Soft chocolate cake. Luscious whipped cream. Rich chocolate ganache. My Flourless Chocolate Yule Log is easier to make than you realize, and it's gluten-free, too!
Several years ago, Alex and I watched Mary Berry from the Great British Baking Show make a yule log; I've spent the last several Decembers obsessed with them. They look so festive, so wintery. So fun!
The gluten-free chocolate sponge cake rolls nicely without cracking, and whipped cream and chocolate ganache come together quickly. I'll walk you through it! But remember - even imperfect yule logs are delicious!
[This post contains affiliate links. I may make a commission for purchases made through links on this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.]
Jump to:
Ingredients
One nice thing about this flourless cake is that the entire recipe takes only 8 ingredients!
- eggs
- granulated sugar
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- vanilla extract
- salt
- heavy cream
- semisweet chocolate
- powdered sugar
Since this is a gluten-free cake with no chemical leavening, eggs provide the cake with its lift and bind everything together.
Granulated sugar provides sweetness and moisture to the cake.
Of course, use unsweetened cocoa powder, not the prepackaged cocoa drink mixes.
Vanilla extract and table salt round out the flavor in the cake.
You can't make whipped cream without heavy cream. Neither light nor whipping cream will whip as well. And don't try non-dairy whipped topping; it's too soft anyway.
Cream also goes into the ganache with the semisweet chocolate. I'm partial to Ghirardelli chocolate chips (affiliate link), but choose something you enjoy eating - nothing too dark, and nothing too light. The 60% chocolate shown here is almost too rich.
A little powdered sugar goes into the whipped cream, but also importantly, you dust the yule log with the powdered sugar to give the cake a nice, wintery look of snow.
Instructions
Start by separating your egg whites and egg yolks. This is a three-bowl process. I highly recommend using an egg separator (affiliate link).
Separate an egg over a small glass storage container. Deposit the yolk in a medium or large mixing bowl, and the white in a large mixing bowl.
If your yolk breaks into the storage container, just dump the rest of it into the container and store it in the fridge as a whole egg. Get a new container for your next egg. A little egg white with the yolks won't hurt anything, but the egg whites won't whip properly if they're contaminated with yolks.
Prepare a 15x10x1-inch jelly roll pan (affiliate link) now. Line it with parchment, and then spray it with cooking spray. You need the parchment - don't skip it, and don't try a silicone baking mat.
Use a hand mixer (affiliate link) to beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
Add 2 tablespoons of sugar. Beat, then add the next 2 tablespoons of sugar. Beat on high speed until stiff peaks form.
Using the same beaters, beat the egg yolks on high speed. Add in ½ cup sugar, a little at a time. Then mix until the mixture is very thick. This could take up to 5 minutes.
On low speed, beat in the cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt into the thickened egg yolks. Mix until smooth.
Use a rubber spatula to fold the cocoa mixture into the egg whites. I cut the spatula through the middle of the bowl, scrape along the bottom, and scrape up the side of the bowl from the bottom to fold that batter over.
Eventually, no egg whites are visible. Smooth out little bumps gently, to see if they're clumps of egg whites.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Try to get it toward the edges to minimize how much you need to spread out the batter (which might deflate it).
Using the spatula, gently spread the batter to the edges. The batter will not spread outward on its own.
While the cake bakes, lay out a clean tea towel that is a little larger than your cake pan. Dust it liberally with powdered sugar. You will roll up the cake in this towel, and it will absorb some of the steam as the cake cools. Do not use any towels that will shed lint.
Bake the cake for about 15 minutes, until the surface springs back when you touch it. If it sounds overly squishy or doesn't bounce back, bake another minute or two.
Immediately turn the cake out onto the prepared tea towel.
Carefully peel off the parchment paper. If the cake is sticking at all, use a rubber spatula to try to gently separate it from the paper.
Starting along a short end, tightly roll up the cake and place it on a cooling rack. Cool completely, about an hour.
Pour 1 ¼ cup heavy cream into a large metal bowl. (Cream spatters when you beat it, so you want a large bowl.) Chill in the refrigerator; the cold bowl will help the cream whip better.
After the cake has cooled for 30 minutes, make the ganache. Place the chocolate in a small, heat-safe bowl.
In a small saucepan, bring the cream just to a boil, swirling it occasionally while heating it to keep it from sticking.
Pour half of the cream over the chocolate, then let set for 30 seconds to let the chocolate soften. Begin to stir in small circles, starting at the center of the bowl, then spiral out to the edge.
