Tuesday 7 August 2007

Strawberry Swiss Roll

Made this strawberry swiss roll for our breakfast today. This is my third attempt at making a swiss roll. The first roll I did was just a simple roll with nutella as filling. The second one was for a xmas log cake. Despite this being my third try, I still couldn't really roll it up nicely :')



See, the bottom was slightly cracked...and I should have cut a slit at the edge before rolling it up, I read that cutting slits along the length of the sponge layer will help to prevent cracks when rolling. I left the sponge layer to cool off completely before rolling, as opposite to recommendations from most cookbooks to do the rolling once the cake layer is removed from the oven.



For the sponge layer, I used back the same sponge cake recipe which I am familiar with. I was quite satisfied with how the cake layer turned out...the baked surface was very smooth and evenly browned.


For the filling, I used non-dairy whipping cream and whole strawberries instead of cutting them into chunks...but since I didn't do a good job in rolling, the strawberries were not right in the centre and thus the desired effect was not achieved. Nevertheless, the roll tasted good with the strawberries...and it would be perfect, if I had put in a little extra effort of brushing the sponge layer with syrup to make it extra moist ;p

66 comments:

Anh said...

*clap clap* This is surely a perfect swiss roll!!!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Anh, you are very kind =)
thanks so much for your encouraging words :)

Baking Fiend said...

It's so pretty with the strawberries in the middle!

Anonymous said...

Love the sunny golden colour of the roll! It looks so cheerful :) May I know what brand of whipped cream you use? And for the cream, how long do you whip it for? Do you use an electric mixer?

Thanks!

Patricia Scarpin said...

This is so beautiful! I love it that you used strawberries in the filling.

Anonymous said...

Congrats! It's such a perfect looking swiss roll! The outer layer is beautiful!

Anne said...

Your swiss roll is simply perfect! I am so impressed. My swiss rolls don't come close to yours :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi all, thanks for your compliments! I really think I didn't do a good job...but after reading your comments, you have boost up my confidence. Thanks so much =)

Hazel, I used non-dairy whipping cream from Phoon Huat's house brand, 'Red Man'. I used a hand held mixer to whip the cream, until soft peak is formed...ie the cream will not drip off when I lift it up with the mixer's whisk. I didn't really take note of the time taken, but it should be around 3 to 5 mins. Since I didn't use the cream to decorate the exterior, I didn't whisk it to very stiff. As the whipping cream is already sweetened, there's no need to add any sugar.

Julius said...

Your swiss roll is a beauty and can be held up as a standard! The same goes for the rest of your baking (I am a fan of your blog because of your *beautiful* baking). I have bookmarked this page and will use it as a guide when I try my hand at making a swiss roll in the future.

Anonymous said...

I thought it looked absolutely great. I can see the texture is nice too. I haven't braved myself to try making swiss roll. Deep down I really want to but put off by the rolling and the cracking. One day.....maybe. :)

Anonymous said...

Very "swee" leh!!! I love the nicely & evenly browned sponge.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Judy, me too, was very apprehensive about it...and the kaisu and kaisee me did alot of reseach on how to prevent cracks before I actually tried rolling up a swiss roll ;) When I did one for the xmas log, it cracked all over, but I used the cream to cover all up =)

hey vb, I liked the evenly browned sponge layer too :)

Sue Sue said...

happy home baker,
I think the swiss roll is perfect and I see the strawberry is in the centre, right?

Can I have a piece? Makes me drooling la.

Happy Homebaker said...

hi Sue Sue, thanks! It's sort of in the centre...but, not what exactly I have in mind. Just don't feel right. Maybe I am expecting too much?! hehe!

Anonymous said...

Hi there!!

Your strawberry and cream swiss roll looks absolutely gorgeous!! It is comparable to the ones you see at chinese bakeries!!! Don't worry about the sponge layer cracking - I can't see any from the pics! I tried making a swiss roll for the first time recently and it cracked soooo badly (incidently it cracked when I tried rolling it straight from the oven! But maybe it was coz I was just using an oblong cake tin rather than the proper (larger) swiss roll tins).

And the surface of the sponge looks so smooth, golden and perfect!! Is there a secret to it? coz whenever i make sponge cakes, the top sort of shrinks, causing the skin on the surface to form concentric wrinkles and hence a slight crater :S And the texture of the sponge itself it soo soo beautiful! In the peaches and cream sponge layer cake recipe, to which you provided the link to on this page, you mentioned that you halved the sugar quantity - did you do the same for this recipe? Also, about how long should the baking time be reduced by?

Looking forward to your future blog entries!!

