Cinnamon Speculoos Yule Log

Before starting this Cinnamon Speculoos Yule Log recipe, organise the necessary ingredients for the Joconde biscuit.

Place the tant pour tant and whole eggs in the stand mixer recipient.

Beat at maximum speed for about 10 minutes, until pale and doubled in volume. The consistency should be very fluffy.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and set aside.

In a separate bowl, place the egg whites. Return to the mixer and whisk.

Add the salt.

Sift the flour over the fluffy egg preparation...

... and combine gently with a rubber spatula, working in a vertical motion so the preparation does not collapse.

Add the whipped egg whites to the preparation and fold gently with a rubber spatula.

Add the melted butter and combine gently.

Pour the preparation into a Flexipan Entremets non-stick baking mat (33.5 x 33.5cm). The quantities mentioned in this recipe are based on this square mat to obtain a soft biscuit with a thickness of 1 cm. Spread the preparation over the whole surface to an even thickness.

Bake in a fan-assisted oven at 180°C (gas 4) between 12 and 15 minutes.

When cooked, remove from the oven. Set aside to cool.

For the insert: You will need about half a jar of speculoos spread.

Fill a piping bag with the cinnamon spread.

Pipe a thick lace (diameter 2cm) inside a yule log insert mould (length 32cm).

Fill the mould halfway up.

Cover with a layer of milk chocolate Crispearls...

... and press gently to bury them a little.

Pipe a second lace of cinnamon spread over the pearls...

... and spread with a cranked metallic spatula to get rid of air bubbles.

Even the surface with a spatula.

Cover the surface with cling film and store in the freezer. The yule log insert can be prepared the day before and stored in the freezer overnight.

You should be able to distinguish the three different layers through the clear mould.

For the speculoos cream: Organise all the necessary ingredients. In a saucepan, bring the milk to a boil.

Mix the biscuits in a processor...

... until you obtain a fine powder.

Pour the honey in the egg yolks...

.. and combine well with a whisk...

... until homogeneous.

Add the cornflour and combine.

Add the powdered biscuits to the hot milk.

Combine with a spatula.

Add the egg yolks, honey and cornflour mix...

... and cook over medium heat...

... until thick (same technique as pastry cream). Cook for 2 minutes.

When cooked, transfer into the stand mixer bowl.

Place the recipient in the stand mixer...

... and beat at medium speed until cooled down completely.

When the cream is cold, add the soft butter.

Beat until completely incorporated. The consistency should be smooth and homogeneous. Reserve in the fridge.

Assembling the log: Remove the insert from the freezer.

Remove the cling film...

... and gently release from the mould. The insert should come away from the mould very easily. Reserve in the freezer until ready to use.

Release the Joconde biscuit from the silicone mat.

This operation should be very easy. Flip the mould onto a sheet of greaseproof paper.

Using a pastry brush, steep the biscuit with a syrup made with cane sugar syrup and amber rum. The amount of rum will vary according to your taste.

On the end of the biscuit facing towards you, place the equivalent of two spatulas of cream...

... and spread with a cranked metallic spatula.

Place the insert over the cream.

Start rolling the biscuit gently over the insert. Roll carefully so the biscuit doesn't break. To ensure a soft texture, it is important to make the Joconde biscuit on the day (or the day before, wrapped in cling film and stored at room temperature).

Cover the top of the insert with speculoos cream.

Place more cream on the biscuit.

Using a cranked metallic spatula, spread to an even thickness.

Roll the rest of the biscuit, making sure the roll is as tight as possible.

Place a wide sheet of cling film on your worktop surface. If your cling film is not wide enough to wrap the whole log, use several sheets.

Place the log on the cling film...

... and roll gently until completely wrapped in cling film.

The roll should be perfectly regular...

... and cylindrical.

Fold back the cling film excess on both ends. Place the log in the fridge for the cream to set. This should take about 2 hours.

Take the log out of the fridge. Remove the cling film.

Spread the rest of speculoos cream over the surface of the log. Keep some cream (2 or 3 tablespoons) for the finish.

Even the surface with a spatula.

Sprinkle crushed speculoos biscuits over the surface of the log. Press gently with your fingers so the biscuit sticks to the cream. The whole surface of the log should be coated with crushed biscuits.

Transfer the log onto a serving plate.

Using a piping bag fitted with a plain nozzle (5mm diameter), pipe a few dots of cream over the log. Repeat the operation with plain speculoos spread.

Cover the speculoos cream dots with chocolate discs.

Carefully arrange small pieces of gold leaf on top of the chocolate discs. This will recreate the mushroom decorations often found on traditional Christmas yule logs.