Cherry-and-Chocolate Bûche de Noël

I agree with other reviewers the number of 5 star reviews seems improbable. This said, my nephew and I made this at Christmas and it was excellent. A little involved and we seemed to dirty every bowl in the kitchen but it came out beautifully and the rolling of the cake, which worried me, was pretty straightforward. We substituted amaretto for the kirsch which was great. Also, I didn’t have vanilla bean so we just added vanilla extract at that step. Otherwise followed the recipe. Wish I could post a photo it was quite pretty decorated with cocoa powder, sugared cranberries and greenery.

The endless five stars, all with the same date, seems very doubtful. But the recipe is excellent. I made it today for the second time. The cake isn't difficult to make and works perfectly. No brandy on hand so used rum. Beautiful and delicious, and not overly sweet or rich, which is what my family likes.

Im literally so mad right now.

All these 5 stars are fake

Food & Wine Member: Why would you rate the recipe so poorly if you have not tried making it? As a pastry chef and avid home baker, I can tell you that YES, you can make a rolled cake of just eggs, sugar and cocoa. (Actually, I'd add a pinch of salt, too.) It is called a souffle roll and is included in many desserts in the baking repertoire. I agree with other comments that the instructions could be more detailed for less experienced bakers, but this is a fine recipe that works well overall.

Is it really possible to make a sponge cake without any flour? Just eggs, sugar, and cocoa? I can’t believe this has over 1,000 5-star ratings of countless people who managed to bake, let alone roll, a cake of only eggs, sugar and cocoa.

The flavors were lovely, but the directions need to be rewritten. For a holiday dessert made one a year or less, steps need to be clearly delineated for those who do not make multistep cakes regularly. The "cake", the "kirsh syrup", the "filling", and the "frosting" should be listed rather than Steps 1 through 10. A video would be helpful since this recipe differs from those rolled out on dish towels while warm.

This cake was absolutely delicious but definitely fussy—the kirsch simple syrup and cherries in middle made is special. I agree with comments below that the recipe should be edited so all steps do not say “make the topping”. I printed the recipe and crossed out those titles. Two changes I made - I added whipped cream to the filling to lighten it up(about 1/2 cup). I also made a ganache frosting. Many components of this cake (simple syrup, custard) could be made in advance. I don’t know know how the assembled cake would taste after freezing.

I'm unsure about whether to try this recipe or not. Pictures that don't match are always a red flag. And the steps all being labeled "make the topping" show a lack of care.

Can we make ahead and freeze the whole thing?

I love that every step in this recipe is "make the topping." We all know you just gonna eat it out of the bowl with a spoon.