Jo

Happy Homebaker said...

hi Jo, thanks for visiting :)
I used a pan that is 13 in x 10in in size. I used the same sponge cake recipe...the original recipe calls for 200g of sugar. I cut it to 100g even for this swiss roll. This is the first time I used this sponge cake recipe to make a swiss roll. It just happened that the cake surface turned out very evenly browned. I turned the pan around after about 20mins when the cake surface started to brown. My oven has got hot spots and I suspect the temperature is not right (on the low side). It took 25 ~ 30mins for the entire cake surface to brown. I think if your oven has the correct temperature, it should take about 25mins to bake. hope this helps =)

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB,
Wow - very delish looking swiss roll!! The skin look so nice n golden....n no cracks. Uve given me inspirations to try again - always have problem with swiss roll...cannot roll up without cracking! :( May i know whether the swiss roll tray u bought is from PH? is it the aluminium type?

Lissa

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Lissa, the trays I have are hand-me downs...I dig it out from my mum's kitchen...I think we have them for like 20 years! and yes, they are like those you see at PH, the shinny, light, aluminium type. I use it as a baking tray...for cookies and breads as well :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Jo, I am not sure how come you comment was not published. But I'll try to recall your questions...
I used sunflower oil...the one I used for cooking (didn't bother to get olive oil or salad oil, lazy me). You will have to bring the eggs to room temperature before beating them. The flour has to be sifted and has to be cake flour to give a finer texture. The egg and sugar has to be beaten till ribbon like. Please see my post on the Strawberry Mango Cake. I have taken photos to show the ribbon like stage. Also when you mix the flour into the batter, you will have to do it gently to prevent deflating the batter. The oil has to be mixed with 1/3 of the batter first, before mixing with the rest of the batter. All these steps are important to ensure a light sponge. As for the colour of your sponge surface, I am really not sure what went wrong? To ensure a very moist texture, most swiss roll recipes will recommend brushing the sponge with syrup before spreading the filling and rolling. As mentioned in my post here, I skip this step as I didn't bother with it. You will also have to cover the swiss roll or any sponge cake when you leave it in the fridge. The sponge will get dry over night. The reason is, only very little amount of oil/butter is used for this kind of sponge, so the cake will not remain moist if you didn't cover it. Do let me know if you have any other questions, or whether I have fully answered your questions, ok?

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB,

I love your page!! Your kids are lucky to have a mum like you.. and the things you bake... you really inspire me.. i did a strawberry swissroll last year for hari raya.. i chopped the strawberries and sprinkled it around the cream... putting the whole strawberry in also looks nice.. i will try it for this year. Glad to have found your page!!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Siti, thanks for visiting my blog =) Looking forward to you dropping by in future :D I am sure you are now busy making all the goodies for Hari Raya!

Happy Mrs Kwok said...

I think the way you rolled your swissroll is way much better than mine! Your swissroll looks very yummy! I did Mango swissroll last week and it was my 1st attempt. It's quite tedious to roll the whole patch of cake up isn't it ;)

Happy Homebaker said...

hey Mrs Kuo, on the contrary, I find your mango swiss roll much better than mine! I like the lovely 'G' in the centre of the roll :D and your blog is so lovely!

Anonymous said...

Hello Happy homebaker,

Your swiss roll look perfect to me, like the kind we buy at store. Better that the one I make. I didn't even get a golden surface(uniform on all the surface), cracking twice when rolling and my layer is not as thick as your. I was so disappointed!
How big is the tray you use and can you tell me how do you get a smooth baked surface and evenly browned? Could you show us next time, step-by-step, how did you make you swiss roll? Like the way you show us with the strawberry mango cake. Thanks in advance.

Stephie(Canada)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Stephie, the size of my tray is 10x13 inches. I actually used the same method as the strawberry mango cake when preparing the batter for this swiss roll, just that I baked it in a jelly-roll tray instead of a round pan. It was the first time I used this recipe to make the swiss roll, so I think there is nothing to do with skills, it's the recipe that matters. Anyway, next time if I were to make a swiss roll, I will try to include step-by-step photos. and thanks for visiting :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks Happy homebaker for answering my question so fast. Your comments motivate me to give it a try again. I feel better after reading your comments and stop blaming on my oven (different from the kind of oven existing in Singapore household)and my lack of skills.
Thanks for sharing & making each recipe so simple for us to try.

Stephie(Canada)

Selena Fong said...

