Bready or Not: Pumpkin Roll

The Great British Bake Off inspired me to finally try making a cake roll of my own, and this is the result: a delicious, successful Pumpkin Roll.

No lie, these things have intimidated me for a decade. I was certain I’d try to roll it up, and it’d crack and be a total disaster.

In reality, I ended up with only a few minor cracks, and the roll maintained its shape without any issue.

But let’s talk about the taste. Cream cheese and pumpkin make for the perfect pairing. Both are mild and complement each other, and the amounts here are perfect. The filling doesn’t gush all over the place like some of the disastrous results on Bake Off.

The most time-consuming part of all of this was beating the whites to stiff peaks… which wasn’t helped by the fact that my hand mixer was dying and could barely beat at all. I like to think it met a noble end in the making of this recipe.

RIP hand mixer, a well-used wedding gift from the year 2000.

This cake is super-easy to store in the fridge because it’s small and narrow. The original recipe said it could be frozen, too, though I didn’t try that myself.

Be bold and crazy. Conquer your fear. Make a Pumpkin Roll. And salute the work of your noble hand mixer.

Print Recipe

Bready or Not: Pumpkin Roll

This Pumpkin Roll is a fall classic, melding pumpkin and cream cheese in a compact, delicious form. Plan ahead when making this, as the rolled sponge must cool, and the whole cake should chill before being sliced. Modified from Chef in Training and Taste of Home.

Course: Appetizer, Dessert, Snack

Keyword: cake, cake roll, cream cheese, pumpkin

Author: Beth Cato

Ingredients

Sponge

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs with separated yolks and whites
• 1 cup white sugar divided in half
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree

Filling

• 8 ounces cream cheese 1 box, softened
• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar sifted, plus more
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat oven at 375-degrees.
• Cut parchment paper to fit inside a 15x10-inch pan. Grease and flour the pan and the top of the paper.
• In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks until they are thick. Slowly add 1/2 cup white sugar and the pumpkin puree. Beat until the sugar is completely blended in.
• In another small bowl, use a hand mixer to beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually pour in the remaining white sugar, and continue beating until stiff peak stage. Fold the egg whites into the pumpkin mixture, then fold in the dry ingredients; be gentle and do not overmix.
• Pour the sponge batter into the pan and use an uneven spatula to spread it to the edges.
• Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, or until the cake springs back when touched. Lay a cotton kitchen towel out on the counter and sprinkle it all over with confectioners' sugar. After the cake has cooled for 5 minutes, turn it out onto the prepared towel. Peel away the parchment paper. Roll the cake up by the short side. Leave it rolled up and cool it completely on the towel.
• To make the filling, in a small bowl beat together the cream cheese, butter, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla, until smooth.
• Unroll the cake on the towel again. Spread the filling. Roll it up again.
• Wrap the cake in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours. When ready to serve, cut thin slices off both ends of the cake to make for a pretty presentation. Dust confectioners' sugar all over the top.
• OM NOM NOM!

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