Chocolate Cake Roll with Oreo Cream

Cake rolls have always fascinated me.  I mean, how does a flat sheet of plain old sponge cake blossom into a cute, spirally, lollipop-esque confection that looks like it should belong in a candy store?  It just didn't seem physically logical.  While I was making this cake roll in my head, I also envisioned the inevitable result...surely the cake will break and crumble into a million pieces as I attempt to roll it into such an unnatural state.  I was convinced that commercial bakeries must add in some sort of chemical to make the cakes soft and rollable.  So, as usual, curiosity got the best of me, and I had to try.



Surprise, surprise, not only did the cake stayed intact, it was actually very easy to roll!  The trick is, I quickly realized, that the cakes should be rolled into its final shape as soon as it emerges from the oven, BEFORE it has a chance to cool down.  The other trick? Using my hand as a spatula to gently fold the meringue into the batter, which minimized deflation of the egg whites and kept a light springy cake.

Now I'm hooked!  It's like discovering macarons all over again.  The endless combination of cake and filling...I'm already tasting my next cake roll in my head...


Chocolate Cake Roll with Oreo Cream
makes one 9-inch roll

120 g egg whites, at room temperature
pinch of salt
80 g granulated sugar, separated
80 g egg yolks
60 g vegetable oil
75 g whole milk
80 g all-purpose flour
15 g cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
250 ml heavy cream
80 g Oreo cookies
10 g icing sugar

Prepare a 9" X 13" baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.  Cut slits on all four corners to fold up the edges.  Preheat oven to 180 C.

Start by making the meringue.  With an electric hand mixer, beat egg whites with salt on low speed.  As the whites start to turn white and foamy, gradually add in 60 grams of sugar.  Increase speed to high and whip to soft peaks.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat egg yolks with remaining sugar until pale and fluffy.  Add milk and oil.  Continue beating on low speed until incorporated and batter has thickened, about 1 minute.

Sift in flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda.  Beat on low speed until just incorporated.  Do not overmix.

With your hand, scoop up about 1/3 of the meringue and gently fold into batter.  Pour the mixture into the leftover meringue.  Gently fold the meringue and batter together with your hand acting as a rubber spatula until there are no visible streaks of white meringue.

Pour the batter on to prepared baking sheet.  Use a bench scraper to ensure that the batter is spread evenly on the sheet. 

Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Immediately flip the cake on a wire rack and carefully remove parchment. 

Dust the entire surface of the cake with a light coating of icing sugar. 

Pick up the shorter end of the cake and roll into a log.  Wrap a tea towel around the log and set on wire rack to cool, at least 30 minutes.

While the cake is cooling, make the Oreo cream.  Reserve 2 whole Oreo cookies and put the rest into a food processor.  Pulse until cookies resemble coarse sand.  Whip the heavy cream with a hand mixer until soft peaks form.  Add in cookie crumbs and beat until evenly distributed throughout.  Transfer cream into a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to use. 

Chop or process the remaining two Oreos into large chunks and set aside.

When the cake has cooled, unroll and spread evenly with prepared Oreo cream.  Sprinkle larger chunks of Oreo on top. 

Re-roll into log and wrap with plastic film.  Refrigerate for at least one hour. 

When chilled, carefully slice cake in 1-inch slices with a bread knife and serve.  The cake roll can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.   Enjoy!