Daring Bakers Holiday Edition

A yule log is not something I’ve ever eaten before as it was never part of my Christmas as a child but apparently it symbolizes the holidays for a lot of people. I remember hearing somewhere that one company starts making their Yule logs in July in order to have enough ready for Christmas. That makes me question what they’re putting in their Yule log to make it last so long while simultaneously making me cringe and shudder in repulsion. But this isn’t July and the Yule log is this month’s Daring Baker challenge, set out for us by the DB creators themselves, Ivonne and Lis so I was going to make it regardless.

I had decided to make the Yule log on the day after Toronto got its big snowstorm but when I got up I realized I was short a few ingredients so I put on my coat and mitts and trudged out into the snow. After a few steps I realized that besides the blanket of snow that was covering the streets, there was something else that was different. It took me a minute to figure out that the usually bustling city was quiet. There were hardly any cars on the road, (as they were all stuck somewhere) and in contrast to the often congested sidewalks, those too were empty of people, (but filled with snow). So despite a nippy wind licking at my face and my pants becoming wet and soggy with every step, I enjoyed a leisurely walk to the store along oddly quiet city streets. I was then amazed at how quickly I made my way through the too narrow aisles of the grocery store without being jostled and bumped, got to a cashier that didn’t have a line up and was back out in the snow in a matter of minutes. That particular grocery store is often a 20 minute event even if all I want is a few sticks of butter.

When I got back to my apartment, (and still dark kitchen) I was feeling pretty relaxed and looking forward to the challenge. I had read about the other DB’s experience with the Yule log and icing and had hopefully learned how to avoid their mistakes. Oddly enough, it seems like I had. This challenge went relatively smoothly, but maybe it was just the calm mood I was in. The most difficult part of the whole thing was carrying my Yule log over to my Aunt and Uncle’s house for dinner that night as the sidewalks still hadn’t been cleared and the snow was much less friendly in the dark as I struggled with my cake. Of course the walk there is uphill so that didn’t help. But I arrived, was handed a glass of wine and went in to sit by the fire to warm up. We had beef bourguignon for dinner and Yule log for dessert. And I got bonus points for the SuperMario inspired mushrooms. Challenge completed. Now I’m off to brave the sidewalks that are once again being overrun by Slow Walkers, and with only three days left until Christmas, these are particularly crazy Slow Walkers. Good luck to anyone who is not done their shopping, “yule” need it… (Sorry, that was bad.) Be sure to check out the other Yule Logs from the Daring Bakers Blog Roll, (now somewhere in the millions...).