Continue stirring in spirals from the center to the edge of the bowl until everything is mixed.
Add the remaining cream, let rest for 30 seconds, and stir in spirals again...
...until the chocolate is melted and combined with the cream, stirring only as much as necessary.
This stirring process sounds finicky, but I picked it up from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours (affiliate link), and it yields a shiny, smooth ganache for me.
Let the chocolate ganache rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes, until you roll the cake. If you wait longer than 30 minutes to assemble the cake, the ganache will be much thicker, and may not drizzle well unless you heat it again.
Once the cake is cool, it's time to whip the cream and assemble the yule log.
Remove the bowl with the heavy cream from the refrigerator. Add the powdered sugar, and use clean beaters to beat the cream.
Beat the cream until stiff peaks form. You can, and should, pause beating from time to time to check the consistency. You can always beat the cream for longer, but if you overwhip the cream, it turns into butter.
Stiff peaks will not droop when you lift out the beaters. The cream will maintain its shape in the bowl, as seen in the picture. You can almost see the bottom of the bowl where the beaters were.
Stiffly beaten whipped cream will allow the rolled cake to maintain its shape. If the cream is softly beaten, then the cake will slump down.
Use the whipped cream as soon as you whip it. It will deflate and not roll as nicely if you let it rest first.
Gently unroll the cooled cake.
Spread the whipped cream along the cake. Gently spread it almost to the edge along the sides. Leave a 1 inch margin on the end away from the rolled end; cream will squeeze along there anyway.
Roll up the cake tightly, from the side that was on the inside of the roll. Have the seam side down, to allow the weight of the cake to help seal it. Your cake will have more cream than the one I photographed here.
Choose the uglier end of your rolled cake. Cut a small piece off at a diagonal.
Move the main cake onto a platter, and position the cut piece alongside it, near but not too near the other cut edge.
I choose to put my outer edge against the main log, so the prettier cut edge can be exposed. Take a good look at your yule log from a few angles, to make sure you like the positioning before you coat it with ganache.
Once you're happy with the arrangement, start coating the cake! Using a spoon or spatula, drizzle ganache along the cake, starting in the center.
Be patient and go slowly. The ganache should drizzle a little ways down the side.
Add ganache bit by bit along the sides where the ganache ends. Eventually the entire cake will be coated, but if you have gaps, just add ganache.
You can leave the swirls exposed or coated. To coat them, just drizzle ganache along the cut ends of the yule log, just like you did the rest. When the ganache stops halfway down the swirl, add more ganache there and it should meld together.
Use a rubber spatula and/or a damp paper towel to wipe the excess chocolate ganache from the platter.
Drag the tines of a fork gently along the yule log to make the ganache look like bark. Remember, imperfections look natural! I usually leave the cut ends alone.
Chill the cake until you're ready to serve. This can be a day in advance.
Pull the cake out from the refrigerator. Place powdered sugar in a sieve and dust it all over the yule log to make it look like snow. Don't forget to dust the platter too; it'll hide any remaining chocolate smudges.
To cut the cake, use a butter knife and very gentle pressure to saw into the cake. Do not push! Pushing into the cake with the knife may squish the cake.
Equipment
I do not recommend trying to make the cake batter by hand. Beating egg whites will be hard work. You can use a hand mixer (affiliate link) or a stand mixer to make the cake batter. I only have one stand mixer bowl, so I always use a hand mixer.
You can make whipped cream by hand with a whisk, but be prepared for an arm workout to get it to stiff peaks. I prefer the mixer for this as well.
This cake is made in a jelly roll pan (affiliate link), which is 15x10x1 inches. The cake will expand in height, so you need that rim. A longer pan would spread the batter too thin, and it might burn. While you may be able to bake the cake in a smaller pan, I can't say how well it would work.
Use parchment paper. Not a silicone baking mat, because you need the parchment to go up the sides of the pan. Not waxed paper, because you shouldn't put that in the oven. Foil may work in a pinch, but may tear as you remove it, and you don't want metal in your cake!
If you don't have a tea towel to turn the cake out onto, you can use parchment paper or even waxed paper. They just won't absorb the moisture as the cake cools.
An egg separator (affiliate link) is a convenient tool, not entirely necessary, but I don't like trying to use the egg shells to separate the eggs.
Use a sieve to dust the powdered sugar. You don't want clumpy snow on that pretty yule log!
Storage
This cake can be made and assembled a day before serving. Store it in the fridge. Remove it and dust it with powdered sugar immediately before serving.
