Monday, December 23, 2013

Christmas Log : Bake-Along #56

Today is Bake-Along #56! Time just passes by! 2013 is coming to an end soon, and the new year is just round the corner. Another year older. But then age are just numbers!

Our theme for Bake-Along #56 is Christmas Log, selected by my baking buddy, Zoe, for the coming festive Christmas. I have always wanted to bake a Christmas Log, though why I have never attempted it before is because I am not a "cake-decorater" person!  LOL! And I have always put it off year after year! From the following photos, you would see that cake decorating is certainly not one of my skills! 


A BLESSED AND MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE


Excuse the poorly placement of the "decorating ornaments", I am not one who would spend hours on decorating! Even if I did spend hours on the decorating part, it would still look the same! LOL! I really envy that some of my fellow blogger friends seems to have a natural flair in decorating and great photography skills! 

I really wanted to make a Christmas Log, from Cake, by Rachel Allen, but I do not have some of the ingredients and since it is almost last-minute, I've decided to use a simple recipe from one of our local cookbooks, "Elegant Swiss Roll" by Kevin Chai. Which is just as well, as I've bought this book "centuries ago" and have never made anything from it!


Firstly the sponge roll is baked, and left to cool in the pan. I followed the tips from Rachel Allen's book, to cover the sponge cake still in the pan, with a slightly damp tea towel until the it cools to room temperature. Lift the cake together with the parchment paper onto a work surface, and spread the chocolate buttercream all over the surface. Using the parchment paper as a guide, gently roll the sponge, place seam side down. Slice two pieces from both ends at a diagonal, place one at the side of the log and the other on the top, using some of the buttercream to stick it in place. Spread the log with the buttercream, and use a fork to make lines all over, resembling a log. Decorate as desired. 


Since I do not have any suitable ornaments to decorate the swiss roll, it look rather plain, so I have sprinkled some colour sprinkles all over, with dusting of icing sugar for a white Christmas!  It certainly is not one of the prettiest Christmas log but I am quite happy with it! Yay! I've finally made my first Christmas Log!


 Christmas greetings from Santa!  Have you been good and nice this year? 


A slice of the Christmas Log. The cake is so, so soft, light, fluffy and yummy! And the chocolate buttercream is so smooth and silky. One slice is not enough!


Christmas Log
(adapted from "Elegant Swiss Roll", Kevin Chai)
4 eggs
70gm caster sugar (I use 50gm)
70gm plain flour
15gm cocoa powder
50gm butter (melted)

For the chocolate buttercream :
250gm butter
120gm caster sugar (I use 90gm)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
75ml hot water
100gm melted chocolate

  1. Preheat the oven to 220C, grease a 25x35cm (10x14-inch) baking tin, line with baking paper, grease paper, extending the sides of the pans for easy removal of the cake later.
  2. Using electric mixer on full speed, beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Gently fold in sifted flour and cocoa powder. Add in melted butter, mix until well combined.
  3. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 8 minutes. Leave to cool. (I covered the cake still in the pan, on a wire rack, with a lightly damp clean kitchen towel, covering the cake until it cools to room temperature).
  4. Hold both sides of the parchment paper, lifting the cake out of the pan, onto a work surface, cake still on parchment paper. Spread butter cream over cake. Roll gently using paper to lift cake and guide roll.
  5. Cut small section slanting both ends. Garnish as a log. Spread with chocolate butter cream. Scrape surface with a fork. Decorate as desired.
To make the chocolate buttercream :
Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy using a ballon whisk, stir in vanilla extract. Add in hot water, a tablespoon at a time, mix well. Continue to whisk until smooth and homogeneous cream is obtained. Add in the melted chocolate and mix until well combined.



To join our blog hop, bake any Christmas Log and link your post to our Bake-Along linky.
Please visit my baking buddies, Lena from Frozen Wings and Zoe from Bake For Happy Kids, and all our friends who has baked along with us in the linky below :

For our next Bake-Along, we will be moving on to a Chinese New Year theme!  Isn't this exciting? The theme is "Theme : Chinese New Year Cookies". Bake any cookies for Chinese New Year, and link your post to the our blog-hop linky which will start on 6th January right up to 27th January. The linky will stay open for three weeks, yay! Everyone is welcome! 


