Bakery Swiss Roll Cake Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why is my Swiss roll not fluffy? ›

Adding too much flour is the most common mistake for roll cakes and leads to tough and dry cake. The most accurate way to measure flour is using a scale. If you don't have one then fluff your flour with a spoon, spoon it into your measuring cup and use a knife to level it off.

Add a little bit more cream on the short edge that is to be rolled first. This will give the log more cushion in the center so it won't crack due to large gaps. Use gentle pressure and don't worry about rolling the cake too tight, you can shape the log into a round log later with the tip in the section above.

Starting at the shorter edge of the cake, roll the cake and greaseproof paper up together, making sure that it is especially tight at the beginning. It's important that the cake is warm so it can set in the right shape. If it's too cold, it won't roll properly. Once rolled, leave it to cool completely.

This happens when you are not gentle enough when folding the dry ingredients into the wet. A genoise sponge requires very gentle and slow folding. You need to preserve as much air in the batter as possible, otherwise it can become rubbery.

ROLLING A SWISS ROLL

Always roll it up straight from the oven while it's still pliable.

Sticky cake and cupcake tops are from a reaction with sugar and water. Sugars are hygroscopic, meaning they attract water. Within baked goods, sugars help maintain a moist and tender crumb. Sugar on the exposed tops, however, will grab water from humid air, creating a wet or sticky top.

Jam swiss rolls are typically a soft vanilla sponge perfectly complimented by smooth vanilla buttercream and raspberry jam. Whereas, Jam roly poly is traditionally made as a suet pudding wrapped in muslin or foil and steamed, then filled with jam and served with hot custard.

It's very important to roll the cake right when it's hot out of the oven. This will lock in the moisture and keep the cake moist and flexible. You can roll the cake with a damp rag or parchment paper. Whichever method you go with, you can also sprinkle on some granulated sugar to help prevent the cake from sticking.

The chocolate sponge is baked in a Swiss roll tin and these usually have dimensions of approximately 33 x 24cm (9 x 13 inches). The tins have shallow sides, around 1-2cm (1/2 - 3/4 inch) deep. American jelly roll pans have very similar dimensions or you can use a 9 x 13-inch quarter sheet pan.

Can you use a baking sheet for Swiss roll? ›

In the US if you can't find a jelly roll pan then a 9 x13 inch quarter sheet pan makes a good alternative.

Of course, it's necessary for its namesake, the jelly roll or Swiss roll. Those rolled cake recipes, as well as ones for Bûche de Noël (yule log) and pumpkin rolls, are formatted specifically to fill a standard-sized, 15 x 10-inch jelly roll pan.

While both desserts feature a thin layer of cake and fluffy filling rolled into a log, the difference between a yule log and a Swiss roll is how the two are decorated. Swiss rolls are typically kept plain while yule logs are cut, frosted, and adorned to look like, well, logs!

The cake is rolled along with the paper, which stops the cake from sticking to itself. The sugar is supposed to stop the crust from sticking to the paper, in theory. In practice, however, it doesn't because moisture released by the cake is trapped by the paper. H₂O makes the crust wet and hence, sticky.

After baking and letting it cool for a few minutes, I tip the tray out onto a fresh parchment sheet and discard the sheet previously used during baking. After that, I frost and roll the cake using the parchment paper. That same sheet is also used to help keep the roll shape in place in the fridge.

ROLLING A SWISS ROLL

Always roll it up straight from the oven while it's still pliable.