Store leftovers in the refrigerator. Leftovers are still tasty for several days. The powdered sugar will absorb moisture, so you'll have tiny drops of dew on your yule log, instead of a dusting of snow.
Top tip
Take your time! You're making something that looks fun, and so you should have fun with it. Even if it's imperfect, it's still chocolate cake and cream and chocolate ganache, so it will taste amazing.
FAQ
If your cake isn't done when you turn it out, leave the parchment paper on it. Slip a thin large cutting board underneath the tea towel, and invert the cake back into the pan. Remove the tea towel and bake the cake for a few more minutes until it's done. Meanwhile, prepare your used, or a new, tea towel with powdered sugar again. Your finished cake may not be as pretty, but it will still be tasty.
Maybe. I attempted this cake when I visited my family in Amarillo, Texas, which is at an elevation of 3,662 feet. Not incredibly high, but not sea level where I am in New Jersey. The cake was underbaked at 15 minutes. This could have been an issue with their oven or with how much I beat the egg whites, or it could have been the altitude.
If you live at altitude, be prepared to adjust the baking time as necessary. The underbaked cake sounded very fizzy and squishy when I pressed on it.
More Holiday Treats
Looking for other holiday goodies? Try some of my other favorite recipes:
Other Chocolate Recipes
Check out some of my other favorite chocolate recipes:
Interested in other recipes? I save and share recipes I like or want to try on my Pinterest page - follow me there! You can also check out my Facebook page for more recipes and helpful tips. I'm also happy to try to help troubleshoot my recipes there.
Have you tried this recipe? Or have a question about it? Rate it or leave a comment below! (PS: rating my recipes helps other people find them, too!)
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Yule Log
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs separated
- ¾ cup granulated sugar 150 grams; divided
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 27 grams
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 5 grams
- 1 pinch table salt
Chocolate Ganache
- ¾ cup heavy cream 170 grams/6 ounces
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate 170 grams/6 ounces
Whipped Cream
- 1 ¼ cup heavy cream 283 grams/10 ounces
- ¼ cup powdered sugar 25 grams/1 ounce
For Assembly
- powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Prepare a 15x10x1 inch jelly roll pan (affiliate link). Line it with parchment paper going up the sides of the pan. (I use binder clips to keep mine in place.) Spray the parchment liberally with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Use 3 bowls to separate the eggs. Separate the egg over a small storage bowl. The white should drain into the bowl, and the yolk should stay in the egg separator (affiliate link) (or shell, if you're not using a separator). If any yolk gets into the white, store it in the refrigerator and get another egg; yolks will prevent the egg whites from beating properly. Place the yolks in a medium or large mixing bowl, and the whites in a large mixing bowl.
- Use a hand mixer (affiliate link) or a stand mixer. Beat the 6 egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. Beat in 2 tablespoons of sugar, then beat in another 2 tablespoons, for a total of ¼ cup. (You don't want all the sugar to clump together.)
- Beat the egg whites at high speed until stiff peaks form, and the whites are glossy. This may take about 5 minutes. When the egg whites are stiffly beaten, they will maintain their shape. You'll see to the bottom of the bowl, through where the beaters were. Scrape the remaining beaten whites from the beaters and set the bowl aside.
- Using the same beaters (no need to clean), beat the egg yolks at high speed. Add the remaining ½ cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time (for a total of 4 additions). Beat until very thick. This can take up to 5 minutes. The yellowish egg yolks will have lightened in color; if you drip the beaten yolks from the mixer onto the rest, they will maintain their shape a little, rather than melt/sink back into the yolk mixture.
- On low speed, beat in the cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt. (Cocoa powder will puff out and make a mess sometimes!) Beat until smooth.
- Use a rubber spatula to fold the cocoa mixture into the egg whites until no egg whites are visible. To do this, sink the blade part of the spatula down through the center of the bowl, to the bottom. Turn the spatula so that it scrapes up the side of the bowl, bringing the bottom and sides of the mixture to the top. Rotate the bowl by 90 degrees, and repeat.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Try to pour it along the entire pan, rather than centering it all in the middle. Gently spread the batter to the edges. Although the batter will rise upward, it will not expand sideways to fill in the corners of the pan.
- Bake in a 375F oven for around 15 minutes, until the surface springs back if you press on it. (A toothpick will also come out clean, but press on the cake first.) Prepare your tea towel for rolling while the cake bakes. When you remove the cake from the oven, immediately turn out onto your prepared tea towel.
