Gloverly Cupcakes

I always make a Yule log at Christmas although at the moment I haven’t found a favourite recipe, so I am keen to keep trying some new ones. Last year I chose a white chocolate, orange and cranberry flavoured one and adapted a couple of recipes to make it, click here to see the full recipe.

The log was based on this recipe from Sainsbury’s Magazine. However I didn’t make the sponge cake, I used the below recipe for the log as I wanted something lighter that I knew would roll up easily.

Sponge recipe:

3 large eggs, separated
80g caster sugar
50ml vegetable oil, plus extra for the tray
50ml whole milk
30g plain flour
30g cornflour
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp orange zest
¼ tsp cream of tartar

1. Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. To make the roll cake, line the base of a 22cm x 33cm baking tray with baking paper. You can oil the base of the tray to get the baking paper to stick but don’t oil the sides – you want the cake to cling to the tray.

2. Put the egg yolks and half the sugar in a large bowl, and beat using an electric whisk for 3 minutes until pale and light in texture. Add the oil and milk, and whisk to combine. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, cornflour, salt and orange zest. Add this to the egg yolk mixture and whisk briefly until smooth. Clean the beaters of the electric whisk. In another bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy, then slowly whisk in the remaining sugar until the mixture holds soft peaks. Working in three additions, gently fold the meringue into the egg yolk mixture until no streaks remain. Scrape the batter into the prepared tray and very gently spread into the corners.

3. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the cake is lightly browned and springs back with a light touch. Remove from the oven and use a round-bladed knife to cut the cake away from the edges of the tray. Invert onto a sheet of baking paper set on a wire rack, peeling the original paper off the back. Leave to cool completely. This is a chiffon-style cake, so it will stay flexible without the need to pre-roll it.

I made the soaked dried cranberries, frosted cranberries and the white chocolate and orange cream as per the Sainsbury’s magazine recipe, using the same quantities. I made a small amount of the white chocolate and cranberry shards and also added some sprinkles to them. To assemble I unrolled the sponge and brushed with a thin layer of the boiled orange zest, just and sugar mix. Then spread half of the orange and white chocolate cream over the top before scattering the Cointreau soaked cranberries over the top and then carefully rolling it up. I spread the remaining white chocolate orange cream over the outside and decorated with some mini red meringues, piped whipped cream, sprinkles and frosted cranberries. It was absolutely delicious!