Pastry chefs Maxime Frédéric and Sacha Vadier create a two-part Christmas log, in which a caramel-lacquered drum conceals a clementine-spice entremets before giving way to a chocolate Nutcracker.
A Christmas log is rarely limited to a single idea; the one from Cheval Blanc Paris openly embraces two, staged like the movements of a single parade. Named Le Casse-Noisette, this creation by pastry chefs Maxime Frédéric and Sacha Vadier, together with their artisans, is made up of several elements designed to tell, pastry after pastry, the fairytale world of childhood stories.
At its feet, delicately raised, a caramel-lacquered drum takes up the Art Deco motif of the Cheval Blanc Paris façade — an architectural nod that anchors the piece in the identity of the Maison rather than in generic festive imagery. This drum conceals an entremets in which caramel and clementine answer one another, lifted by Christmas spices and vanilla, a pairing that balances the richness of the caramel with the acidity of the citrus.
Behind the instrument, the 75% chocolate Nutcracker keeps time with its own parade. Like a toy of yesteryear, its chocolate head and bust enclose a crunchy hazelnut praline heart, while the lower part of its silhouette hides a shortbread hazelnut gianduja — a layered construction that multiplies textures, from the crunch of the praline to the melt of the gianduja.
This play of double readings — the drum that hides an entremets, the character that hides a praline — places Le Casse-Noisette in the tradition of surprise logs, where the discovery of taste answers the discovery of sight. The avowed reference to Tchaikovsky’s ballet also gives the piece a clear narrative thread, closer to a tale than to a mere exercise in pastry style.
The entremets, designed for 8 people, is offered in limited quantities at 190 euros, for pre-order on the website of L’Atelier des Créations de Cheval Blanc Paris. Collection will take place from Friday 18 to Saturday 26 December 2026, at the establishment on the Quai du Louvre itself — a narrow window that confirms the status of collector’s piece, rather than mere seasonal dessert, that the Maison intends to give this log.
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