While the Cake Bakes
- Spread out a clean tea towel (free of lint) on your counter; this towel should be larger than your jelly roll pan (affiliate link). If you don't have a lint-free towel, you can use parchment paper or waxed paper in a pinch.
- Use a sieve to dust the surface of the tea towel liberally with powdered sugar.
Rolling and Cooling the Cake
- Once the cake is done, immediately invert the pan onto your prepared tea towel. Carefully peel back the paper from the cake; use a rubber spatula if necessary to scrape the cake down off of the cake in spots where it sticks.
- Once you have the paper off of the cake, roll the cake up from the short end, including the tea towel in the center to keep the layers separate. The seam of the cake should be on bottom. Place on a cooling rack and cool completely (about an hour) before assembling.
Chocolate Ganache
- 30 minutes before you plan to assemble the yule log, prepare the chocolate ganache.
- Place 1 cup (6 ounces) chocolate chips or chopped chocolate in a heat-safe bowl.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the ¾ cup (6 ounces) heavy cream just to a boil. (I swirl the pan a few times to make sure it's heating evenly and not sticking.) Remove from heat.
- Immediately pour half of the heated cream onto the chocolate. Let it rest for 30 seconds to soften. Stir in small circles or spirals, starting at the center of the bowl, spiraling out toward the edge.
- Stir in that way until the chocolate and cream are combined, and then add the remaining hot cream. Let it rest again for 30 seconds, and repeat the process of stirring/spiraling out from the center to the outsides of the bowl. Stir only as much as necessary.
- Set the ganache aside to let it cool and thicken for the remaining 20 minutes while the cake cools.
Whipped Cream
- Place 1 ¼ cups (10 ounces) heavy cream in a large mixing bowl. (Be prepared; cream splatters everywhere!) Add the ¼ cup powdered sugar.
- With an electric mixer, start mixing the cream on low to get it foamy. Turn the speed up to high speed and whip the cream to stiff peaks. You can stop and check the consistency as often as you'd like. Like with the egg whites, the stiff peaks won't flop over. You'll see an obvious trail where the beaters were. When you remove the beaters from the whipped cream, there will be a hole or gap where they were.
Assembling the Yule Log
- Place the chocolate roll on your work surface and unroll it.
- Dollop the whipped cream along the surface of the cake. Spread it out into the short edge where you started the roll (which will become the center). Leave a ½ inch gap along the sides of the roll, and a 1 inch gap along the other short end. The cream will spread into those gaps as you roll the cake.
- Roll the cake back up. (But don't include the tea towel in it this time!) Roll it relatively tightly. Some cream will squish out of the sides and end of the cake roll; this is normal and okay. The seam of the cake should be on bottom again.
- Using a serrated knife and gentle pressure, saw off a small section of the cake off on a diagonal. Transfer the main log to a serving platter, and position the smaller branch alongside it as if it's growing from the main log. Take your time to consider the branch from all angles, and reposition it if you'd like.
- Use a spoon to drizzle the chocolate ganache along the top of the cake. It will slowly drape along the sides. Drizzle more chocolate on top of the ganache where it ends, so it continues to drape down the sides of the cake. I use a spoon and go slowly because it gives me more control of where the chocolate flows. If you pour too much at once, it all drains onto the serving platter, and you have to scoop it up later.
- Decide if you want to cover the swirled ends of the cake, or if you want to leave the whipped cream showing. Before covering the whipped cream, swipe up any excess that peeks beyond the edges of the sponge cake before coating it. Then, drizzle the chocolate over the ends the same way that you did with the sides of the cake.
- Take a look around the cake from all angles, seeing if you need to do any chocolate touch-ups. Fix it as needed.
- Use a clean rubber spatula, or a dampened paper towel, to scrape excess chocolate ganache from the serving platter to pretty it up.
- Drag the tines of a fork gently along the log to make the chocolate look like ridges of bark. They don't have to be perfectly straight; tree bark never is. Don't forget to do the short branch as well. I prefer to leave the ends as they are.
- Refrigerate the cake until ready to serve.
Serving
- Remove the cake from the refrigerator. Use a sieve to dust the entire cake, and the serving platter, with powdered sugar to look like a dusting of snow (and cover up any imperfections in the chocolate).
- You can use a butter knife to cut this cake. Saw back and forth along it gently, without much pressure, until you cut through the cake. Don't press; it'll mess up the spiral.
- Store remaining cake in a sealed container in the refrigerator. The powdered sugar will absorb moisture and resemble dew instead of snow, but the cake will still taste good after several days.
Leave a Reply