I'm about to make my first jelly roll sheet -- basically, the Christmas Yule Log.
I get the feeling that it can be pretty tricky to get it rolled up without cracking and falling apart, so I wanted to prepare as well as I could by asking for tips from experience.
I've read about various ways to help things along, like putting a damp cloth over the sheet to keep it moist as soon as it comes out of the oven, etc.
Anybody have some experience here to contribute?
Thanks,
John
Don't sweat it. You are going to frost it if you are making a Yule Log. If it cracks, no one will know.
Yup. Put the crack on the bottom.
You could try and get fancy by using a pasty cloth or flexible cutting board (e.g. that tupperware thing with circles on it) to support the cake as you lift it to roll it, but you'd probably fumble it and make it worse. At least I probably would.
It's not as difficult as you may fear. Be sure you don't overbake your cake; when it comes out of the oven, turn it immediately out onto a clean tea towel (cotton or linen, not terry cloth) which has been liberally sprinkled with powdered sugar or cocoa powder (powdered sugar for white or yellow cake, cocoa powder for chocolate -- don't use your best white tea towels for this, as the cocoa can stain), and use the towel to roll up the cake, leaving the towel *inside* the roll. Cool completely. When you're ready to fill and frost/ice/decorate, gently unroll the cake, fill and re-roll, this time leaving the towel out. Rolling the cake when it's warm helps "set" the shape for easier rolling when it's filled.
The above is the procedure I follow, and I have yet to have a cake crack or tear.
-j
I agree. This is the method I have used for more years than I care to say. ;-)
Dora
Me too, I make swiss/jelly roll with genoise, The trick is NOT to overbake, and work quickly once it's out of the oven. qahtan
In making roulades& jelly rols , it require that the cake batter should be baked properly.That is the batter is spread evenly and baked at temperature in the range of 220-230 deg C and just enough that when you touch with finger it wil bounce back. The baking time may range from 10-15 minutes. If you baked longer or the baking temparature is lower you wil dry up the cake making it brittle to further manipulation. It also helps if your recipe has higher amount of eggs as the egg proteins tend to strenghten the cake texture making it resilient and tolerant to rough handling during the rollihg process. It is then immeidiately removed from the oven and preferably turned on a sugared or even floured towel or parchement and rolled loosely. This applies for normal sponge rolls . For chiffon cake type recipes it has more tolerance,( its more easier to r oll than the typical sponge cakes rolls), You can rolll it immediately, but even if you let it cool down before you fill and roll it will come out satisfactorily . .The same also with some genoise type of sponge. The presence of fat in the recipe makes the rolls flexible and cracking is minimized. Roy
I'm glad I joined this group today as my next (wife-directed) project is a chocolate yule log.
Any tips on filling - white - and coating, ie icing sugar mixed with cocoa (frosting) or melted chocolate?
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