YULE LOG

RECIPE
 YULE LOG RECIPE

HIIIIII HUNS!!!!
Thanks for purchasing our second and most likely last online
recipe (stress x100) If you’ve been following our brownie
Yule log’s journey on Instagram you will know the effort we
have put into these recipes and methods, plus the amount
I’ve spent on butter is a joke (but you all know it’s worth
more than gold this year so it’s not surprise).
We have included a couple of different methods to try. You
can decide which you prefer, the first one is easier and less
time consuming (and in our opinion a sure winner every
time!) but I had such fun putting myself through the second
method that I would feel deceitful not including it. Both
methods create delicious tasting brownie Yule log’s, however
there are some differences between the two that will be outlined later in the recipe.
Yule Log’s are traditionally made with a light chocolate sponge, rolled up like a swiss
roll, and decorated like a tree log. Since we are known for our brownies, we decided a
Finch Bakery twist on this classic French festive dessert would be something everyone
would want on their dining room table come December.
The brownie Yule log serves 10-12.
METHOD 1
This recipe makes an extremely fudgy brownie- the method
entails first baking the brownie and then forming a dough,
before rolling it up and encasing it in chocolate. Forming a
dough from the baked brownie causes the “crust” that we
associate with the top of the brownie to disappear, a part
that some people may miss, however the added chocolate
layer on the outside compensates for it. In order to experience
the full flavour and texture of this particular brownie, we
recommend preparing a few days in advance and storing in
the fridge until needed. The brownie can be made up to a
week-10 days in advance if necessary and can be stored in or
out of the fridge, however the brownie will slightly soften the
longer it is left out, so pop back into the fridge if you’d like it
to firm it up (either before or after cutting!)
YOU WILL NEED
Square or rectangular baking tin or round cake tin
Preferably a stand mixer however a strong hand mixer
will likely do
12” by 10” baking tin or tray
Cling film
Baking parchment
FOR THE BROWNIE LOG
150g milk or dark chocolate
270g butter
280g caster sugar
3 medium sized eggs
100g cocoa powder
120g plain flour
For the filling
150g of a spread of your choice- milk chocolate spread,
Nutella, Biscoff etc
50g of milk/dark/white chocolate. We recommend
pairing milk chocolate with fillings such as milk
chocolate spread/Nutella, white chocolate spread with
white chocolate hazelnut creme, white chocolate filling or caramel.
TO DECORATE
200g milk/dark chocolate
Green and red fondant icing (optional)
Holly leaf cutter (optional)
Icing sugar or gold edible glitter (optional)
1. Line the tin using baking parchment and preset the oven to 160C (fan oven).
Whip the eggs and caster sugar together using a hand or stand mixer on a
medium setting for a minute or two. This can also be done by hand if required.
2. Place both the chocolate and butter into a bowl or
saucepan and slowly heat together in the microwave
or over the hob. Once melted, mix until the butter
and chocolate combine.
3. Slowly pour the melted butter and chocolate into
the whipped eggs and sugar mixture and combine
using a slow speed.
4. Sieve the cocoa powder and plain flour into the
bowl and mix in by hand using a spatula. The brownie
batter should be smooth and glossy. Pour into the
lined tin and place in the oven for 25 minutes.
5. Once the brownie has cooled completely, place the
tin inside the fridge for a couple of hours. Following
this, cut the brownie up into small pieces and place into a bowl. Turning on the
stand mixer or hand mixer, allow a dough to form (however the brownie dough
may be more resistant against a hand mixer’s whisk compared to using a stand
 mixer).
6. Take the brownie dough out of the bowl and place on
the side. Line a 12” by 10” baking
tray/tin with cling film and use a
rolling pin or your fists and fingers
to spread the brownie dough out to
fill the tin. The dough should be
evenly spread however on one side
of the tin (the 10” edge), allow
around an inch of dough to be
manipulated thinner- just use your thumb to press down.
This will help with the rolling process.
7. Place tray in the fridge for 10 minutes or until the dough
has slightly firmed. Blast 150g of your filling of choice-
Nutella, chocolate spread, Biscoff spread for examples- in
a microwavable bowl for 10 or so seconds, and add in
50g or milk/white chocolate, further heat and mix
together until completely melted. This will allow the filling to set slightly firmer
than just the chosen filling on its own.
8.Remove the tray from the fridge and spread the
prepared filling across the dough, leaving a perimeter of
a few centimetres at each side of the long sides of the
tin and at the thicker edge of the short side. This is to
enable no filling spills out of the sides whilst rolling.
9.Place the tray back into the fridge and keep
checking on the filling’s consistency, the filling needs to
have firmed slightly , but soft enough so it is easily
rolled. The tray should remain in the fridge for no
longer than 5-10 minutes as if the filling has totally
firmed it will crack.
10. Take the tray out of the fridge and remove
brownie from the tray/tin; simply pull up the clingfilm
and lay on a work surface. Working from the thinned
side (the shorter 10” side of the tin) start to manipulate
the brownie dough into a small roll, the clingfilm can be removed however it may
also be used as a tool to help achieve a tighter roll. Let the dough roll between
your fingers until the entire length of brownie dough has been rolled up, pulling
off the clingfilm if you have decided to keep it on. If the brownie dough starts
to crack, it has been refrigerated for too long and it should be left out until it
has warmed slightly in the room’s temperature. If
11. there are only small cracks, the warmth of your fingers should be able to blend
them back together. If the roll does not easily roll, or the filling starts to crack,
again leave the tray out whilst it comes back closer to room temperature. If the
rolling is awkward but does not crack, the filling may be too firm and will show
quite angularly within the Yule log and there may be some gaps. The dough and
filling need to be at the perfect temperature to enable the perfect roll.
12. Once the brownie Yule log has been rolled, use your fingers to smooth down
the seam of the log. Wrap tightly in clingfilm and store in the fridge for several
hours until firm.
13. Once firmed in the fridge, chop each end off and then heat 200g of milk or
dark chocolate gently in the microwave or over the hob until melted. If you
would like an easier cut, add a little vegetable oil to the chocolate. If the oil is
not added the chocolate can crack once cutting the slices and this may not be
the effect you are trying to achieve!
14. Place some melted chocolate on a baking parchment and place the chilled log on
top. Pour the rest of the chocolate over the top of the log
and allow to run down the sides, use a pallet knife to ensure
the chocolate coats the sides of the log and the ends.
15. Using the pallet knife, run the edge down the length of
the roll and make ridges to replicate the tree bark, work
quickly as the chocolate will soon set against the cold brownie.