Can you please teach me how to actually create a swiss roll that still has its 'skin' intact :) My attempts at making swiss rolls always ends up with everything sticking to everything else, ie, the bottom of the roll when it comes out of the oven will stick to the greaseproof paper, and then when I turn it out onto greaseproof paper or teatowel sprinkled with sugar, that top part will stick as well so my swiss roll ends up looking real ugly with patches of skin on the outside.... :) To make a swiss roll like yours is my 'dream'. Thanks.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Selena, so far this is only my 3rd attempt to make a swiss roll. I am really not expereienced enough to teach anyone :')
However, this was what I did: after the sponge cake is baked, remove it from the tray, with the baking parchment paper still in tact, leave to cool on a cooling rack. Once cooled, flip it over onto a sheet of clean parchment paper and remove the paper that was used for lining the sponge. Spread with desired filling, and roll it up gently with the help of the parchment paper. I didn't sprinkle the paper with sugar.

Maybe I could try a swiss roll next and do a step-by-step photo posting. Wish me luck that I can get it right the 4th time :)

J Kerr said...

Hi happy Homebaker, I love your blog. I m actually using the same recipe from peach layer sponge cake and make a swiss roll yesterday. Unfortunately, it seems that either the measurement of ingredients is not correct or the baking hour is too long- 35 mins, the results had become like a cookies instead. Can you please provide your recipe for sponge cake in US metrics? We dont measure in g in USA. and i find it so hard to convert it myself. It will be great if you can help. I love ur blog.You always inspire me.. :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Jovial, I believe the baking time is too long. For baking swiss roll, the baking time has to be reduced. Mine took about 25mins, as my oven is on the 'cool' side. Once the sponge layer has turned golden brown, and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean, it should be baked. Since I always measure my ingredients in metric, for recipes that are originally in metric, I will not want to convert it to US measurements, as 1st, the conversion may not be accurate, and 2nd, since I didn't try the recipe in US measurements, I guess I shouldn't post it. As such, I do hope you will understand my position on this. Nevertheless, you may try this website (http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/cookingconversions.asp?Action=find) which has got a conversion calculator. Hope this helps =)

J Kerr said...

Thanks Happy homebaker. Today i tried to make another swiss roll and reduce the time to 20 mins. It seems better in texture but too bad it cracked too much when i rolled it. The roll is soft enough to be rolled it just that may be i rolled it too small. :) i might considered buying a scale so that i can weight the measurement in gram. Thanks for your prompt reply.Please continue your good work on baking job! I just bought a toy -breadmachine. I m thinking of making the Hokkaido milk loaf. Let see if i can find a recipe in US metric. :D

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Jovial, swiss-rolls are really tricky to roll up! I read from some Japanese~Chinese translated cookbooks, to prevent cracking, they will recommend making slits on the sponge, although I have not tried this method. So far this is my 3rd attempt, and I always put it off for fear of cracking it! If time permits I may try make a swiss roll today.
I am sure you will have fun with your new toy! Happy baking!

J Kerr said...

Happy homebaker, can i link you to my blog? wish to share some baking experiences with happy homebaker like U. :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, yes, you are most welcomed, it's my pleasure to have you link me up!
by the way, I tried making swiss roll two days ago...but it cracked after rolling :'( nevertheless, it still tasted good, I filled it with nutella spread :)

Anonymous said...

...and I should have cut a slit at the edge before rolling it up, I read that cutting slits along the length of the sponge layer will help to prevent cracks when rolling. I left the sponge layer to cool off completely before rolling, as opposite to recommendations from most cookbooks to do the rolling once the cake layer is removed from the oven.


hi there, i'd appreciate if you would kindly explain how to roll a swiss roll and whatever mentioned above. it was a lil' unclear and i'm not uncertain on which edge you are talking about and how to slit them. wouldn't rolling when hot be easier than cold?
thank you so much!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Anonymous, I have not tried rolling swiss roll when it is still hot...so far I have left it to cool off before rolling, as such I can't really tell which is eaiser??
You may refer to this video clip (http://www.choco-recipe.jp/milk/mov/186.html?seektime=0&endtime=)on the part about cutting the slits, as it is kind of difficult to explain in text. It's in Japanese, but I am sure it's self explanatory. Hope this helps.

Anonymous said...

hi there, can i bake mine in a square pan of 13x13 inch? it's of 1.5inches in depth. can i not use parchment paper as i can't seem to find any in Australia. can i just grease them evenly with a layer of cornoil? thanks.

Anonymous said...

do i slit my baked cake all throughout the cake or just at the beginning?like probably 10slits. the video was in japan and i can't really see whether they slit the whole cake or not. pls advise, thank you.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I think you can use your square pan, just that the sponge layer will be thinner. However, I am really not sure whether you could just grease the pan without using a parchment paper. I have not tried it before, and I really suspect you may have problem unmolding the sponge layer. You may want to check the term use in Australia with regards to parchment paper...over here, they are also known as baking paper.

