Mary Berry's Bûche de Noël

For the sponge

• 4 large eggs
• 100g caster sugar
• 65g self-raising flour
• 40g cocoa powder

For the filling

• 1 tbsp coffee essence
• 4 tbsp hot milk
• 225g unsweetened chestnut purée
• 50g caster sugar
• 150g double cream
• 2 tbsp brandy

For the topping

• 300g double cream
• 0 cocoa powder
• 0 holly leaves

Step 1
First make the sponge.

Step 2
Preheat the oven to 220C/gas mark 7.

Step 3
Grease a 33cm x 23cm Swiss roll tin and line with baking parchment.

Step 4
Whisk the eggs and sugar in a large bowl until the mixture is light and frothy and the whisk leaves a trail when lifted out.

Step 5
Sift the flour and cocoa into the mixture, carefully folding them in at the same time.

Step 6
Turn the mixture into the prepared tin and give it a gentle shake so that the mixture finds its own level, making sure that it spreads evenly into the corners.

Step 7
Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes or until the sponge begins to shrink from the edges of the tin.

Step 8
While the cake is cooking, place a piece of baking parchment a little bigger than the size of the tin on to a work surface and sprinkle it with caster sugar.

Step 9
Invert the cake on to the sugared parchment.

Step 10
Quickly loosen the parchment on the bottom of the cake and peel off.

Step 11
Trim the edges with a sharp knife and make a score mark 2.5cm in from one shorter edge, being careful not to cut right through.

Step 12
Roll up the cake firmly from the cut end, with the parchment inside, and leave to cool.

Step 13
While it is cooling, make the filling.

Step 14
Mix the coffee essence with the milk.

Step 15
Sieve the chestnut purée into a bowl and beat in the coffee mixture and the sugar until the mixture is smooth.

Step 16
Fold the whipped cream into the chestnut purée along with the brandy.

Step 17
Carefully unroll the Swiss roll, remove the parchment and spread the chestnut filling all over the cake, then re-roll.

Step 18
Cut a small slice off at an angle from one of the ends of the Swiss roll, place the Swiss roll on to a serving plate or board, and attach the slice to look like a branch.

Step 19
Spread the whipped cream over the cake to cover completely, using a small palette knife in long strokes to give the bark effect.

Step 20
Dust lightly with cocoa and decorate with holly leaves.