I just started experimenting with jelly roll cakes this year with a Pumpkin and Carrot cake roll recipes and found it was a really fun creative cake to make. I love experimenting with different flavours and love lemons so this was a natural go-to recipe.
I found this very lovely ‘French’ jelly roll cake base recipe in one of my old-timey Cookbooks dating back to early ’30s. It’s super light and airy. Plus the cake base has no butter and separates the yolks and whites which makes for a really light almost bubbly texture.
The lemon filling is a lemon curd filling – and then topped with fresh berries. While it may seem a little involved – it’s super fresh tasting and well worth it. The cake base comes together very quickly and before you know it you are layering the filling and rolling. Definitely, a company-worthy dessert that your guests will be raving about – and then asking for at your next dinner party!
Never made Lemon Curd? It’s actually really easy to make ahead of time and can be frozen or left in the fridge for up to 5 days. If you are a lemon fan you need to give it a try!
Lemon Jelly Roll Cake
Ingredients
Jelly Roll Cake
- 2 eggs separated
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- grated rind of one lemon
- 2 tbsp lemon juice from fresh lemon
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 1 cup sifted pastry flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Lemon Curd
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp grated lemon rind
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup icing sugar for dusting
- 1 cup mixed berries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a shallow jelly roll pan or cookie sheet - 10" x 15" - with parchment paper. Leave a little edge around the inside of the pan and grease it with butter or baking spray.
- Beat the egg yolks with a mixer until smooth and then add in sugar and continue mixing until fluffy.
- Add in lemon rind and lemon juice and mix well.
- Pour in boiling water and do one final blend with mixer.
- Sift the dry ingredients together. Add dry ingredients to wet mixture in 3 portions, mixing after each addition.
- In a separate bowl beat egg whites until stiff and foamy and then fold into the mixture with a spatula. It will have some air bubbles in it and that is good!
- Pour batter onto parchment paper and tilt the pan to even out the batter, and spread if needed with a spatula to ensure it is evenly spread across the pan.
- Bake for about 12 or 15 minutes or until it is slightly browned on the edges and shrunken a little in the pan.
- Meanwhile, while the cake is cooking, spread a sheet of parchment paper on top of a large cutting board. You will use this to invert the finished caked on to once it has completed bake time.
- When the cake is done remove it from the oven. While still warm you will need trim closely around the edges of the cake to get a good square cut. This will allow the cake to release when inverted onto the clean parchment for rolling.
- Once you have a good clean edge cut, invert the pan over the prepared parchment paper and let release.
- Remove the original parchment paper the cake was baked on so you can now prepare to add the filling.
Rolling the cake into a Jelly Roll
- While still warm pour the lemon curd mixture on top of the flattened cake. Spread evenly across cake leaving a little edge on all sides of the cake. Leave a little curd aside to drizzle on the finished cake.
- Using the parchment paper to assist rolling the cakes start folding the edge of the cake at the top and start rolling the cake into a roll. You may get a little filling rolling out but just try to keep it evenly distributed.
- Once you have rolled it you will want to put into the fridge to set. I usually carefully wrap it in another layer of parchment or foil to be sure it is nice an secure and then put into a glass serving dish or plate to put in the fridge to set for a couple of hours or even overnight.
Finishing up
- Remove the cake from the fridge and place on a serving platter. I usually trim a little off each end to make it a nice clean edge.
- Lightly dust with icing sugar and drizzle with the leftover lemon curd.
- Garnish nicely with fresh berries and serve!
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