Actually I have not tried slitting the cake before...as such I can't really advise on this. What I have seen in some cookbooks are that the slits are made thru out the sponge layer...shorter intervals at the beginning and gets wider intervals at the other end. I am relatively new in the area of baking, and all the stuff I've made are self-taught as such I can't really give much advise here as I have only tried making a swiss roll a few times. I do not want to give any wrong advice, hope you understand :)

Fiona Lin said...

Hi.

Your swiss roll looks so yummy! It looks like there's one really, really long strawberry inside :) The outside looks so perfectly coloured too. Ack, your photography skills are making me drool.

I made a swiss roll for the second time yesterday. My first one was much more of a failure than yours - it ended up looking like a three-layer cake, heh. This time though, it was more successful because I tried out some ideas with the rolling.

You might find that it helps to lay down a warm, damp cloth and put a sheet of baking paper dusted with icing sugar on top of it (to stop sticking). Then when the cake is ready, tip it out onto the sugary paper and, though it may sound a little weird, roll it up with the paper inside it. Now leave it to cool all rolled up so it's used to being in that shape (if the filling is going to be chunky, like a strawberry, it might be a good idea to roll it a little loosely, as if there's an imaginary strawberry inside :)). After it's cool, unroll it, fill it, and roll it back up. It should be easier because the cake's 'remembered' its shape. I hope it works for you. Mine almost did, except I didn't know to roll it as if there was 'imaginary cream' inside mine, and then I went a bit crazy with the filling, ha. I also used a different kind of cake recipe - it has no butter or oil. You can see it on my blog, if you'd like. It's the only thing there at the moment.

There's me trying to give something in return to you for all the advice you've given us :) I'm just a little amateur, so don't please don't kill me if it doesn't work ^-^""!

Ah, I'd love to be at your house for breakfast. You've got lucky kids!

-ona.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Onamochi, I dropped by your blog...your green tea swiss roll looks so delicious! Thanks for the tips! For the first swiss roll I made, I tried rolling up with the baking paper while it was still hot. Hoever it cracked a little after I tried to re-roll it :'( Guess I have to practice more to get it right! Looking forward to reading more about your baking!

Unknown said...

Hello, I really love your cakes and swissrolls. However, I met some problem during baking a swissroll. It didnt look taste and look light and fluffy like yours. I'm quite sad about it. I got my stuffs from phoon huat.

120g cake flour (phoon huat)
100 caster sugar
4g salt
4 eggs
30g fresh milk,
30g veg oil
3g baking powder
3g tartar powder
4g salt

1.) I preheat oven at 190degC
2.) I whisk yolks, sugar and salt unil very creamy and almost white
2.) I seperate the eggs and beat whites till soft peak with added tartar powder. It's look smooth and nice. (Is it necessary for this step?)
3.)I add flour (Is it cake flour or sponge or self rising flour? Which is most suitable for fluffy cake?)into the batter.
4.) Add all the oil, milk
5.) fold in the egg white, just combined.
6.) Bake

I duno where goes wrong. My swissroll skin easily peel off, it's kinda not fluffy enough to roll it. It jus sucks. Pls advise, thanks!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi SavidanMarie, I am sorry I wont be able to give much advise on this as I have not tried using this method (ie beating yolks and whites separately) to make a sponge layer. I have only tried with beating whole eggs.

Cake flour is good for making chiffon or sponge cake as it has got a finer texture compared to plain flour. Whereas for self rising flour, there's already baking powder added, so if a recipe calls for self rising flour then baking powder will not be required. I have not come across spnge flour though.

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for the quick reply. I really appreciate it! I always wonder is there any secret to super fluffy cake selling in the market like breadtalk, the super fluffy and lightness of their cakes. I'hv been baking for a year+ but still couldnt come close to the super fluffy. The most i reached is juz fluffy. ^__^ Thank u again, ur blog is so exciting!

J Kerr said...

Hi Happy Homebaker,its me!Jovial.just want to share good news with you, i've been crazy about making swiss rolls these day.I made a mango swiss roll without any cracks and the next time i made a strawberry swiss roll it is even perfect. I'm really happy.Just want to share my happiness with u.:)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi SavidanMarie, I have not tasted any cakes from breadtalk! Theirs are super fluffy? Does it taste like chiffon cake?
I find the sponge cake recipe (refer Santa Claus cake recipe) quite light and fluffy. Another person has tried this, and has since been using it to make layered cakes. She loves it too. You may want to give that a try, although I am not sure it will be super fluffy as those from bakery shops. btw, I can't access your blog via your blogger profile :(

Hi Jovial, great to hear from u. I sent u an email sometime back regarding shaping the braided bread, not sure whether u have received it? Thanks for sharing your joy with me!!! I am happy for u too :D

Anonymous said...

hi, i'd like to thank you for this blog. i've been trying to find a recipe for the sponge cake :).

