Strawberry Swiss Roll

Christmas is just around the corner. Decors and fairy lights are widely visible, people sing carols everywhere and everything looks festive and charismatic.

During this time of the year everybody is joyful, delighted and full of life. When everything is happy and merry all around how can food be aloof form these festivity. Since my childhood I have seen my Mom baking cakes throughout December to celebrate Christmas and New Year. I used to love that soft and fluffy vanilla cake.

To embark the festive season I decided to bake that vanilla cake and turn it into a "Strawberry Swiss Roll". No, this cake has nothing to do with "Switzerland" as the name suggests but I have seen these in our local Asian grocery stores.

Swiss Roll also known as Jelly roll or Roulade is a sponge cake layered with jelly or cream, rolled up and served in cross sectional slices. It tastes delicious and divine. Even if you don't get the swirls perfect or your cake gets cracked while rolling it's okay. You will still love the tasty and heavenly Swiss Roll.

Ingredients:

1. All purpose Flour (Maida): 6 tbsp + 1 tbsp (for dusting the pan)

2. Corn Flour: 6 tbsp

3. Sugar: 6 tbsp (divided 3+3)

4. Eggs: 5 (separated into yolks and whites)

5. Vanilla extract: 1 tbsp

6. Butter for greasing the pan

7. Salt a pinch

8. Powdered sugar: 1 tbsp (for dusting the cake)

9. Strawberry Jam

Method:

1. Take a jelly roll pan (17" X 12" X 1") and grease it with butter. Line a parchment paper and grease it too. Dust the pan with all purpose flour and remove the excess by tapping.

2. Preheat the oven to 375 F/190 C

3. Sift together all purpose flour, corn flour and salt. Keep it aside.

4. Separate the eggs into yolks and whites. 

5. Add 3 tbsp of sugar to the egg yolks and beat until its smooth, creamy and pale yellow in color. You can use your hand mixer or stand mixer. It will take almost 5-7 mins on high speed. 

6. Add vanilla extract to the yolk mixture and again beat it for a minute.

7. In another bowl beat the egg whites until you get soft peaks. Add 3 tbsp of sugar and again beat it till you get stiff peaks. 

8. Now add flour mixture to the beaten egg yolks and gently fold in. Once all the flour is nicely incorporated into egg yolks its time to add beaten egg whites.

9. Add 1/2 of the egg whites to the mixture and fold very gently. We don't want our egg whites to get flatten away. Add rest of the egg whites and continue folding.

10. Pour the batter in the greased pan and spread it evenly with a spatula. Put it in oven on middle rack for 6-8 minutes until it gets a nice golden color. You can test it by touching and it will spring back.

11. Remove the cake from oven and dust it with powdered sugar. Place a clean kitchen towel on your kitchen counter, flip the cake very carefully and remove the parchment paper. 

12. Dust the cake with powdered sugar and roll it tightly (with kitchen towel) so that it can hold its shape. Let it cool down completely.

13. Once the cake is completely cooled unroll it and place it on a new parchment paper. Spread strawberry jam with the help of your butter knife. 

14. Start rolling the cake very carefully with the help of parchment paper (you will notice some small cracks in the beginning but don't worry).

15. Wrap the cake in a aluminium foil and place it in the refrigerator. When you are ready to serve slice it and top it with whipped cream and strawberry sauce.

Note:

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