“I made my first Yule Log as a culinary student in Paris, complete with...” — Claire Saffitz Quote

“I made my first Yule Log as a culinary student in Paris, complete with the traditional chestnut filling, silky chocolate buttercream, and almost-too-adorable mushrooms. Since then, I've tweaked and updated both the recipe and the process - and I've definitely learned tips and tricks to make it easier.”

“Poached quince are so tender, aromatic, and rosy that you'd hardly believe the raw fruit is white, fibrous, and hard as a rock.”

“Lame blades can dull relatively quickly, so after slashing several loaves the blade won't slice through the dough with tremendous ease. (When this happens, don't throw it away - it's still sharp enough to score duck or pork skin, or shave paper-thin slices of garlic and chives, like a hot knife through butter).”

“I'll say it's not easy to keep yourself between 100 and 112 pounds every day of every month of the year. Especially for women. I'm a woman; once a month I retain water and I crave chocolate and sugar. Those are the toughest days.”

“I do miss the Chocolate City of my youth.”

“I love dark chocolate, 70 percent and up.”