Yule Log with Grapefruit Mousse

Before starting this Yule Log with Grapefruit Mousse recipe, make sure you have organised the necessary ingredients for the pistachio génoise sponge biscuit.

Crack the whole eggs into the stand mixer recipient.

Add the castor sugar.

Whisk the eggs and castor sugar over a bain-marie until the preparation reaches 50°C.

Finish beating with a food mixer until the temperature goes down to 25°C.

In the meantime, sift the flour.

When the preparation has risen (halfway up the bowl)...

Add to the preparation...

... and add the sifted flour at the same time. Work in vertical motions for the preparation not to collapse.

To facilitate the incorporation, combine the melted butter with a little amount of preparation beforehand...

... and add to the preparation. The butter will give added softness to the biscuit. The consistency will be more compact, less crumbly.

Combine gently until the butter is completely incorporated.

Pour the pistachio génoise on a Silpat baking mat placed on a Silichef® perforated baking sheet.

Spread in an even layer with a cranked spatula.

Bake in a fan-assisted oven at 170°C (gas 3) for 10 to 12 minutes.

For the candied grapefruit wedges: (make the day before) Organise all the necessary ingredients.

Using a Classic Microplane grater, zest half a grapefruit.

Make sure you only zest the pink outer layer of the skin, leaving the bitter white pith behind.

Peel each pink grapefruit with a knife, following its natural curve...

... and cut into segments. Reserve the juice from the core of the grapefruit.

Make a syrup with the castor sugar and water.

Add the grapefruit zest. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved.

Add the grapefruit juice...

... and the grapefruit wedges.

Cook for a further 3 or 4 minutes on a gentle boil, then remove from the heat.

According to the size of the grapefruit wedges, you can cook the syrup for up to 5 minutes. Make sure the grapefruit wedges do not disintegrate.

When the syrup is down to 85°C, add the Grand-Marnier or Cointreau. Due to the heat, the alcohol content will evaporate and only the flavour will remain. Let cool down completely, then cover with cling film and refrigerate for 12 hours.

For the raspberry purée: Coarsely crush the raspberries with a fork.

Add the raspberry purée, and the equivalent of 3 or 4 tablespoons of water.

In a separate bowl, combine the yellow pectin powder and castor sugar.

Heat the raspberry purée in a non-stick frying pan...

... and add the powder mixture when it starts boiling. Cook for a few minutes to dissolve the sugar. Let cool.

For the French meringue: Organise the necessary ingredients.

Tip the egg whites (room temperature) in the stand mixer recipient.

Beat the egg whites into firm peaks.

Sprinkle the castor sugar...

... and continue whisking until you obtain a perfectly smooth meringue.

Set aside.

For the biscuit: Remove the cold biscuit from the Silpat baking mat and transfer onto a sheet of greaseproof paper.

Trim the edges...

... then cut a rectangle, using the yule log mould as a guide. The width of the biscuit should be 1 cm shorter than the mould. This biscuit rectangle will be placed at the bottom of the log.

Cut another rectangle of biscuit, to the same width...

... then cut the rectangle in half, lengthwise. These two pieces will be arranged in the centre of the log. Wrap the remaining biscuit in cling film and place in the freezer, for later use in another recipe.

For the pink grapefruit mousse: Organise all the necessary ingredients.

Whisk the whipping cream in the stand mixer. The whipped cream should have a smooth consistency; don't whisk excessively.

Place the pan over medium heat.

In the meantime, place 20 grams of grapefruit juice and crème pâtissière powder in a bowl.

Combine with a whisk. If necessary, add some more grapefruit juice by using some from the saucepan.

When the juice comes to a gentle boil, pour over the preparation and stir. The grapefruit juice should not boil!

... and cook while stirring, like pastry cream.

Combine well with a whisk.

Transfer the cream into a stainless steel bowl...

.. and let it cool down to 30°C, stirring frequently with a whisk.

Give another whip to the whipped cream for a more firm texture.

When the cream is down to 30°C, add a small amount of whipped cream and combine.

Add the meringue.

Combine gently with a whisk.

Pour the preparation over the remaining whipped cream...

Assembling the cake: Line each yule log mould with a polyethylene sheet, cut to the right dimensions.

Scoop the grapefruit mousse into a piping bag.

Pipe some grapefruit mousse at the bottom.

With a palette knife, create a volcano shape, so that the cream goes all the way up the rim.

Arrange a layer of candied grapefruit wedges...

... on top of the mousse. After soaking in the syrup for hours, some wedges should have disintegrated more than others. Make sure you drain them before adding them to the log.

Pipe a thick lace of grapefruit mousse over the candied wedges.

Scoop the raspberry purée into a piping bag. The use of a nozzle is not necessary.

Pipe a lace of raspberry purée...

... then cover with grapefruit mousse.

Place one strip on top of the mousse, golden side facing up. Press firmly to push the biscuit into the cream.

Fill the rest of the mould with grapefruit mousse...

... and even the surface with a spatula.

Steep the base biscuit with grapefruit juice, then place on top of the mousse.

Press firmly for the biscuit to stick to the mousse...

... and even the edges.

Place in the freezer. Up to this stage, this recipe can be prepared in advance. The following steps should be done on the day.

For the pink icing: (make the day before) Organise all the necessary ingredients.

Hydrate the gelatine with 120 grams of water.

In a saucepan, tip the water, glucose syrup (if you find it too thick, you can melt it in the microwave for a few seconds)...

... and the castor sugar.

Cook until it gets to 103°C.

Remove from the heat and add the unsweetened condensed milk. Stir well.

Add the white chocolate pistoles. Combine well, making sure not to incorporate air bubbles.

Add some red colouring powder with the tip of a knife...

... and mix with a hand blender. Do not incorporate air bubbles while mixing. Set aside. The ideal temperature to use this icing on a cake is 25°C.

For the finish: Remove the log from the mould...

... and gently remove the polyethylene sheet by lifting.

Transfer the log onto a cooling rack, which has been placed on a cooking tray.

Pour the icing in one stroke, from one end of the log to the other, making sure to coat the whole surface.

By coming into contact with the frozen log, the icing will set immediately.

Reserve in the fridge.

Decorating the log: To decorate the surface of the log, we're going to use the remaining meringue. If possible, I recommend making an Italian meringue at the last minute!

Transfer the meringue into a piping bag...

... and pipe drop shapes directly on the surface. Hold the piping bag vertically, pipe a small ball and quickly lift the bag to form a pointy end.
This is a great way to hide any air bubbles that might have appeared in the pink icing!

Using a utility knife, cut the pink grapefruit jelly into cubes. Arrange the jelly cubes on the surface of the log.

Decorate each end with a square of wrinkled white chocolate.

Sprinkle the surface with silver flakes.

Refrigerate the log for a few hours, to let it defrost slowly. This delicious yule log is now ready to serve!
For more details and technical explanations, don't hesitate to watch our video on YouTube.
Enjoy this delicious dessert and have a sweet Christmas!