Chocolate Cake Roll with Earl Grey Cream

Back with another cake roll per R and G's request.

They requested for chocolate and earl grey flavors and extra cream, so I added cocoa powder to the cake batter and infused the cream with earl grey tea. The resulting cake roll is dreamy. I love this classic earl grey chocolate flavor pairing, and the earl grey cream was absolutely divine on its own.

To make the earl grey cream, I infused about 200g cream (almost double the amount of what I used for the previous cake rolls) with 3 earl grey tea bags. I heated the cream up to a slow simmer and let the tea bags sit with the cream for about 45 minutes off heat.

Chocolate Cake Roll with Earl Grey Cream
recipe adapted from Neo Sook Bee on IG
makes one roll

Chocolate Cake:
30g oil
45g cake flour
14g cocoa powder
1g salt
50g water or milk
3 eggs
40g sugar
drops of lemon juice, optional to add to egg whites

1. Warm oil to 70C (158g).
2. Sift in flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Whisk to combined.
3. Add water and whisk.
4. Add yolks and whisk until combined and lump free.
5. In another bowl, beat egg whites. When bubbles are formed, slowly add in half of sugar. Keep beating until soft peaks form. Add rest of sugar and continue beating until medium peaks.
5. Fold egg white into egg yolk mixture 1/3 at a time until no more white streaks.
6. Pour batter in one spot onto lined pan. Smooth into even thickness and gently tap to rid of large bubbles.
7. Bake in preheated 325F oven for 20-23 minutes or until cake is spongy to touch.
8. Slide to rack to cool. Place a clean parchment paper over to prevent over drying.
9. Once is cool enough to touch, flip and peel off parchment paper.
10. Optional: trim off edges. On a short end, trim at a 45 degree angle. This will help with rolling/ sealing.
11. Spread a thin layer of cream. Roll and wrap to chill.
12. Chill for 1-2 hours before cutting.

Earl Grey Cream:
200g cream
3 earl grey tea bags

Over medium low heat, heat cream till simmer. Off heat. Add tea bags and steep for 30-45 minutes. Once cooled, chill in fridge before whipping.

Step by step photos:

 

 

Baked:

 

The skin peeled off evenly and revealed a nice "towel" roll. I would want extra cream too if it's this earl grey cream. 

Taste: 4 stars out of 5

5 stars for the earl grey cream, but the chocolate flavor can be more dark/intense

Texture: 5 stars out of 5

Pillow-y airy cake with a creamy rich filling.

Hojicha Cake Roll with Hojicha Cream

Hojicha is roasted green tea with smoky notes similar to coffee. The taste is so complex and sophisticated. This cake roll has double the Hojicha and is perfect for any Hojicha lover!

Both the cake and cream have Hojicha powder added and are packed with the roasted tea flavor.

Hojicha Cake Roll with Hojicha Cream
recipe adapted from Sift and Simmer
makes one 9" x 13" cake

Cake:
3 egg whites
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
40 g granulated sugar
3 egg yolks
30 g granulated sugar
30 g oil
30 g milk
45 g cake flour
10 g hojicha powder

Hojicha Cream Filling:
1/2 C heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp hojicha powder
1 Tbsp powdered sugar

Gently fold egg whites into yolk batter

Bake until top is dry and springy to touch

Make the Cake:
1. Line a 9" by 13" baking tray with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Add egg yolks to a large bowl. Add insugar and whisk together.
3. Next, add in toil and milk and whisk until combined.
4. Add in  sifted cake flour and hojicha powder. Use a spatula to mix together. Set aside.
5. With a stand mixer, gradually whisk egg whites on low speed until foamy. Add in cream of tartar. Increase the speed gradually and add in sugar in small increments.
6. Beat until egg whites reach medium peaks.
7. Fold egg whites into yolk batter in third until homogeneous.
8. Pour into lined baking tray. Smooth out batter and tap tray to remove any trapped air bubbles.
9. Bake at 375F for 13-15 mins, until top is dry and springy to touch.
10. Remove from oven and carefully drop it from a height of about 1'.
11. Transfer cake over to a cooling rack, with the parchment-side down.
12. Loosely cover top with a new piece of parchment paper.

Make the Hojicha Cream:
Add whipping cream, hojicha powder and sugar to a large bowl. Whisk until the cream thickens.

