Praline Hazelnut & Lemon Rolled Yule Log (Cyril Lignac)

A little newcomer in the series of logs, but this time it's a rolled log, not a layered dessert. More traditional in shape, no need for a mold, no freezing, quicker to prepare... there are some advantages to choosing this type of log. I took this one from Cyril Lignac's Pâtisserie book, and while the rolled log is a classic for end-of-year celebrations, its composition still makes it an original and delicious dessert! However, I made a few small modifications to the recipe; while I followed the lemon whipped ganache procedure to the letter, I slightly reduced the amounts of biscuit dough, baking it twice, to have a thinner roll, as shown in the book's photo, and I didn’t follow the praline recipe since I already had some in reserve.

Preparation time: 1h30 + 30 to 40 minutes of cooking

Lemon Whipped Ganache:

340g of liquid cream

12g of lemon zest

4g of gelatin

80g of lime puree (I used juice)

40g of yellow lemon juice

90g of Ivoire chocolate or another white couverture chocolate

6g of cocoa butter

Place the gelatin in a bowl of cold water to rehydrate it.

The day before, warm half of the liquid cream. Infuse the lemon zest in the warm cream for 15 minutes, then if you wish, strain the cream.

Boil the remaining cream, then add the rehydrated and drained gelatin. Pour it over the chocolate and cocoa butter, stirring well to have a smooth ganache.

Add the lemon juices at room temperature then the infused cream. Cover with plastic wrap touching the surface and store in the fridge overnight.

Choux Pastry Biscuit:

100g of whole milk

100g of T55 flour

70g of butter

70g of whole eggs

140g of egg whites

120g of egg yolks

85g of sugar

Bring the milk and butter to a boil.

Off the heat, add the flour in one go, stirring well with a wooden spoon, then put the pan back on medium heat to dry the dough (i.e., stir it over the heat for a few minutes until a film forms at the bottom of the pan).

Transfer the dough into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and set it running until the steam stops escaping from the dough.

If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can stir with a spatula; it will just take more time. Then add the whole eggs and yolks gradually until you have a homogeneous dough.

Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then tighten them with the sugar until fully dissolved.

Add a spoonful of meringue to the choux pastry dough, stirring vigorously, then gently fold in the rest using a spatula.

Divide the dough in two, and spread each part on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper.

Bake each biscuit in turn in a preheated oven at 180°C for 15 to 20 minutes (watch the end of the baking, the biscuits must remain soft to be rolled). Let them cool.

Hazelnut Praline:

190g of hazelnuts

120g of granulated sugar

35g of water

1 pinch of salt

Roast the hazelnuts for about 8 minutes at 210°C.

Make a syrup with the water and sugar. When the syrup reaches 117°C, add the hazelnuts and salt. The mixture will turn sandy; then put the pan back on the heat until the hazelnuts caramelize. Let them cool, then grind them until you obtain a fairly coarse powder. Divide the powder in two, keep half and continue grinding the second half until you get a praline.

Assembly:

Place the two biscuit rectangles side by side, and trim them to have rectangles of the same size. Spread a thin layer of hazelnut praline over the entire surface of the biscuits using a spatula.