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A friendly reminder when linking to our blog hop :
1. Please mention Bake-Along event in your own post linking direct to any of the hosts' post (JoyceLena or Zoe)
2. Please link only new and current post, related to the current bake or theme provided by us. Unrelated post will be deleted.
3. Feel free to display our Bake-Along badge in your post.


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23 comments:

  1. good morning!! Cheers to your first homemade log cake! It looks good and the taste sounds even better! haha..i echo you on the more time spend on decorating the cake, it will still look the same for me too..mine would probably be the more, the messier...LOL!

    love all the BLING BLING effect on your photo!! Merry Christmas! Hugs!

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  2. The log looks very PRETTY!
    Happy Holidays!
    Angie

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  3. Hi Joyce , the log cake looks very delish , almost to pretty to cut , Merry Christmas and thanks for sharing :)

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  4. Good morning Joyce
    Your log cake look gorgeous. Merry Christmas and happy new year to you and to your family.

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  5. Hi Joyce,

    Happy that we all managed to bake our very own Christmas log??? Yippee!!!

    I don't think log cakes need a lot of decoration... just lots of chocolate and cream to cover up any faults and cracks... LOL! I'm surprised that I have survived well for mine :D

    Love your extra bling bling... COOL!

    Merry Christmas and Happy 2014!

    Zoe

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  6. Joyce what can I say here...I'm speechless. Your Christmas Log is so pretty, I hope I can decorate just like yours. I might be using Kevin Chai's recipe for the swiss roll too. I hope I can make it...

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  7. Hi Joyce, this certainly has a Christmassy feel. Beautiful log.
    Blessed Christmas to you!

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  8. Your log cake looks beautiful and Merry Christmas to you too!

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  9. A merry Christmas and a happy new year to you in advance. Wonderful pics that sets the tone.
    Deepa

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  10. Hi Joyce, your log cake still looks good. I am also one person who is hopeless where decorating is concerned! hahaha Here's wishing you and your family Merry X'mas and Happy New Year!!

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  11. Love your chocolate buttercream... I think it's a cute roll u got there!

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  12. Nice log cake Joyce!
    I'm planning to do one for tomorrow evening gathering.
    If it's turn out nice, I'll link it :D

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  13. Hi, Joyce! Nice log! I wish I could contribute in the bake along! Will try! Merry Christmas!

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  14. Hello Joyce, your Christmas log looks pretty fantastic to me! Will link mine tmr. Btw I have deleted yr link on the Christmas event as requested, you can link again now :)

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  15. Wow, what a nice log...I yet have to try to make one...as I have not even tried a Swiss roll...
    Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year Joyce :D

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  16. I've never had much luck baking a Yule Log Joyce and you already know how terrible I am at decorating and taking pictures, lol...I think you've done a terrific job especially for the first time. Congratulations!!! I could dig a fork in that heavenly log right now and know I would enjoy every morsel.

    Thank you so much for sharing Joyce. It sure has been some year!!! I look forward to the next year of goodness:) A very Merry Christmas to You and Yours Joyce. Sending lots of hugs your way. Enjoy every cherished moment, Louise

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  17. Joyce, that is a lovely log cake! Nice light colour and I love the inside, looks so chocolaty and creamy. I would love to take a spoon and attack the log hee..hee...

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  18. Drop here to wish you and your family a very merry Christmas.

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  19. A lovely Christmas log and delicious-looking too. just in time for Christmas. Wishing you a Blessed and Merry Christmas!

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  20. Well , I love your blingy and colorful Christmas background :D Looking at your wonderful buttercream-coated log cake makes me want to whip up my own , too *sigh*

    Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year !

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  21. Beautiful log cake. You did a great job! The cake looks moist and tempting with the chocolate buttercream.

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  22. Your log cake looks beautifully done. I am really not very good at rolling swiss rolls and have no confidence of making a log cake.

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