Chocolate Cake Roll
A refined dessert of cocoa-flavored sponge cake rolled around tangy-sweet apricot jam, elegantly decorated with whipped cream, meringue mushrooms, and chocolate leaves.
Ingredients
egg yolks
4
egg whites
2
granulated sugar (for cake batter)
80g
salt
a pinch
cake flour
10g
cocoa powder
2 tsp (about 12g)
cornstarch
10g
butter (for cake batter, melt in a double boiler and keep at 40–50°C)
35g
water (for syrup)
90 ml
granulated sugar (for syrup)
30g
liqueur (for syrup, to taste)
1/2 tbsp
apricot jam (for filling, strained through a sieve)
140g
liqueur (for filling, to taste)
1 tbsp
heavy cream (for whipped cream)
150 ml
granulated sugar (for whipped cream)
10g
orange liqueur
1 tsp
butter (for baking pan)
to taste
powdered sugar (for decoration)
to taste
cocoa powder (for decoration)
to taste
meringue mushrooms (see p.112)
to taste
chocolate leaves (see p.112)
to taste
Instructions
1
Preparation
Make the syrup: combine the water and granulated sugar in a small saucepan, heat over medium heat until dissolved, let cool, then stir in the liqueur. Bring the egg yolks and the pan butter to room temperature. Sift the cake flour, cocoa powder, and cornstarch together and set aside. Place the batter butter in a stainless steel bowl and melt completely over a double boiler; leave the bowl in the hot water to keep the butter at 40–50°C. Make the filling: strain the apricot jam through a sieve into a small saucepan, add the liqueur, heat over medium heat while stirring with a wooden spoon, simmer for 3–4 minutes, then let cool. Butter the baking pan and line it with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2
Making the sponge cake batter (1)
Place the egg yolks in a stainless steel bowl and whisk quickly. Add 30g of the granulated sugar and beat until pale and fluffy.
3
Making the sponge cake batter (2)
In another stainless steel bowl, combine the egg whites and salt. Add 1 tbsp of the remaining granulated sugar and start whipping, then add the rest of the sugar midway through and continue beating until you have a stiff meringue.
4
Combining the batter
Fold one-third of the meringue into the egg yolk mixture with a rubber spatula, lifting from the bottom in large cutting motions. Add the remaining meringue and fold in quickly until just combined.
5
Adding the dry ingredients
Sift the dry ingredients over the bowl and fold in with the rubber spatula using cutting motions until no flour is visible.
6
Adding the butter
Drizzle the warm melted butter evenly over the surface of the batter along the rubber spatula, then fold in large sweeping motions from the bottom up until the butter is fully incorporated.
7
Baking
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a bench scraper or rubber spatula so the thickness is even. Lift the pan and tap it on the work surface 2–3 times, then tap the bottom of the pan 4–5 times to release any air bubbles. Bake in the preheated 180°C oven for 11–13 minutes. Before removing, insert a skewer into the center of the cake; if no batter sticks to it, the cake is done. Immediately unmold, peel off the parchment paper, and place on a cooling rack to cool.
8
Preparing the cake roll
Lay a 40 cm square of parchment paper on the work surface and place the sponge cake on top with the peeled side facing down. Trim the left and right edges straight. Cut a diagonal piece off one short side of the cake, then make shallow cuts every 2 cm parallel to the diagonal edge to help with rolling.
9
Brushing with syrup and filling
Brush two-thirds of the syrup over the surface of the cake, then spread on the filling (jam).
10
Initial roll
With the uncut edge closest to you, lift the parchment paper and begin rolling, keeping the roll tight with no gaps between the layers.
11
Finishing the roll
Brush the outward-facing side with the remaining syrup as you continue rolling. Finish with the diagonal cut edge underneath, then press and adjust the shape.
12
Whipping the cream
Place the whipped cream ingredients in a bowl set over ice water and whip, chilling as you go, to about 70% whipped (soft-to-medium peaks).
13
Frosting the roll
Spread the whipped cream all over the sponge roll and use an offset spatula to create a bark-like texture on the surface. Slide a spatula or knife under the cake, transfer it to a serving plate, and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
14
Final decoration
Finish by decorating with the meringue mushrooms and chocolate leaves, then dust with powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
