Chocolate Yule Log

substituted 1 pkg cream cheese + 1/3 cup sour cream for mascarpone, and added 1 tsp vanilla for filling.

This was just wonderful! First time making a sponge and trying my hand at rolling and it came out perfect! Was a total hit at the family Christmas party! Only change I made was instead of the coffee I did 1 tsp of orange. Thank you for the video too, there are a few steps there I wasnt sure I was doing it right so review the video and keep on!

I made this Yule Log for my family Christmas Eve party and it was a hit! This cake was delicious! It was gobbled up quickly and everyone loved it! I received many compliments on the look of it and how good it tasted. My ganache was a bit lighter than Chef John's because I had to whip it for a bit to get it to thicken up but it turned out fine because the cake was so rich. I left out the coffee and just replaced it with milk since I hate that flavor. This was so fun to make and I will definitely be making this again!

Chef John never leads us astray! My cake is setting up in the fridge now. I did have a bit of an issue with some small cracks, but I believe I overbaked the cake a bit, and I also think I knocked out a bit of the volume in the egg/sugar mixture by over-beating it with the cocoa powder. Nonetheless, the cake is delicious and far easier to work with than my previous attempts at yule logs. The only area that could use some improvement is the details of the written recipe. I found I had to refer back to the video several times for things like speed settings on the stand mixer and times. Inwas worried that with all the powdered sugar this would be sickeningly sweet, but it is just right. A fantastic recipe, I'll be making this again.

I made it as it was written except that I didn't have (could not find) mascarpone cheese so I substituted cream cheese and the buttercream was delicious. I'm not sure if there are differences in coffee liqueur as I could only find kahlua. :) It was pretty easy to make. But, I'm glad I have made pumpkin rolls as I knew what to expect and have never made a Yule log before. I would let the cake cool for more than 15 min after it is rolled up as it was almost too warm to work with and then cracked as I re-rolled it with the buttercream frosting in. I think it made plenty of frosting, but I didn't save the extra as I made it in advance and ended up using ganache to seal the two pieces together. It makes a lot of ganache. You could almost halve that amount unless you have plans for the extra. I made some little truffles as not to be wasteful. As far as flavor - this is a very rich cake! It was fun to make and if I want another Yule log for festivities, this will be the recipe I use.

Made this for Christmas and my husband loved it so much he wants this for his birthday! The buttercream and ganache were perfect; not too sweet. The addition of the mascarpone and Kaluha puts it over the top! Well done, Chef John! A new tradition has been born!

I actually found that I needed more buttercream for the inside. I made double the buttercream and saved the leftover amount for anything in the future (great flavor with the mascarpone cheese). Overall, the recipe wasn't complicated, tasted great, and looked good too!

I have made Yule Logs several times over the years and have struggled with a few cook book recipes and lesser on-line ones. This one is straight forward! The entertaining video reminded me of techniques from the years prior and gave me some new ones. This one is a keeper and one I will use in years to come!

Love the video and it was super helpful when making this. The cake was great and instructions easy and fun. BUT *BIG BUT* WARNING: the frosting was horrifyingly, disgustingly sweet!! I tasted it after I made it and had to add another half stick of butter, tablespoon of cocoa powder and 4 oz of mascarpone to try to even it out. EVEN THEN It was so sweet that it ruined the whole cake. It was so sweet that I couldn't even put the ganache on top. My four year old even thought it was too sweet (sans ganache)! That's really saying something. So do yourself a favor and start with 1/2c powdered sugar in your frosting and add in more 1 tablespoon at a time to your liking. I also think you do need a full cup of butter to have enough frosting for the inside, but it depends on how big your cake ends up being.

Sub’ed a basic chocolate buttercream for the filling (didn’t have marscapone on-hand), but will use the included filling recipe next bake. Was a definite hit!

I am sensitive to caffeine and I hate the flavor of alcohol, so I replaced the coffee liquor with milk and cherry syrup. It came out delicious! No cracks, either, which is a surprise to me since this was my first cake roll. Chef John gives the best instructions!

I made this as written with the exception of coffee flavor. The cake cracked and broke badly but I was able to save it by spreading on the filling and rolling the cake up. The taste was wonderful and the frosting saved the look of the cake. I will make this again.