 

To assemble:
1. While cake is still warm, carefully flip the cake onto the new parchment paper, with bottom side facing up. Peel the old parchment paper off the cake.
*Optional to trim edges. Trim one edge at an angle for a more rounded roll.
2. Using an offset spatula, spread the hojicha cream over the surface of the cake.
3. Carefully roll up cake from the short side and seal the ends of the parchment. Place into the fridge to chill for 1-2 hours.
4. Slice with a serrated knife and serve.

Taste: 5 stars out of 5
Hojicha rich!
Texture: 5 stars out of 5
Light and airy cake with creamy rich cream.

Matcha Cake Roll with Blueberry Jam and Cream

I am a little obsessed with cake roll right now. I saw this matcha one coming before I even finished rolling the latest one. And I see future hojicha, chocolate, coffee, and earl gray variations coming very very soon! I also want to try filling the rolls with fruits, custard, and milk jelly. And how about patterns and that hurricane roll.

Matcha Cake Roll
55ml milk
55ml oil
60g cake flour
12g matcha
4 yolk
4 white
55g sugar

Follow link for steps on how to make the cake roll.

Blueberry Jam
227g (1/2lb) blueberries
1/4 cup honey
1 Tbsp lemon juice

In a pot over medium heat, mash and bring to a boil. Continue to stir until mixture thickens. Cool and ready to use!

The only difference I made from the last one is to lower the cake flour by 5g and added 12g of matcha. The cake turned out fluffy and light with just the right matcha-ness coming through. Again, no cracks when rolling but the skin did get stuck on the parchment. I need to experiment baking at a lower temp for a longer period to see if this improves. But hey, if the skin rips off completely, I am all for that "towel" look too.

I folded some homemade blueberry jam into the whipped cream and spoon some directly on to give the roll that molten blueberry center.

Love how the blueberry and matcha flavors paired together. A satisfying treat for these WFH's afternoons.

You already know..
Taste: 5 stars out of 5
Texture: 5 stars out of 5

Swiss Roll Cake

Quarantine life has made me watch and re-watch way more baking videos and cafe vlog than ever. I am not complaining because they are so relaxing and inspiring. My "to bake" list just gets longer, and I have not gone a week without baking since quarantine started in March.

This particular video from Sweet Taste Kitchen reminds me how bad I want to check off making a perfect swiss roll and is what I followed for my third swiss roll attempt. My main goal this time is to keep the "skin" on. Spoiler: it didn't stay on.

Swiss roll cake
55ml milk
55ml oil
65g cake flour
4 yolk
4 white
65g sugar

1. Whisk together milk and oil until emulsified.
2. Sift in cake flour. Whisk to combine.
3. Whisk in yolk until combined and lump free.
4. In another bowl, beat egg whites. When bubbles are formed, slowly add in half of sugar. Keep beating until soft peaks form. Add rest of sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks.
5. Fold egg white into egg yolk mixture 1/3 at a time until no more white streaks.
6. Pour batter in one spot onto lined pan. Smooth into even thickness and gently tap to rid of large bubbles.
7. Bake in preheated 338F oven for 25 minutes or until cake is spongy to touch. For last 3 minutes of baking, use convection setting.
8. Slide to rack to cool. Place a clean parchment paper over to prevent over drying.
9. Once is cool enough to touch, flip and peel off parchment paper.
10. Optional: trim off edges. On a short end, trim at a 45 degree angle. This will help with rolling/ sealing.
11. Spread a thin layer of cream. Roll and wrap to chill.
12. Chill for 1-2 hours before cutting.

Beautiful golden brown | springy to touch

It was so promising up until this point! No cracks and the skin was intact after rolling.

After chilling, the parchment paper ripped the skin :(

Next time, I will bake in the convection setting for 2 more minutes at the end (5 minutes total) and make sure it's completely cooled before rolling. The difference in temperature between the roll and fridge probably caused condensation and made the skin stick to the parchment. 

The cake is super fluffy and tasty. This nostalgic treat never fails to satisfy. The cake was gone in less than 48 hours.

Taste + Texture: 5 stars out of 5
Appearance: 4 stars out of 5 - got to perfect the skin!

