What is the story behind la bucbhe de noel?

Answer 1

"Buche de Noel also known as Yule Log, a cake, is one of the best served traditional French desserts.

History:

One of the famous stories behind this French dessert is that the great Napoleon Bonaparte of France issued a proclamation stating houses in Paris to keep their chimneys closed during the winter because of the cool air that caused medical problems. This prohibited Parisians to use their fireplaces. But ingenious French bakers then invented this dessert as a symbolic substitution around which the family could gather for story-telling and other holiday happiness.

The origins of this most well-known French pastry can be found in the ancient Celtic tradition of celebrating the winter solstice. On this shortest day of the year, the Celts would search for a large trunk of either oak, beech, elm or cherry and burn it as a symbol of the rebirth of the sun, they also offered their thanks to the sun for recurring to the earth.

During the middle Ages the logs and the ceremony of the burning log became more detailed. The logs themselves would be decorated with ribbons and greenery. Then the youngest and the oldest member of each family would carry the log to the hearth and set it in flames for the whole night. The vestiges would be collected the next day to be used for the whole year. They were thought to help cure various sicknesses and protect the house from the wickedness of the evil spirit. As days past it changed to small logs and then served as a dessert to the guest."

Source: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/buche-de-noel.html