Gluten Free Yule Log

I know it’s not yule log season yet but who cares. It’s made of chocolate and that is ALWAYS in season!

INGREDIENTS:

In order of – Sponge, Ganache, Chantilly

• 4 Lg eggs
• 110g caster sugar
• 65g Glutafin White Mix
• 1tsp baking powder
• 40g cocoa powder
• 1tsp Xanthan Gum (not essential but it does help)

• 275g dark chocolate
• 300ml double cream
• 150g caster sugar
• 1tsp vanilla extract

• 300ml double cream
• 75g icing sugar
• 1tbsp brandy

• Few tbsp jam, melted

1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C, and line a 15″x10″ shallow baking tray with baking parchment.
2. Melt the ganache ingredients over hot water until smooth and dark. Leave to cool.
3. Whisk egg whites until they rise in stiff peaks (And stay in the bowl when held upside down… if you’re brave enough to try)
4. Separately, whisk the egg yolks and sugar for 2 minutes until thick.
5. With a large metal spoon, very gently fold in the dry ingredients and egg whites.
6. Spoon into the baking tray. Tilt the tray back and forth to allow the mix to slowly spread to all 4 corners.
7. Cook until risen and just firm to touch. Timing can vary greatly so just keep an eye on it. It won’t take too long.
8. Turn out onto a sheet of baking parchment and peel away the paper used to line the tin.
9. trim the edges of the sponge and make a 2cm cut on each side of the bottom edge. It should be roughly 2 cm up. (See diagram below)
10. Top with a fresh sheet of parchment and roll into a log shape starting from the cut end. Leave to cool.
11. Gently unroll the cooled log and spread with half the ganache.
12. Whisk together the Chantilly ingredients until just thick and spread over the ganache.
13. Carefully re-roll the log. Don’t roll too tight otherwise you’ll squeeze out all your filling. If the ends get a little messy don’t panic, you can always tidy them up later. And if the worst comes to the worst…. just cover it up with ganache.
14. Bruch the log with the melted jam then spread on the remaining ganache. Use a fork to give a log effect.

A few years ago my sister was diagnosed a coeliac; which means she can’t eat wheat, barley or rye. At first we all thought it was the end of the world but its really not that bad. She can still eat almost anything. The trickiest thing has been making cakes with gluten free flour that still look and taste as good as ones made with traditional flour. This recipe does just that. With it’s rich chocolate sponge, Chantilly cream and lovely thick chocolate icing, it’s gluten free and you wouldn’t even know it.

For anyone who’s coeliac, if your family are anything like mine they will claim that gluten free food is rubbish and avoid it like the plague. Well here is your revenge… Feed them this, don’t tell them its gluten free, and see if they notice before you tell them. Or wait until they’ve all started saying how delicious it is and then tuck in yourself and get the satisfaction of seeing the shock on their faces. Evil, I know, but so much fun!