Pascal Larcher started his French bakery, Velouté, alongside his wife, Brianna, as a way to bring the flavors of his hometown, Toulon—a small town in Provence, France—to Kansas City. Located in a booth at the Overland Park Farmers market, where Larcher has been a vendor for the past six years, Velouté is known for its croque monsieurs, pain au chocolat and canneles. But as the holiday season approaches, Pascal turns his attention to the bûche de Noël, the elaborate and painstakingly detailed French Christmas cake.
A bûche de noël consists of vanilla sponge cake rolled in chocolate mousse and covered with a dark chocolate ganache made with the very high-quality brand Callebaut. Rolled up, the cake looks like a swiss roll, and its cylindrical shape is decorated to evoke a yule log (which is another name for it). Pascal adds his own touch with some mushrooms, made out of meringue. All the decor is edible except for the fresh holly twigs.
If you’re looking to place an order for one—and you should—Pascal and Brianna usually close their online ordering mid-December (veloutekc.com). You’ll pick it up at the Matt Ross Community Center in Overland Park (they’ll offer more details when you order).
According to tradition, burning an actual yule log is thought to bring luck and prosperity going into the coming year. But if you can’t find a yule log to burn, eating one from Velouté should suffice. Maybe make sure to eat it in its entirety, for safe measure.
