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How to Make A Buche de Noel
A French Christmas Yule Log
Of all the culinary treats that grace the French Christmas table, nothing inspires more child-like joy than a rich, chocolate Bûche de Noël. Real yule logs, the kind from living trees, have had symbolic significance to the French for centuries.
Until the late 1800s, it was a widespread custom for extended families to gather under one roof and burn a sacramental log. In the soft glow of the embers, the family would drink vin cuit (cooked wine) and sing Christmas carols before attending midnight mass.
My family has been giving homemade Bûche de Noel’s to friends, families, and our local community since I was a small child. This holiday season, I am sharing my favorite recipe so that you may start your own tradition.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, Francois
It is a most important matter,” he said, “this bringing home of the cacho-fio. The whole family must take part in it. The head of the family–the grandfather, the father, or the eldest son–must cut the tree; all the others must share in carrying home the log that is to make the Christmas fire. And the tree must be a fruit-bearing tree. With us, it usually is an almond or an olive. The olive especially is sacred. Our people, getting their faith from their Greek ancestors, believe that lightning…