OK! I like to bake, but mostly pies and scones. I am not a huge fan of cake. HOWEVER, with Christmas here, I wanted to try something new to take to my inlaws. I found this recipe and decided to give it a try. It is easier than I thought it would be. However, a few things, my buttercream was far too thick, even after having room temperature butter, and whipping it for a long time. I ended up adding a tablespoon or two of milk to get the right consistency. I would also use the "paddle" on my kitchen aid instead of the whisk, as I felt like I lost too much frosting in the whisk. When I flipped the cake out of the pan and onto the towel, I proceeded the puff powdered sugar all over my kitchen. I'll try a more controlled flip next time, but I was paranoid about doing it quickly. ALSO, the ganache takes A LONG time to thicken up. so when you watch the video and he says he did it while he was waiting for the log to set, that's when I would do it as well. WATCH the video if you haven't made this before, Really helps to give you a visual. Looking forward to serving this christmas eve!

This guy is so pleasant to listen to, encouraging. I am going to give this a go!

I felt I needed about double the buttercream and half the ganache. The flavor is good and the cake was easy to manipulate

Excellent recipe! Easy to follow, and even though the ganache didn't have time to thicken up as to make the same pattern in it he did, I managed to make it look bark-like with the back of a spoon anyway. I made two rolls since I currently only have a countertop oven so the sponges were much smaller, but had enough buttercream for the two (though a much thinner layer than he has in the video). The amount of ganache in this recipe could easily be halved, since that is the amount I still had left over after making TWO logs. Great flavour, looks pretty and everyone loved it! Chef John's recipes never fail.

Used this recipe for my first go at making a Yule log cake. Worked very well. My only comment is the recipe for the chocolate ganache makes way too much for what is actually needed. It could easily be cut in half. I ended up with a pot full of leftover ganache. Not necessarily a bad problem. I did have fun looking for ways to use it up.

I made this before Christmas and it turned out really well. I made it gluten free, there's only 2 tbs of flour so it was an easy substitution with GF flour from trader joes. The ganache was good but maybe to much dark chocolate for me, I might mix some semi-sweet in with it next time. Also I made gingerbread cake which was a disaster- it felt apart bc I put it in little molds. But it was delicious, so I put it around my Yule log and the crumbs looked like dirt. It really was good. The whole thing was good. A tasty light dessert. Definitely will make it again.

The rolling of the cake was easier than I was expecting. The video helped a lot. All of the flavored were very good and the cake was well received and I will definitely make this again.

I made it... I gave this recipe a 5 because it is an excellent recipe , my filling and Ganache came out superb HOWEVER

Excellent! Substituted mascarpone cheese with 8 oz cream cheese and 2/3 c heavy whipping cream. So good! ?? see picture!

This was a huge hit with my husband and friends. It looked like a professional made it and it was my first attempt at making this type of cake. Chef John is an amazing instructor.

The recipe was difficult to follow on the iPad so I rewrote it to simplify it without having to constantly scroll through. But the cake and meringue mushrooms were EXCELLENT. I wish I could post a pic it was pretty.

I've been making logs for many many years if you do this is a must-try. The amount of filling was perfect for me. I was pleasantly surprised that it did not stick like many others I've made. I did a display without mushrooms using cranberries greenery on the outside of my plate I put little twigs. My guest went insane over it and the flavoring and texture was fabulous. Thank you for the perfect recipe

I made this before Christmas and it turned out really well. I made it gluten free, there's only 2 tbs of flour so it was an easy substitution with GF flour from trader joes. The ganache was good but maybe to much dark chocolate for me, I might mix some semi-sweet in with it next time. Also I made gingerbread cake which was a disaster- it felt apart bc I put it in little molds. But it was delicious, so I put it around my Yule log and the crumbs looked like dirt. It really was good. The whole thing was good. A tasty light dessert. Definitely will make it again.

I made this recipe as written and Wow! What a show stopper! It was easy and so delicious. The only thing I would change is to make a little more filling, but that is just personal preference. Thank you Chef John.

my cake went awfully wrong. When i unrolled it to put in the frosting it completely fell apart. I make pumpkin rolls all the time, so i don't know what went wrong.

Beautiful and delicious!

This was fun to make and fun to eat! Excellent recipe. I'm so glad there was a video.

Directions were great and so was video. But not necessary to use 2 Tbs of butter to grease pans!

Super yum, gone in a flash.

I'll make it again. Make sure you whip the eggs until fluffy before you incorporate the cocoa to make sure it stays thick. My mistake and made the cake a little to thin but it was very good and the guests loved it. I added raspberries and it was a big success.

Thanks so much for the recipe!! It was perfect!

