The greatest pastry chefs have worked hard for weeks to come up with little Christmas masterpieces. Here are their creations which are as beautiful to contemplate as to taste.
Pierre Hermé
Pierre Hermé escapes into an imaginary garden with his Infiniment Praliné Pistache d’Iran log. An explosion of flavors in a play of textures: soft, crunchy and crunchy.
Signature log, Pierre Hermé 120 € (10/12 people)
Sebastien gaudard
© colombe_clier
And why not make your own log? This is what the pastry chef Sébastien Gaudard offers with this fun kit “My Black Forest Log”. You will find all the necessary ingredients (except eggs and milk) to shine in the kitchen.
My Black Forest, Sébastien Gaudard, € 27
The Lutetia
Pastry chef Nicolas Guercio drew on his childhood memories to create his 2021 log. First, there is the mandarin that he found in his slipper on New Year’s Eve. She comes in a pretty shoe that pays homage to Tino Rossi’s “Little Papa Noël”. Everything is eaten.
“Don’t forget my little shoe” log, by Nicolas Guercio, Lutetia, € 95 (for 6 people – by reservation 01 49 54 46 00)
The Mandarin Oriental
Adrien Bozzolo, pastry chef at Mandarin Oriental, is inspired by the Christmas ball for his new log. Adorned with elegant patterns in red and white cables, “drop of water” could hang on a tree. We prefer to devour it: hazelnut biscuit, Williams pear compote and yuzu confit.
Buche gout d’eau, Adrien Bozzolo, Mandarin Oriental, € 98 (6 people – by reservation 01 70 98 74 00)
Stephanie Le Quellec
© la_scene_benoit_linero
Stéphanie Le Quellec and her pastry chef Pierre Chirac put bread in the spotlight with the “Winter Epi” log made with Khorasan wheat: crunchy caramelized crumble dough, soft bread biscuit, creamy with natural rye leaven and toasted bread mousse.
Epi d’hiver, Pierre Chirac, La Scène, € 95 (6 people)
Nina Métayer
For her part, Nina Métayer sends a letter to Santa Claus with this gourmet creation. Light mousse infused with French fir buds, pear confit, fir pepper and fir syrup, shortbread with Christmas spices… From today’s great pastry.
Letter to Father Christmas, Nina Métayer, Printemps du Goût, 89 € (6 people – limited to 100 copies)
The Ice Cream Shop
© Thierry Malty
David Wesmaël, one of the essential references of ice cream in Paris, designed a moon-shaped log for Christmas. It consists of a sesame nougatine, an iced nougat with dried fruits, all coated with a Gianduja ice cream. In the heart of the moon, we will discover a clementine, mango and orange sorbet and a compote of three red fruits.
Clair de Lune, David Wesmaël, La Glacerie Paris, € 68 (for 6 to 8 people)
Picard – Juan Arbelaez
The friendly Colombian-born chef Juan Arbelaez was asked by Picard to create a frozen log. It takes the shape of a pod, the fruit that contains the cocoa bean. It is a milk chocolate ice cream with gianduja hazelnuts, a coffee ice cream from Colombia, a vanilla ice cream from Madagascar, and a crunchy nut, hazelnut and pecan.
Gianduja ice cream log by Juan Arbelaez, Picard, € 26.5 (for 8 people)