This cake has an awful lot of steps and is a very long recipe it is so time consuming to but the out come is a very tasty and beautiful cake looks like a log.

ORANGE CHIFFON CAKE  For buche de Noel

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3 egg yolks (reserve the whites)
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. Pure vanilla extract
Minced zest of 1 orange
5 egg whites
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 cup sugar

Preheat the oven to 325*F; coat a 12 x 17" jelly roll pan with non-stick cooking spray, line with parchment and lightly coat again with cooking spray.

Stir in flour, 1/2 cup sugar. cornstarch, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl.  Set aside.

Whisk yolks, orange juice, oil, vanilla and zest together in a small bowl.  Make a well in the dry ingredients, then pour the wet ingredients into the well and whisk until smooth.

Beat whites and cream of tartar together in a bowl with a hand mixer on medium speed.  When soft peaks form, gradually begin adding 1/4 cup sugar and beat until stiff and shiny.

Mix 1/3 of the whites into the yolk mixture to lighten, then add remaining whites.  Gently fold in whites into the batter until no streaks remain, then spread batter evenly onto prepared pan.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched with a finger.

Cool cake in the pan 5 minutes, dust a sheet of parchment or wax paper with powdered sugar.

Run a paring knife around the edge of the cake and invert cake onto the parchment.  Peel off the parchment the cake is baked on, then dust cake with additional powdered sugar.

Rzoll cake up in the sugared parchment and let cool before unrolling and assembling.

ASSEMBLE WITH THE FOLLOWING:

Powdered sugar
Orange Syrup & Mocha
Buttercream Icing
Sugared Rosemary and Fresh Cranberries
Meringue Mushrooms
Cocoa Powder
Recipes to follow

While the cake cools, make the syrup and icing.  the syrup will add a second hit of orange flavor to the cake as well as a bit of moisture.  Ant that cutrusy flavor taste amazing with the light, silky mocha buttercream icing.  Buttercream takes more time to make than powdered sugar-based icing, but is has far better flavor and texture.

Start by warming egg whites and sugar, beat them until stiff, then gradually incorporate butter.  The butter must  be the proper consistency here.  If it's to soft the icing will be to soupy, but hard butter won't incorporate well.  You should be able to pick pieces up with your fingers and  should be tacky on the outside but still firm inside.  If, after beating 15-20 minutes total beating , the icing doesn't stiffen, don't panic.  Chill it for 20 minutes or so, then resume beating.  It'll go from flat to fluffy quickly-it's really amazing.

ORANGE SYRUP

1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
3 Tbsp. Triple Sec or fresh orange juice

Simmer sugar and water in small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves.  Off heat, add liqueur, set aside until ready to assemble cake.

MOCHA BUTTERCREAM ICING:

4 egg whited
1 cup sugar
pinch of salt
3 sticks unsalted butter, slightly softened, cut into 15 pieces
2 Tbsp. instant coffee granules dissolved in 2 Tbsp. hot water
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled

Warm egg whites, sugar and salt in a glass bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, whisking often, (do not let the bottom of the bowl touch the water).  Stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture is hot to the touch, 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat, transfer to a clean bowl and beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until whites are stiff and glossy, tripled in volume and have cooled to room temperature.

Add butter one piece at a time, beating until Incorporated before the next addition.  As butter is added, mixture will become loose, but will stiffen during beating.

Whisk coffee mixture into melted chocolate, gradually blend chocolate into the buttercream.

ASSEMBLING THE CAKE:

Carefully unroll the cooled cake, leaving it on parchment paper.  Don't worry about cracks-the buttercream will cover them.  Brush syrup on cake, then spread with 2 cups icing, leaving 1" margins around the edges.

Begin rolling the cake like before but this time don't roll the parchment inside.  Again don't get hung up over small cracks or a little sticking-everything will be covered with icing.  Use your hands to roll the cake tightly and evenly.

For "Knots" slice off each end of the log on a bias using a sharp knife (not serrated); set aside.  Carefully transfer the log to a serving platter, then tuck wide strips of wax or parchment paper under it ( to help keep the platter clean during frosting).

Use a little buttercream to "glue" the knots to the log, cut side facing out, placing 1 knot on the side of the log and the other one on top.  For stability, it's a good idea to anchor the top knot to the log with few toothpicks.

Spread remaining icing over the entire cake, ( it'll be a thin layer).  To simulate tree bark, gently pull a fork through the buttercream in a wavy pattern.  Carefully remove the paper, Then decorate with sugar rosemary & cranberries and meringue mushrooms.  Dust with powdered sugar and cocoa.

SUGARED ROSEMARY & CRANBERRIES:

Blend an egg white with a Tbsp. water in a small dish using a folk.  Brush the mixture on rosemary sprigs and cranberries with a small paint brush.

Lightly sprinkle granulated sugar on the needles and berries, gently shaking off any excess.  Air-dry the springs and cranberries on a parchment-lined plate before using.

MERINGUE MUSHROOMS  For buche de Noel:

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in glass bowl using a hand mixer on medium speed.  When soft peaks have formed, increase the speed to high and gradually begin adding sugar 2 Tbsp. at a time.  Beat until whites are stiff and glossy and sugar has dissolved.  Use immediately.

Preheat the oven to 200*F. line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Put meringue in a piping bag with a 1/2" plain tip.  to make mushroom caps, hold the tip perpendicular to the baking sheet and pipe into rounds about 1" wide and 1" high.  to release quickly pull the tip away from the meringues.  Pipe 18-20 caps, then smooth with a finger dipped in water.

For the stems, hold bag as before and as you pipe pull the bag up to make a tall tapered cone about 1-1/2" high.  Make more stems than caps to allow for breakage.  Bake meringue for 1 hour, rotating the pan after 30 minutes.  Turn oven off,crack the door ajar and let cool before assembling.

TO ASSEMBLE:

Carefully "drill" a small hole in the bottom of a cap with tip of a paring knife.  Use a skewer to dab melted chocolate in the holes of each cap.  Insert the end of a stem into the hole and let dry.

Place mushrooms on the log and around it and place the rosemary and cranberries around the log.