The chocolate mascarpone filling is excellent; I couldn’t stop sampling it! ;-) Unfortunately, the sponge cake, as delicious and delicate as it was, fell apart upon unrolling it. I used a flour sack towel (the only type of dish towel we use), and I think that because it is so thin, it allowed heat and moisture to pass through it too readily. I used plenty of powdered sugar, followed the directions, and flipped it over using the quick and easy method (shown in video). When it hit the towel/table, powdered sugar blew out everywhere! I’m still cleaning it up. I think I will opt for a more traditional (less messy) method of flipping the cake next time. I saved the filling I made. I’m going to try a different sponge cake recipe and use the filling from this one. In the meantime, we have a nice container of sponge cake bits we’re all nibbling on! I don’t give up that easily; I’ll keep going till I get this right.

Beautiful! Everyone was impressed! It was looking a bit ugly and messy but after spreading the ganache on it and trimming the ends, it looked perfect. I used 25-50% more buttercream than the recipe called for (I made a double batch). The ganache could be easily halved or more, but my leftover ganache will be nice on some fruit. Super decadent cake and it fed 12 people with generous slices. Thank you for the show-stopping dessert!

This turned out beautifully and tasted wonderful. It was time consuming but I will definitely make it again.

Great recipe! Seems like it could have used some more filling, I barley had enough

Loved it and wasn’t difficult. Would make about 1/2 of the ganache as I didn’t need as much as the recipe called for.

It was delicious. With all of the filling and the thick ganache it was extremely rich. I would definitely make again though. Next time I might add a pinch of salt to cut the sweetness. It was a hit!

Used tia maria for liqueur. Would not change a thing! Was really easy to make.

I made the recipe exactly as written. My family loved it. I only used about half the frosting because I was afraid it would have been to rich if all the frosting was used. I will make this again for family or parties.

I made the filling and ganache for my mini birthday cake. Scaled the servings to 2 for 3 people and used metric measurements and a food scale.

Delicious and relatively simple. The buttercream filling really makes it. It was the hit of our traditional Christmas Eve family dinner. Family member said it was better than the yule logs they have ordered from the bakery!

Great recipe! Easy to follow and it turned out great! Thanks!

Not done yet. Needs to chill. Great recipe. Easier than I expected. And I don't have a stand mixer!

This is a wonderful recipe with easy to follow instructions and a delicious finished product. I would’ve liked more complex flavors or a surprise ingredient in the filling so next time I’ll be more adventurous. The real Willis this log delivers is visual- so beautiful on our Christmas table! I finished mine with meringue mushroom with red sugar caps and crushed pistachios for a mossy Forrest floor look. Fun bake!

I made a yule log for the first time last Christmas using this recipe, and it turned out so fantastic! It will definitely be a Christmas tradition. The chocolate filling and coffee liquor are what originally sold me, and it did not disappoint!

I used coffee extract instead of coffee liqueur in the filling. It’s very coffee-y, I have no experience working with the extract and used the same amount the recipe called for. I’d recommend not doing an exact substitution, use less extract than liqueur. It’s still good and we like coffee, but I think there’s more coffee flavor than intended in my cake.

I would definitely make this again! It was outstanding and I'm usually not a sweets person. I served this with vanilla ice cream which made it even better!

This did not turn out for me, but it was probably my fault. I tried it twice and it didn't work both times. I hope others have better luck than I did.

Wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. The only thing I did wrong was not being careful enough to when unrolling it. But after frosting it and looked great. It was very very good to eat the my family was so impressed, because as I tell them all the time, I like to cook, but I’m not a baker.

This cake is way too dense, the filling and the ganache recipes are great though.

Absolutely delicious! I didn’t have the coffee flavor liqueur so I used expresso and it really taste amazing. Going to make one again for this Christmas. Thank you Chef John! I never fail in following your recipes and videos :)

It was super sweet, I would put less than the designated 2/3 cup in next time. Also, using wax paper or parchment sugfested instead of a towel or at least between it and the cake. The towel got a lot of the cake on it. There was a call for 2 Tbsp of butter that we melted and never used. Where does this go? Overall, it was a good recipe and despite being a nightmare of a cake to make, it was definitely worth the experience. I will do this cake again, now that I'm familiar with what it takes.

Everyone loved it but one person tolled me the ends seemed a little dry. As for the buttercream I made what the recipe called for and I think I could have used a lot more it was barely visible in the rings on the side but other then that it was fun and not as hard as I thought