Kumquat and Chocolate Yule Log Recipe (2024)

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I was a professional cook, also. However, if a recipe intrigued me, I'd try it. What a bore not to experiment!! Or to discourage others!!!

Why all the negativity and judgement. Food should bring people together and create joy. Professional, blah, blah, blah. Sure this could be a project to create, but you could also get some inspiration for a roulade of your own or just marvel at the beautiful photo and the interesting flavors.

"...it could take a whole day." How I am looking forward to that day! Cold outside, warm kitchen. Radio playing as I work through the elements, each new to me and miraculous. So this is how marmalade is made, who knew!? I anticipate at least 2 mini disasters en route to final result and an inevitable short trip to the market for a missing ingredient. The dog will be asking for attention, but no! Time to pipe the spikes. And then, maybe by 9 PM, I pull out the blow torch. Bring it on!

I think the flavors sound wonderful! This is a project I am definitely going to try. I am a very good home cook, and frankly, it doesn’t remotely concern me in its difficulty (I.e. not difficult at all). I have learned to slow down and enjoy the alchemy!

The results of this recipe were absolutely spectacular, the presentation elicited a well-deserved WOW and the eating was truly delicious, the dessert brings together a wonderful blend of flavors without being cloyingly sweet. I staged the different steps a couple of days before, I made the marmalade two days ahead of time, and the caramel shards, date-orange filling & meringue, the day before, thus leaving only the cake baking and assembly for the day my guests were expected.

Regarding what L. Amenope says... spreading the marmalade may tear the sponge. This looks delicious, but for those of us who watch The Great British Baking Show... that log doesn't have a proper spiral.

In Pierre Franey's day the NYT also published one (maybe two) recipes per week. Now there is endless variety to choose from - ranging from the straightforward to the elaborate. I say CHEERS to the paper for recognizing the enthusiastic audience for good home cooking!

This sounds like a blast -- yes, complicated and time-consuming -- but so much fun to try. It'll make me feel like a contestant on the Great British Bakeoff. And as I've learned from Paul & Mary & Prue it's ok if it's not perfect in the end, it's about the flavors!

Too time-consuming for you, then don't make it. If you prefer food blogs, then get to it. I am an average home cook and I want to make this, I love a challenge and adventure. Also, I would be blown away to make something that looks this cool, amazing. It reminds me of a fish I saw snorkeling once. Thank you for the inspirational recipe!

This could be a great way to spend a day during the holiday season if you are an empty nester and somebody else is doing the big meal. That would be me, and I can't wait!

This recipe is just OK, interesting flavors, but the filling is way too much for the sponge cake (which is too dry for a good rolled cake). This recipe comes from a top chef and is NYT "styled". Sorry, but a cracked sponge and a loose uneven roll aren't "rustic", they are an indication of a job poorly executed (and would never pass muster in an adult ed cooking class)! C'mon NYT! Do better!

Yule logs are an undertaking but just think of the fun you could have if you made it a family project or just a fun day with friends around the holidays. As for the combinations, kumquat, chocolate, orange, and dates, amazing. Can not wait to make this. Thank you NYT, you never disappoint.

This Yule Log looks terrifying. I have been making the Craig Claiborne version, a traditional log with two sawed-off limbs and cocoa-dusted meringue mushrooms since 1965. More small mushrooms and tiny twigs of spruce decorate the base. It was from The New York Times Cookbook, bought for me by my new husband. I've perfected its creation but it still takes love and time, but it's beautiful and worth it. Perhaps a photo of that version is in the NYTs (photo) morgue?

Flames. The caramel shards are flames. I thought they were striking and lovely.

I love the kumquat marmalade and was quite happy to have so much left over. That's good, because I accidentally used the horseradish sauce I'd prepare for the prime rib instead of the date cream . . . so I never got to serve the bûche. There was no saving it; they don't call it a "sponge" for nothing.

Made this as a project for my birthday. I made the marmalade, sugar shards and filling one night, the next I made the cake and meringue. This is time consuming but like the celebration cake, none of it is technically difficult. The cake did not tear nor become mushy after being assembled and wrapped in the fridge overnight and the spiral was nicely defined. The sugar work did get tacky because my home is so humid. I used tangerines for the citrus as kumquats were nowhere to be found.

