This Post is Sponsored by Doves Farm Organic Flour

I can’t quite believe that 2019 and another decade is about to end. It has been a massively busy year and I have been working on a few exciting projects that I cannot wait to share with you in the new year. Can you also believe that next year marks 10 years since I first stepped foot in the Bake Off tent? Feels like it just happened. Feeling all the feels about that anniversary! But before I get stuck down memory lane I think we need one last recipe for the year, something very special for Christmas. 

For the final recipe in my Christmas baking series with Doves Farm Organic Flour I have created something very, very special. It uses one of the ingredients that was incredibly popular this year, something that I became a little bit of obsessed with, tahini. I have paired the sesame paste with chocolate to make a twist on a classic Christmas recipe, the Buche de Noel. The cake is a chocolate sponge using Doves Farm Organic Plain Flour and the filling is a milk chocolate and tahini whipped cream. To decorate, the cake is coated in a thin layer of milk chocolate ganache (which is there as an edible glue) and it is finally coated in little shards of sesame caramel, a great textural addition to a cake that is normally on the softer side. 

If you fancy something a little different for Christmas and you want to make this, I would suggest making the cream the day before and baking the cake and assembling on the day you want to serve. The cake needs to be rolled relatively soon after baking and once the cake is decorated the caramel will start pulling moisture out of the ganache and will eventually become sticky and weep.

Doves Farm Organic Plain White Flour is available at Ocado, Sainsburys, Tesco

Milk Chocolate Tahini Buche de Noel
Serves 8

Chocolate Sponge Cake
3 large eggs, separated
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
80g caster sugar, divided
50ml vegetable oil
50ml whole milk
30g Doves Farm Organic Plain White Flour
30g cocoa powder

Tahini Milk Chocolate Whipped Cream
300ml double cream
75g tahini
75g milk chocolate
Pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Milk Chocolate Ganache
75g milk chocolate, finely chopped
60ml double cream

Sesame Caramel Shards
150g caster sugar
1 tbsp sesame seeds (I use a mix of black and white)

Preheat the oven to 180ºC (160ºC Fan) and line the base a 9x13 baking tin with parchment paper. You can lightly grease the base of the pan to help the parchment stick but make sure the sides remain clean, we want the cake to cling to the sides of the tin as it bakes. 

Make the filling in advance as it needs at least 4 hours to chill before whipping. Place the cream, tahini, chocolate, salt and vanilla into a small saucepan and heat over low heat, stirring regularly, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Pour the cream into a small bowl, cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for at least four hours until cold. I generally make this day before I want to serve the cake, so there is less work on the day.

To make the cake place the egg yolks into one bowl and the egg whites and cream of tartar into another. Add half of the sugar to the yolks and using an electric mixer whisk for 3-4 minutes or until pale and creamy. Add in the oil and the milk and whisk briefly to combine. Add the flour and cocoa powder and mix to form a smooth batter. Set this bowl aside for the moment. Using an electric mixer (cleaned after making the cocoa batter) whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar on medium speed until foamy then slowly sprinkle in the sugar, a tablespoon at a time whisking until the whites hold medium peaks. The final meringue wants to be stiff but still flexible, if the mixture becomes over whisked and dry it will be hard to fold into the cocoa mixture without losing volume.  

Add the meringue to the cocoa batter in three additions, gently folding until streak free. Once fully combined pour into the prepared tin, gently levelling out. Bake in the preheated oven for 12-14 minutes or until the cake springs back to a light touch. Use a rounded blade knife to cut the cake away from the sides of the tin then immediately invert the cake onto a sheet of parchment. Whilst the cake is still warm gently peel the parchment from what is now the top of the cake.

For the filling remove the cream mixture from the fridge and in a large bowl whisk briefly until holding soft peaks. Spread the filling over the cake leaving the short edge near you clean. Carefully roll up the cake and then refrigerate for a couple hours before serving.

For the ganache filling place the cream and chocolate into a small saucepan and place over low heat and stir constantly until melted and smooth. Pour into a small bowl and set in the fridge aside until thickened but still spreadable. Spread the ganache over the outside of the cake, leaving the exposed ends clean, setting aside for the moment. 

To make the caramel shards place the sugar into a medium sized saucepan and cook over medium heat until the sugar has melted and caramelised turning the colour of an old rusty penny. Immediately pour the sugar onto a parchment lined baking tray and tilt the tray to spread into a thin layer. Before the sugar sets sprinkle over the sesame seeds. Set aside for 30 minutes before breaking up into small pieces and sticking to the cake. 

The cake is best served on the day it is made.