16. Scrape any excess melted chocolate that may have pooled
at the bottom of the log and then allow to set. Pull the
baking parchment from the bottom of the log and carefully
remove any excess chocolate using a sharp knife. You can
also use a sharp knife to create grooves replicating tree bark
and rings on each end.
17. Once set and on the day of serving, it’s time to decorate! We like to use red
and green fondant to fashion some berries and holly for the top and either sieve
a dust of icing sugar or spray with edible gold glitter.
18. Store in the fridge until needed. Fix fondant decoration once out of the fridge
before cutting.
METHOD 2

Method 2 is much more time consuming and

complex; it can be a little bit hit and miss which is
why we much prefer Method 1, however some may
argue that the brownie crust is still intact and
therefore tastes less “melt in your mouth.” Baking
any batter in a cyclical shape will cause some
natural sinking and flattening so this log is likely
to be less perfectly formed than the Yule log made
using Method 1. The rolling method is similar to
that in Method 1, however it is done before the
brownie is cooked. We recommend only using milk
chocolate sauce, Nutella or Biscoff in this
particular method as white chocolate and caramel
can easily burn.

YOU WILL NEED

12” by 10” baking tin or tray
Cling film
Baking parchment
Twine/thread
Tinfoil
INGREDIENTS (see above)
METHOD
1. Line the 10” by 12” baking tray with clingfilm. Place the chocolate, sugar and
butter into a bowl or saucepan and slowly heat together in the microwave or
over the hob. Once melted, mix until combined.
2. Crack in the eggs one by one, only mixing by hand to combine. This is
incorporate as little air bubbles into the mixture as
possible as this would encourage sinking.
3. Sieve the cocoa powder and
plain flour into the bowl and mix in
by hand using a spatula. The
brownie batter should be smooth
and glossy. Pour onto the lined
baking tray and once cool place
into the freezer for an hour until
the batter has solidified but is not
frozen.
4. The dough should be evenly
spread however on one side of the
tin (the 10” edge), allow around an
inch of dough to be manipulated
 thinner- just use your thumb to press down. This will help with the rolling
process.
5. Blast 150g of your filling of choice- Nutella, chocolate spread, Biscoff spread
for examples- in a microwavable bowl for 10 or so seconds, and add in 50g or
milk/white chocolate, further heat and mix together until completely melted.
This will allow the filling to set slightly firmer than
just the chosen filling on its own.
6. Remove the tray from the fridge and spread the
prepared filling across the dough, leaving a perimeter
of a few centimeters at each side of the long sides of
the tin and at the thicker edge of the short side. The
filling will likely solidify extremely quickly as the
dough will be very cold.
7. Place the tray back into the fridge and keep
checking on the filling’s consistency, the filling needs
to have firmed slightly , but soft enough so it is easily
rolled- if the filling has totally firmed it will crack.

