my arm nearly fell off from all that pate a bombe nonsense.

Step 5: Praline Feuillete Insert
Frick, the chocolate seized again! What is it with me and chocolate? I thought we were friends. I continued on and wound up with a crumbly mess. I shaped it and froze it anyway. When it came time to cut it to size, it fell apart. I got one large piece in the mold and then poured the rest in.

Step 6 (isn't this thing done yet?!): Dacquoise
My supermarket doesn't carry almond meal so I made some in my coffee grinder - which worked perfectly. This step was not so bad except that I made my dacquoise too tall and then cut it too small. Gah.

Step 7: Dark Chocolate Ganache
I burned my caramel again - I'll get it right someday - but I had much better luck in adding the liquid to the hot caramel than I did last time. This time, I poured s-l-o-w-l-y and had no issue.

Step 8: Begin assembly (finally!)
The instructions said to line the mold with rhodoid - which is basically a plastic transparancy (remember those?) - or plastic wrap. Well I was fresh out of tranparencies (no, not really) and used the plastic wrap.

If you are brave enough to make this, go to the office supply store and buy some transparencies. If you don't and you just use plastic wrap, you'll have a lumpy bumpy log like I do.

The log was assembled and frozen until the next day when it was to be iced.

Step 9:Dark Chocolate Icing
The hardest part about this - well one of the hardest parts - was knowing when the icing was cool enough to use and not yet too cold to use. It had to be just the right temperature to pour and not clump up or run right off. The first go around, mine was too warm and just ran right off the log and pooled in the parchment below.

No biggie, I thought. I picked up the parchment, poured the excess back into my saucepan and let it cool a bit longer. Then I poured again, this time covering the top nicely but leaving mostly naked sides. So I poured the excess back into my saucepan and poured it over the sides. By this time, the icing had cooled off considerably and left me with an odd edge between the top and the sides. I considered leaving it until I noticed the partially naked side.

So, I made another batch of icing and did the whole thing over again. I finally got a decent coating on all sides and I popped that bad larry in the freezer to set up.

So how to decorate, I wondered. I considered doing chocolate ruffles but was so ready to be done that I gave up on the idea. I decided instead to just pipe a border along the bottom edge. I wanted a frosting that was dark and shiny like the icing and thought a whipped ganache would do the trick. Well, in the end, whipping the ganache lightened it up to about the same color as a chocolate buttercream ... but I didn't care. On went my border and I wound up with so much extra frosting that I did a top border too.


Finally, this sucker is done! It definitely tastes good - not too sweet - and I adore the flavor of the dacquoise.

Am I glad I stuck with it and completed the challenge? Absolutely. Did I wish I had pastry-queen Tartelette on speed dial? Oh yes. Will I make this again? Hells no.


If you'd like the recipe, visit Hilda's blog. And be sure to check out the blogroll to see the Yule Log trials and tribulations of the other Daring Bakers!

Daring Bakers: Lavash Crackers

So I've gone and done it. I've joined the Daring Bakers!


September was my first challenge, and what a challenge it was! This month's hosts are alternative bakers Natalie from Gluten A Go Go, and Shel, of Musings From the Fishbowl. They chose a vegan and/or gluten-free challenge: Lavash crackers and vegan and gluten free dips, spreads and toppings.

For a dish to be called vegan, it cannot contain any animal product or byproduct (this includes dairy, honey, etc.). Gluten free means that it cannot contain any wheat, barley, rye, or other grains or food additives that contain gluten.

Lavash crackers are a very thin, crispy cracker often topped with poppy seeds or sesame seeds. For the crackers, we had the option to make them gluten-free or use all-purpose flour. I chose the all-purpose flour route because I had plenty of it on hand. Peter Reinhart, the recipe's author, says that the key to a crisp lavash is to roll out the dough paper thin. I thought that I had rolled the dough out thin enough when I put it in the oven, but I found the crackers to be far too thick. Next time I'll roll them much thinner!


Lavash Crackers
Source: The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering The Art of Extraordinary Bread, by Peter Reinhart
1 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour or all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
1 tablespoon agave syrup or sugar (I chose to use agave syrup which you can find in many health and natural food stores. I bought mine at Trader Joe's.)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/3 to 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons water, at room temperature
Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, or kosher salt for toppings (I went with cumin, caraway seeds and sesame seeds.)

In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt, yeast, agave, oil, and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need the full amount of water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.

Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Knead for about 10 minutes, or until the ingredients are evenly distributed. The dough should pass the windowpane test. The dough should be satiny to the touch, not tacky, and supple enough to stretch when pulled. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

Ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (You can also retard the dough overnight in the refrigerator immediately after kneading or mixing).

Mist the counter lightly with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter. Press the dough into a square with your hand and dust the top of the dough lightly with flour. Roll it out with a rolling pin into a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. You may have to stop from time to time so that the gluten can relax. At these times, lift the dough from the counter and wave it a little, and then lay it back down. Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap while it relaxes. When it is the desired thinness, let the dough relax for 5 minutes. Line a sheet pan with baking parchment. Carefully lift the sheet of dough and lay it on the parchment. If it overlaps the edge of the pan, snip off the excess with scissors.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Mist the top of the dough with water and sprinkle a covering of seeds or spices on the dough (such as alternating rows of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, kosher or pretzel salt, etc.) Be careful with spices and salt - a little goes a long way. If you want to precut the cracker, use a pizza cutter (rolling blade) and cut diamonds or rectangles in the dough. You do not need to separate the pieces, as they will snap apart after baking. If you want to make shards, bake the sheet of dough without cutting it first.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown evenly across the top (the time will depend on how thinly and evenly you rolled the dough).

When the crackers are baked, remove the pan from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. You can then snap them apart or snap off shards and serve.


