Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Grease and line a 33cm x 23cm
(13in x 9in) Swiss roll tin with greaseproof paper. Sift together the flour and baking powder with ¼tsp salt.
Step 2
Use an electric hand whisk to beat the eggs, caster sugar and vanilla in a bowl for
5-10min until pale and fluffy. The mixture's ready if it leaves a ribbon-like trail when you lift the beaters.
Step 3
Using a large metal spoon, carefully fold in the ground almonds and the flour mixture, taking care not to beat too much of the air out of the mixture.
Step 4
Pour into the prepared tin and spread the mixture in a thin layer right to the edges. Bake for 12-15min until the edges begin to pull away from the sides of the tin and the cake springs back when you press it gently with a finger. Leave to cool.
Step 5
Lightly whip the cream and the icing sugar in a bowl until the mixure forms soft peaks. Cut out a rectangle of greaseproof paper larger than the cake and dust heavily with icing sugar. Flip cake on to the paper. Remove the tin and carefully peel away the attached greaseproof paper.
Step 6
Spread the cream over the cake and sprinkle with the flaked almonds. With the help of the paper, roll up the cake lengthways. Don't worry if cracks appear - they'll add to the log effect.
Step 7
Carefully transfer to a serving plate. Dust with icing sugar and serve in thick slices.
Step 8
Decorate the yule log: Melt 50g (2oz) dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn't touch the water. Wash four holly leaves and dry, then paint chocolate thickly on to the shiny side of the leaves. Put on a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper and chill until the chocolate has set. For the white holly leaves, repeat the process with 25g (1oz) good-quality white chocolate. Fill a disposable piping bag with the remaining dark chocolate and cut off the tip. Write ‘Noel' on a piece of greaseproof, then chill to set. Carefully peel away the holly leaves from the chocolate and greaseproof paper from the word ‘Noel' and lay on top of the log.
Get Ahead
Make recipe to the end of step six. Put the log on a freezeable serving dish and wrap in clingfilm. Freeze for up to one month. To serve, thaw overnight in the fridge and complete the recipe.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
