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Soft Vanilla Swiss Roll Cake with Cream Filling
The softest tender vanilla sponge cake with a vanilla cream filling and chocolate fudge or berry jam swirl! It's easy to make and without the fuss of separating eggs!
Ingredients
Sponge Cake:
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- ⅔ cup (135g) granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (142g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoon (30ml) milk
- 3 tablespoon (45ml) sunflower oil (or olive oil or canola oil)
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) apple cider or white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
Cream Filling:
- 1 ¼ cups (300ml) 35% heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoon (12g) skim milk powder
- 1 tablespoon (12g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
Fudge Swirl:
- 1 recipe Easy One Pot Dark Chocolate Hot Fudge Sauce prepared and completely chilled
- or ¾ cup jam (I used Morello cherry preserves)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 15x10-inch jelly roll pan and line it with parchment paper. You can also use a 17x11-inch baking sheet and the cake will be slightly thinner and bake faster.
- Make the sponge batter. Place eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or in a large bowl if using an electric hand mixer) and beat on high speed for 3 minutes until very frothy and doubled in volume. Add sugar one tablespoon at a time and beat for 5-8 minutes until pale, thick and tripled in volume. If you're using a hand mixer, it will certainly take 8 minutes on high speed, so don't under-whip it. The eggs should reach the “ribbon stage” where it can hold a figure “8” as it falls back onto itself when lifted with the beaters. Mix in salt.
- Whisk together milk, oil, vinegar and vanilla in a small bowl and gradually pour it into the egg mixture while mixing gently on low speed.
- Sift flour and baking powder into a medium bowl and whisk to blend evenly. Then, sift it again over the mixer bowl with the beaten eggs in two parts and mix it in gently on low speed until just incorporated, then finish mixing it in by hand using a large balloon whisk or wide spatula until evenly combined, scraping along the bottom of the bowl to evenly incorporate the ingredients.
- Spread the batter evenly into prepared pan using a large offset spatula. Bake for 12-15 minutes if using a 10x15-inch jelly roll pan or 10-12 minutes if using a 11x17-inch sheet pan. Bake until lightly golden and it springs back when pressed gently. Do not over-bake or it will tend to crack since the surface will be dried out. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool for a minute so it is easier to handle.
- Meanwhile, lay a tea towel onto a work surface. Sift icing sugar generously over the warm cake to cover the surface. Run a knife along the edges of the pan to release the cake, then carefully but swiftly invert it onto a clean kitchen towel or another large piece of parchment paper. I find you'll have less chance of cracking if you use a kitchen towel. Gently peel off the top layer of parchment that the cake was baked in. Then, while the cake is still warm, gently roll it into a reasonably tight log starting from the short side and incorporating the kitchen towel or parchment as you are rolling. Let the cake cool completely in this rolled shape with the seam side facing down.
- Make the filling. Combine cream, skim milk powder and sugar in a medium bowl and beat with an electric hand mixer until it forms firm peaks. I find it's better to have firm peaks instead of soft peaks for roll cakes as it will hold in place better. Mix in vanilla.
- Assemble the cake. Unroll the cooled cake and and first spread the jam or hot fudge sauce in a thin layer over the cake. Then, spread the cream filling over the surface leaving about ½-inch border. Gently but fairly tightly roll up the cake with the filling. Transfer it to a serving plate or a another lined baking tray, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. Dust with icing sugar before slicing.
