When I begin a new post, I always check for interest in the topic. Imagine my surprise to see so much activity when I searched "jelly roll." Then I realized all the fuss was about the music artist; this isn't, and you can scroll by if this isn't for you, it's ok.
I started baking when I was a little kid. My dad loved a good jelly roll, and my mom was always a really good sport about letting me in the kitchen—God bless her! Once in a while, we’d bake a jelly roll for Dad, and I was so proud when he bragged about how wonderful it tasted.
A jelly roll begins with a tender, airy sponge cake. This dessert is pretty light compared to many, but it is just delightful! In this recipe, the sponge cake has no added butter or oil, and it only contains a small amount of sugar.
I hadn't made one for Papa in years. I made two batches of strawberry-rhubarb jam one Saturday morning. Our college-age granddaughter was hungry for jam, so, of course, I had hustled up to make some for her! I thought it was a perfect time to make a jelly roll.
Jam made me think of my mom (she taught me how to make it,) which made me think of my dad and how we’d put the jam inside the jelly roll we made for him!
Jam is so much better inside a “jelly roll” than jelly because of the yummy bits of fruit in it. Jelly can almost disappear into the cake, while jam does not!
Let me begin by saying this is a "special occasion dessert," and while it's more "fiddly" than most of my dessert recipes, a wave of nostalgia overtook me, and making it was pure joy. It's not all that hard, either.
I found a recipe very similar to what I remembered Mom would make. I began going through each step just the way she taught me—the recipe started by separating the eggs and whipping the whites until they formed stiff peaks.
Helpful tip: eggs separate more easily when cold, but if you let the whites come to room temperature, they'll whip much higher.
I beat the egg yolks in a separate bowl until they were thick and lemon-colored, gradually adding the sugar and vanilla. Then, I carefully folded the egg yolk and sugar mixture into the egg whites.
Next, I sifted together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
I sifted the flour mixture onto the egg mixture and gently folded it in.
Finally, I poured the batter into a jelly roll pan I had sprayed and lined with wax paper, just as Mom taught me. (You can certainly use parchment paper here!) I spread the batter to the edges of the pan as evenly as possible and popped it into a 400-degree oven.
While it was baking, I spread a clean dishtowel on the counter and sifted powdered sugar generously all over it. I took the cake out after about twelve minutes. The cake should be a light golden brown and springy to the touch. Be careful not to overbake. If you do, the cake may crack when you roll it up.
While it was still hot from the oven, I flipped the cake onto the towel and lifted the pan off. I peeled off the wax paper and rolled the warm cake inside the powder-sugared towel, starting at the short end.
Then, I let the cake cool while snugly wrapped in the dishtowel. You can even slip the cake, dishtowel, and all into a plastic bag to retain moisture.
When the cake was cool, I unrolled it carefully and spread it with an entire eight-ounce jar of my homemade jam. You can use grocery store jam, of course. We usually used strawberry preserves when we made them for my dad. It takes about a cup of jam. You can also use lemon curd if you like. Yum!
I rolled the cake back up, set it on a serving plate with the seam side down, and dusted it with more powdered sugar.
I used a serrated knife to cut slices about one inch thick when serving it. I garnished it with a nice dollop of whipped cream from a can and added some fresh strawberries.
Here’s a fun little trick with strawberries I came up with accidentally! Wash whole fresh strawberries and pat dry. Remove the hull by cutting a v-shape on the top of the berry. Now cut it in half lengthwise across the “v,” and tada! You have sweet heart-shaped berries!
It was every bit as good as I remembered! Cover the leftover jelly roll with plastic film and store it on the counter. This dessert tastes even better the next day when the jam and the cake get to know each other, and the cake becomes more tender!
A lovely sponge cake with jam or curd inside, dusted with powdered sugar. This classic dessert has been enjoyed for over two hundred years.
A jelly roll always gets me in the mood for spring and fresh strawberries, but it would make a perfect dessert for any special occasion! Here are some other special desserts that would be fun to make for someone you love! Frozen Peanut Buster Dessert, Cool Creamy Rhubarb Swirl, Crazy Good Cream Puff Dessert.
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Love GB (Betty Streff)
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