Chocolate yule log with Italian meringue buttercream, meringue mushrooms and spun sugar

Melt the chocolate with the instant coffee and boiling water; do not let it seize. Set aside to cool until tepid.

Heat the oven to 350F.

Beat the egg yolks, adding the sugar gradually, a couple of minutes until thickened and lemon coloured.

Beat in the tepid melted chocolate a little at a time, then the softened butter.

Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt on medium; add the tablespoon of sugar and the cream of tartar, raise to high and beat to stiff peaks.

Stir a little of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture, then fold in the remaining whites and the sifted cake flour in alternating quarters until incorporated.

Spread in the lined pan and bake on the middle rack at 350F; the book says half an hour.

Sprinkle icing sugar over a kitchen towel, turn the cake out onto it, sprinkle more icing sugar on top and roll it up from the long end.

Leave the rolled cake to cool, then refrigerate until completely cold.

For the Italian meringue, put the water and sugar in a small saucepan.

Whip the egg whites until they begin to foam, then turn the syrup on to high heat.

Add the cream of tartar and a pinch of salt to the whites and beat to stiff peaks.

Once the sugar has dissolved, boil the syrup rapidly to 238F.

Beating the whites at a moderately slow speed, pour in the hot syrup in a thin stream, then beat on high five minutes until cooled, heavy, satin smooth and at stiff peaks.

Portion out some meringue and pipe mushroom caps and stems of assorted sizes onto a lined baking mat.

Bake the meringue mushrooms at 200F for 40 to 60 minutes.

Melt the semi-sweet chocolate with the strong coffee in a double boiler.

Beat the vanilla extract and the melted chocolate into the cooled meringue, then beat in the butter gradually.

Chill the frosting until it is of easy spreading consistency.

Unroll the cake, spread about half the filling over it and roll it back up.

Cut both ends off on the bias to give the appearance of a sawed log.

Apply a thin crumb coat of frosting and chill so it firms up, then frost the top and sides, leaving the two ends unfrosted.

Drag a fork along the frosting to make a bark pattern.

Peel the meringue mushroom caps and stems off the mat, pierce a hole in the underside of each cap, fill with frosting and insert a stem.

Boil the sugar and water for the spun sugar.

Once the sugar has dissolved, dip the rosemary and the cranberries in the syrup and roll them in sugar.

Cook the remaining syrup to caramel brown, let it thicken a few seconds, then dip a fork in and wave it over a suspended wooden spoon to spin the sugar moss.

Cluster the mushrooms on the log, dust with icing sugar, dust the mushrooms with cocoa powder, add the rosemary and sugared cranberries and drape the spun sugar moss over it.