I chose to make two toppings for my crackers. The first was a spread that was suggested by the challenge hosts, Tahitian Almond Dipping Sauce. This is a sweet and very thick dip. It would be a nice topping for celery sticks.


Tahitian Almond Dipping Sauce
Source: The Complete Book of Raw Food by Robert Yarosh and Lisa Soto
1 1/2 cups almond butter
1/2 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup fresh orange juice (you may want to add more juice or add some water, depending on the consistancy you like)
1 1/2 tablespoons agave syrup

Blend all ingredients together until smooth (in your blender or food processor).


For my second topping, I went with an Alton Brown recipe that I adapted in order to make it vegan. I was apprehensive at first about substituting a dairy product for a vegan soy product, but I really could not tell the difference! The flavor of the vegan cream cheese was so similar to regular cream cheese.


Roasted Vegetable Spread
Adapted from: Alton Brown
1 red bell pepper, sliced into rings
1 medium onion, sliced into rings
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 small zucchini, sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the bell pepper, onion, garlic, zucchini, and olive oil in a medium mixing bowl and toss until the vegetables are coated. Spread the vegetables evenly on sheet pan lined with foil and place in the oven. Roast, tossing occasionally, until they are soft and are beginning to turn brown around the edges, approximately 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely.

Place the vegetables in the bowl of a food processor along with the cream cheese substitute and process until well combined and spreadable; do not process until completely smooth. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to one week.


This was my first attempt at making a vegan dish. I will admit that I was a bit intimidated at the beginning of the challenge. Not only did I have to make a vegan dish, but this was also my first time using yeast. (I know ... for shame!) In the end though, I think everything turned out fine. Though, I will say that I don't think I'll be going vegan any time soon.

I'm looking forward to next month's challenge and now that I've completed my first challenge, I can happily say that I'm a proud member of the Daring Bakers! Yay!

Now hop on over to the blogroll and check out what the rest of the Daring Bakers did with the challenge!

Fried rice

Matt loves rice. He'd eat it every single day if I made it that often. He loves fried rice so much, he eats it as an entree.

This recipe is pretty easy to prepare. Just make sure you've got all your mise en place (that is to say, all ingredients prepped and measured) before you begin! It comes together so quickly that there's no time to stop and chop!


Fried Rice
Source: How to Boil Water
1/3 cup plain vegetable oil (corn, peanut, canola), divided
1 onion diced
Salt and pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced
3 whole scallions, thinly sliced on the bias, separate whites and greens
1 1/3 cups (6 oz) medley frozen corn, peas and carrots
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
4 cups cold cooked long-grain rice
3 tablespoons soy sauce

Heat a large heavy-bottomed nonstick skillet over high heat. When hot, add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the onions to the pan, season with salt and pepper and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until onion is fragrant. Add the garlic, ginger and scallion whites and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the frozen vegetables. Cook until just defrosted but still crisp. Transfer contents of the skillet to a large bowl.

Return the pan to the heat ad add 2 more tablespoons of oil. Add the eggs and season with salt and pepper. Stir the eggs constantly and cook until almost set but still moist, then transfer egg to the bowl. Break the eggs up with a wooden spoon.

Return the pan to the heat and add the remaining oil. Add the rice to the pan and use a spoon to break up any clumps. Season with salt and pepper and stir-fry rice to coat evenly with oil. Stop stirring and then let the rice cook undisturbed until it gets slightly crispy, about 2 minutes. Stir the rice again, breaking up any new clumps. Add the scallion greens and the soy sauce. Transfer to the bowl. Stir contents of the bowl well. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, if necessary.

Another side dish

I have a love-hate relationship with asparagus.

Back when I was a teenager and my mother and her husband went away on their honeymoon, I stayed with his dad and step-mother for a week. That was quite a treat as my new step-grandmother is a fantastic cook. She served asparagus that week and it was the first time I had ever liked it.

Since then, I've tried making it in different ways, but can never get it to taste as good as it did that week. I want to like it, especially since it's so good for me, but I try and I try to no avail.

I was glad to see this number posted on Two Novice Chefs, One Tiny Kitchen and hoped it would get me one step closer to liking asparagus. I hesitantly took my first bite, and then gobbled up the whole plateful in 90 seconds flat! It was delicious!


Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter
Source: CookingLight.com; as seen on Two Novice Chefs, One Tiny Kitchen
40 asparagus spears, trimmed (about 2 pounds)
Cooking spray
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400°.

Arrange asparagus in a single layer on baking sheet; coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 400° for 12 minutes or until tender.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat; cook for 3 minutes or until lightly browned, shaking pan occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in soy sauce and vinegar. Drizzle over the asparagus, tossing well to coat. Serve immediately.

Quick and delicious snack

I was looking for a quick snack to make for Matt - this one was perfect!

Matt's review? "Yum."


Provolone and Roasted Pepper Crisps
Source: CookingLight.com
2 pitas, sliced in half to make 4 round pieces
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 12-ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained and cut into strips
4 slices lemon
1 clove garlic, sliced
1 cup grated provolone

Heat broiler to high. Arrange the pitas on a baking sheet, cut-side up. Brush with 2 tablespoons of the oil, then sprinkle with the paprika, oregano, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Place under broiler to crisp, about 2 minutes; set aside. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet. Add the peppers, lemon, garlic, and the remaining salt. Saute until the peppers are hot and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Spread the peppers evenly over the pita halves and sprinkle with the provolone. Return to broiler and cook until the provolone is melted, about 3 minutes. Cut into strips, if desired.

Tip: Almost any prepared vegetable from the deli counter can make a delicious substitute for the peppers. Try cured olives or marinated artichoke hearts or mushrooms.