8. Once the filling is at a soft but firm consistency, take

the brownie batter from the tray/tin; simply pull up the clingfilm and lay on a
work surface. Working from the thinned side (the
shorter 10” side of the tin) start to manipulate the
brownie batter into a small roll, the clingfilm can be
removed however it may also be used as a tool to help
achieve a tighter roll. Let the brownie batter roll
between your fingers until the entire length of batter
has been rolled up, pulling off the clingfilm if you have
decided to keep it on. If the brownie dough starts to
crack, it has been frozen for too long and it should be
left out until it has warmed slightly in the room’s
temperature. If the roll does not easily roll, or the
filling starts to crack, again leave the tray out whilst
it comes back closer to room temperature. The dough
and filling need to be at the perfect temperature to
enable the perfect roll.
9.Once the brownie batter has been rolled, use your
fingers to smooth down the
seam of the log. Wrap
tightly in clingfilm and store in the fridge or freezer
for another hour.
10. Pre-heat the oven to 160C (fan oven). Using baking
parchment, roll the log shape up into a tight roll with
enough parchment hanging off the edge, twist the
excess parchment and fold back under the log.
Repeat the process again with more baking parchment
so that it is double wrapped, trapping in the excess
parchment. Tie ends with twine/thread or wrap some
tinfoil around each side and squeeze to prevent
leaking.
11. Place on a baking tray and bake in the oven for 1
 hour 20 minutes. Turn the oven off and leave inside for a
further 10/15 whilst the oven cools down.
12.Remove the baking tray. The roll should start to
deflate and there will be a natural sag in the middle.
Leave to completely cool and then place in the fridge
overnight.
13.In the morning remove all baking parchment using
scissors. Some excess butter may have leaked out and
the shapes may be questionable. Chop each end off (they
will be ugly!) to check that the rings are intact. Any
dints

14. and dents can be infilled with chocolate.

15.Follow Method 1 steps 12-17 to decorate!
I have found some of my best results with Method 2 and the satisfaction of an all
over “crust” is lovely to cut- this brownie also does not soften out of the fridge.
However, given the inconsistency in shape, Method 1 wins hands down for us and if we
hadn’t spent so long attempting to perfect Method 2 we would not have included it
within this recipe but there may be people out there who
want to face the challenge!

TIPS AND IDEAS

• We personally much prefer this recipe to be made a
few days in advance and set in the fridge before
consuming which is less stressful if this is your
contribution to the Christmas day dinner. The
brownie log can be made and frozen for up to 3
months in advance (we recommend decorating the
outside with chocolate once defrosted).
• If brownie batter looks grainy when uncooked the
sugar may not have dissolved properly. Add a few
tablespoons of boiling water and mix until glossy.
• In Method 1, If you would like to use another brownie
recipe other than the one above, there is a possibility that your stand or hand
mixer will not be able to break up the baked brownie easily. As there may be
more “crust” on top of the brownie, once mixed it may appear crumbly compared
to the brownie recipe above. Adding a few spoonfuls of buttercream into the
mixer will help bind the dough together to a more velvety texture.
• White chocolate may be used to replace milk or dark chocolate for the coating
of the log for a none traditional decoration. Alternatively, ganache may be
used. For milk chocolate ganache heat 75g cream with 150g milk chocolate and
mix until combined. Leave to cool and then spread along the log- the texture is
more gloopy than melted chocolate- using a pallet knife to make imprints like
bark. The ganache coating should stay glossy and be easy to cut, however if
you’d still like a chocolate ganache coating but the ganache to be firmer, whisk
the cooled ganache with a stand or hand mixer until whipped. Whipped
 chocolate ganache sets very fast, so work quickly! If using ganache store the
brownie log in the fridge to help last longer.
• Experiment with thinner layers by splitting the dough in half and then later
layering both brownie layers over each other with two layers of filling before
rolling! This will be slightly more tricky to ensure both layers of dough roll
consistently with each other, however the effect of more rings once cut is
striking.
• Don’t use a spread too similarly coloured to the brownie or you won’t be able to
see the roll! I found this out the hard way by melting white chocolate (instead
of milk chocolate) with Nutella!
• We wouldn’t recommend using chocolate chips in this recipe due to the cut.