Variation 2023: coffee halva cardamom mascarpone cream for the orange date cream. Used proportions from the recipe and found cream to leak a little, but set up nicely in the fridge (cream was cooled before spreading on sponge). No marmalade substitute. Halva Tahini drizzle. Nice flavor combo. Sponge baked on silplat for about 7 min.cracked a little. Dry on corners. Flavor was good. Thinking pear spice for 2024.

Made this for Xmas Eve and it looks just like the picture, definitely a show-stopper. Alas the flavor was, frankly, rather muddy—there’s too much going on with the rich chocolate, orange, mascarpone, cognac… Glad I tried it, no regrets, but will be going back to simplified flavors for a Yule log.

New baker here- is a jelly roll pan needed? Or can I get away with a baking sheet?

There is seriously something (many things) wrong with this recipe. I'm an experienced baker so the long list of directions didn't put me off. The cake was gooey after 8 min. So the bake time is wrong or the cake ingredients are inaccurate. I remade the cake with a bit more flour and additional baking time, but then it tore when I rolled it. The date filling broke and then curdled. I rescued it (?) by switching to a hand blender and adding more cream. Luckily, I've made meringue dozens of times.

Would it be entirely crazy to attempt to make this GF/DF? I’m trying to make Xmas less about the gifts and more about food, friends, and family. This looks fun — except for my dietary restrictions!

This was really fun to make and looked beautiful at my friends Christmas party. Flavors were delicious! My only note is that the amount of orange and date cream that this generates is too much and actually ends up making the rolling of the roulade less manageable and more likely to crack. I would just cut it back by a third when applying to the roulade. Very delicious and beautiful otherwise!

We made the cream the day before, as suggested. The overnight in the fridge did not do any good. The next day, it had a very thick consistency, which made the whole thing unpleasant. Also, when we made the cake, we tried to use a moist tea towel, as that had worked successfully when making cake for Swiss roll recipes. That backfired as the humidity of the towel made it near impossible to peel of the cake. We then tried to salvage the whole thing by making a ganache glaze to cover it all up...

Absolutely wonderful recipe…did it with my son on a rainy Christmas Eve. Thought it would be harder, but well explained. And all the family though we’d bought it at the patisserie. It truly tasted as good as it looked! BTW, we made up to the roulade and put it in the fridge overnight, then did the meringue and caramel the next day. Held up perfectly

So glad to see kumquats gets some recognition. I make a kind of marmalade with them to dress a "carrot" pudding, a lighter version of traditional Christmas pudding. I boil them whole, then when cool, cut in half and scoop out the removed seeds and pulp with a tiny spoon. I slice them and put them back in the boiled water and add sugar and let them cook down. A bit Cointreau or Grand Mariner doesn't hurt either. Spoon it over the steamed pudding, drizzle with Cointreau and set aflame for serving

Came out great!Baked it over two days.Minor adjustments; used half the water for the marmalade, and half the sugar. Added half a Habanero pepper to the marmalade. But increased the quantity of ingredients to double the amount -for future use.Used double the amount of brandy - Amaro Nonino.It was big hit at the dinner table. Very celebratory piece.Thank You.

I made a loose Southern Hemisphere version (it’s summer here) so I used raspberries, strawberries, raspberry jam - omitted the dates and cumquats - the sponge was divine, rolled perfectly, the marscapone cream was amazing and light, and the toffee shards were a welcome crunch against the bright summer fruit notes. I am a relatively accomplished home baker and completed my Summer Yule in under 3 hours while bouncing a baby on my hip.

This was delicious and mostly came out. Just had trouble with the merengue- it was too soft despite mixing for allotted time. But I just poured it over the log and next tot he chocolate pours it looked like snow on a log! Also to save on time I used high quality apricot jam which I simmered with star anise and some canned mandarins — really liked the flavor of the apricot jam and the slight acidity to cut the sweetness.

Delicious and not as intimidating to make as some of the comments. The marmalade cream filling and caramel shards can be done a bit ahead of time making the cake and meringue a manageable day of task. Our only real problem was the cake, which was too soft yet fell apart. We glued it together with the cream filling. A sturdier sponge cake would be better.

I will absolutely make this again! What a fantastic mix of complex flavors! I failed to chop the dates small enough, make sure these are chopped very finely. Grind your anise well, this was a great addition. I mixed the Carmel the first time, instead of swirling the pan - rookie mistake. By the 4th try on the caramel, it turned out right. All in all, this was a great holiday classic!