Check out my past attempts:
2010
2017

Tiramisu♥♥♥♥♥

Alas, the long awaited TIRAMISU : D
(Warning: this will be one LONG detailed post!)

Taste: 5 stars out of 5
Texture: 5 stars out of 5

Step ONE: make sponge cake.
Basic Sponge Cake Base
recipe adapted and translated from Dessert & Baking DIY
-makes one 6" round cake

125g(2) eggs, room temperature
60g sugar
60g flour, sifted
15g unsalted butter, melted

1. Line your 6" pan
2. Beat eggs and sugar till stiff (about 5 minutes).
3. Add flour to egg/sugar mixture and fold.
4. Add melted butter and mix well.
5. Pour into pan and smooth top.
6. Bake for 30 minutes at 356F.
7. Cool and remove cake from pan.
8. Trim edges so that it's slightly smaller than the 6" pan
9. Slice into two layers horizontally.
10. Set aside.

Step TWO: make kahula expresso for brushing.
Kahula Expresso Mix
recipe adapted and translated from Dessert & Baking DIY
-makes enough for two cakes (*halved if looking to just make one cake)

80g espresso (80g hot water+ 2 spoonful instant expresso powder)
20g kahlua
2tsp sugar

Mix everything and set aside.

Step THREE: make mascarpone cheese/cream mixture.
Mascaropone Cheese/ Cream Mix
recipe adapted and translated from Dessert & Baking DIY
-makes one 6" round cake

100g mascarpone cheese, room temperature
30g sugar
1 egg
140g whipped cream
7g gelatin
35g water

1. With electric mixer, whip cream slowly until it resembles ice cream texture.
*Over whipping can result in a lumpy and firmer cake.
2. On a double boiler, beat egg and sugar on high until pale and loose.
3. Mix gelatin and water and microwave until gelatin melts and steams.
4. Add 1/5th egg mixture to gelatin and mix. Set aside.
5. Add cheese to the remaining 4/5th egg and beat till incorporated.
6. Add cream to the cheese/egg mixture and quickly fold till even.
7. Lightly mix the gelatin and egg and add to the cream/cheese/egg mixture. Mix well!

Now, you've got all the different components of the tiramisu ready to go.

Step FOUR: assemble!
1. Get a 6" ring mold or use the side of your 6" springform pan.
2. Wrap the bottom of the ring with saran wrap and set on a tray.
3. Put bottom layer of your sponge cake in the center of the ring. (The edges should have a 1cm gap from the ring)
4. Generously brush the sponge cake with the kahlua/espresso mix.
5. Pour half of the mascarpone/cheese mix on top of the sponge cake, making sure it fills up the gap between the sponge cake and ring.
6. Brush the top layer of sponge cake with kahlua/expresso mix.
7. Place brushed** side of sponge cake face down onto the mascarpone/cheese.
8. Brush the top of sponge cake with kahlua/expresso mix.
9. Pour the rest of mascarpone/cheese onto the sponge cake.
10. Smooth and lightly tap pan on counter top.

Step FIVE: refrigerate and final touches.
1. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
2. Remove cake from ring mold.
Tip: wrap warm towel around ring for easier removal
3. Dust with cocoa powder
*Optional: cut out fun patterns and place them on top of cake before dusting(:

Step Six: ENJOY(:

OVERVIEW---------------------------------------------------------------------->

Tiramisu #1






Mascarpone cheese/cream was fluffy and light.
Layers were even.
Edges were rough and not clean.
Coffee taste was prominent.

Tiramisu #2

^before dusting









Mascarpone cheese/cream was more liquidy before refrigerating.
Texture after refrigerating is smooth and velvety.
Edges were smooth and clean.
More kahlua was used.
Sponge cake was more soaked.
Layers were not even.

Tiramisu #3




Mascarpone cheese/cream was more firm after refrigerating.
Edges were smooth and clean.
Layers were even.
Sponge cake was a little dried (overbaked ._.).
Sponge cake can be soaked with kahlua/expresso more.

---------------------------------------------------------------------->

Total of three takes so far. Seeing improvements yet?(:

Sorry for the poor quality pictures. I am never patient enough to take pictures after the long prep/baking time. But I assure you.. they definitely taste better than they look. Hahah(:

To Bake: Tiramisu. Checked!