I tried making a traditional Yule Log a few years ago. It was somewhat stressful. Apart from the fact that my butter is never warm enough and I always lose patience and mix it up anyway and deal with the consequential sponge that turns up the whole process is fraught with danger. The rolling up, unrolling, spreading of cream, re-rolling and hoping for no cracking then furiously patching it up with ganache, chocolate flying all over the place. It’s all a bit much for me; I’d rather be sipping a G&T and relaxing rather than cleaning ganache off of the kitchen tiles. That’s how my Marshmallow Rice Krispie Yule Log came about. It’s easy to make and you can fashion it into any shape that you like; the more dexterous amongst you may wish to attempt an actual reindeer.
Topped Chocolate
I wasn’t quite sure what to call this when I first made it but it’s become known as Topped Chocolate in my kitchen. There have been a few different flavours and so far this one, with honeycomb and pumpkin seeds, has been my favourite. It’s not a complicated recipe by any means and you can add almost anything you like; pecan and coconut or raisin and walnut are some that I have tried. One big chocolate bar makes enough for two for a week, if you take a small piece that is!
You will need (for one big slab):
Rhubarb, Honeycomb and Hazelnut Fool
Ingredients
You will need (for two fools):
- 2 sticks rhubarb
- 1 tsp honey (runny or set)
- 1 tsp water
- 150ml double cream
- 1 tbsp runny honey
- Small handful chopped hazelnuts
- A few pieces of honeycomb
Method
Chop the rhubarb into inch sized chunks and put into a saucepan with the tsp honey and water. Cook on a medium heat until the rhubarb is soft and most of the water has gone. You do need to make sure it’s quite thick otherwise your fool will be more like a soup. Set the rhubarb aside to cool.
Put a small dry pan over a medium heat and toast the hazelnuts, watching that they don’t catch, then set aside.
In a large bowl whip together the double cream and runny honey until firm. Fold in two thirds of the rhubarb with the hazelnuts and crush in a few bits of honeycomb. Divide the fool into glasses and top with the remaining rhubarb and a few more hazelnuts and honeycomb.