Also, i couldnt help but notice that adding syrup would make it more moist. Do you mean maple syrup?

Anonymous said...

hiyaaa i love your swiss roll it has inspired me to be creative with mine how do you do it?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, maybe you can take a look at the recipe under "Matcha & Red Bean Roll Cake", I have made a simple demo video on making a swiss roll. Hope it helps.

Thy Thy said...

First time in your blog, :)
this swiss roll is amazing, i have just failed another time today with this cake! :(

Blessed Homemaker said...

I just made a swiss roll last Sunday but yours look so much better.

udit said...

umm umm. looks tasty .. I will try to make it .. thanks for the recipe.

dawnb said...

Just tried your reciepe today. Wanted to make a log cake for Xmas and have been looking around.. It turned out light and sponge-y but quite dry...the kind that sucks all the moisture from my mouth.. if u know what i mean. In the cake shops the tiger swiss roll kind is also fluffy, but denser and not so dry. I wonder how they make it that way...Im gonna be so sick of eating swiss rolls before i make my log cake i swear!

Happy Homebaker said...

dawnb, sponge cakes that are baked in trays will bake really quick, once over bake, the sponge layer will tend to be dry. Brushing the sponge layer with syrup (mixture of water and sugar) will help to moisten it. For sponge cakes that are sold in bakeries, I think they do add some form of additive (eg emulsifier) to help keep the sponge cake really soft, tender and moist. I guess there is some trade off between homemade cakes and store bought ones.

Angie Feis said...

Hi happyhomemaker :)

May I ask if you bake and sell your cakes? I'm in need for this strawberry Swiss roll but I can't find any other nicer ones!! Yours match my expectations the most!! Please reply :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Angie, I am sorry I don't sell my cakes.

Anonymous said...

I love your blog and enjoy baking too. I'm attempting to make this again in a few days so I hope it turns out as good as yours! I did try last week but the batter deflated too much so the cake turned out dry and hard...I think it was because I melted the butter too late so when I used it it was still hot!

Chen Chen :-)

It or said...

Where can I buy non-dairy whipped cream???

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I bought it from Phoon Huat.

Anonymous said...

the sponge cake is from beginning til end also beating using high speed?for 3egg is beat how long?if beat til like cream tht is not correct d?the spatula u use the heat is soft or hard?which wil be suitable?when folding the flour is from left to right that way?do u know why i always got flour didnt mix evenly at the middle there?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, the steps of beating the eggs and sugar is the same as the sponge cake recipe. Sorry, I am not sure what you meant by beat till cream? The eggs and sugar mixture should beat till the ribbon-like stage, ie double/triple in volume, thick, turns pale and will leave a ribbon-like trail when the beater is lifted. I used a plastic spatula the head is not soft or rubber-like, the material is the same as the handle, hope u know what I mean? for folding of flour to the batter, it is kind of difficult to describe in words, I suggest you google for video demos, you may like to refer to this video here on the folding of flour, this is the method I used, ie with the spatula, scrape the side of the bowl, clock wise and scrape it all the way to the bottom and then lift up the batter, at the same time, move the mixing bowl counter-clock wise by about a quarter turn. As for the beating of the eggs, unlike the vide demo, I used a hand held electric beater. Also, add in the flour in 3 separate additions to help even mixing. Hope this helps.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKa1e_CpvoY

Janet said...

Hi, u have mentioned in a few posts that you should have brushed some sugar syrup on the layered cake so that it will be more moist. Can you explain how to do that? as i can't find it in your recipes. Will that make the cake soggy?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Janet, no, it won't make the cake soggy, just brush it lightly over the cake surface, it helps to keep the sponge layer from turning dry especially the cake has to be kept in the fridge. You may want to hop over to this post (http://happyhomebaking.blogspot.sg/2010/02/strawberry-shortcake-japanese-style.html)
for the method. The syrup is just a mixture of sugar and water.

Anonymous said...

Your Swiss roll is just flawless. I love how the strawberries look perfect inside and how there is absolutely no cracks on the top. I do have a question to ask though. Do you put the cream on the Swiss as soon as you take it out of the oven? Or do you roll the Swiss and leave to cool, then unroll and fill with cream and strawberries?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi I left it to cool completely before spreading the cream otherwise the cream will melt.

scw said...

Hi! This looks amazing :) But could you create a strawberry swiss roll recipe where the cake is strawberry flavoured too?