Love and Olive Oil
Strawberry Cake Roll

Strawberry Cake Roll

Roll into strawberry season with this gorgeous strawberry cake roll: a delicate almond sponge cake decorated with a cute strawberry design and filled with strawberry whipped cream.

The Japanese are really on to something with these patterned cake rolls. They are as impressive to behold as they are delicious to eat, and are arguably much easier and less time-intensive than fancy frosted layer cakes.

Two slices of a strawberry cake roll, showing the spiral shape and whipped cream filling.

Talk about dressed to impress!

If you’re the type that wants to create beautifully decorated cakes that’ll wow your guests, but don’t want to deal with a laborious layer cake, you should definitely give a Japanese-style patterned cake roll a try.

This stunning style of cake allows you to create intricate designs that are baked right into the cake itself, no fancy frosting necessary.

The technique does require some basic piping skills (the more you practice the better you’ll get), but honestly, even if you just piped a bunch of polka dots all over the thing, the result would be absolutely lovely.

OVerhead shot of a strawberry cake roll, and a slice on a pink plate with fresh strawberries on the side.

Unlike my pumpkin roll cake which divides the main sponge batter into three separate colors, this method uses a separate paste-like batter that can create a more detailed design.

The paste is piped onto a sheet of parchment, freezing briefly to set, then an airy sponge cake batter is poured over the top. After baking, peel back the parchment paper and prepare to be wowed!

Overhead shot of Spring Strawberry Cake Roll with two slices, and a few strawberries on the side.

I originally went for a more abstract strawberry design, with a pink background, green squiggles and yellow seeds. It came out quite cute, but looked more like an Easter egg than a strawberry. And unfortunately, I failed big time when it came to the filling on that first roll, attempting a strawberry marshmallow filling that, while it tasted amazing, oozed out of the ends of the roll like sweet, sticky magma.

Take 2.

Since I had to remake the cake anyway to fix the filling, I also reworked the design, opting for dots instead of squiggles (easer to pipe), and simplified red berries so there would be no mistaking the flavor of this cake roll.

The cake batter paste gives the pattern an almost embossed feeling, the paste cooking up slightly firmer than the surrounding sponge. It’s a cool effect, although it is a bit tricky to cut since the paste bakes up firmer than the sponge cake itself (tip: use a serrated knife to very gently saw through the bigger shapes). Or, plan a design that allows you to cut in between the piped shapes.

The little bubbles that appeared in the berries were a complete accident, but don’t they look like little seeds?

Peeling off the parchment paper to reveal the pink strawberry design on a Japanese-inspired cake roll Final cake roll wrapped in plastic, fits perfectly inside a round whiskey bottle tube to hold its round shape.

Pro Tip: To keep your cake roll from slumping into an oval, chill it in a large cardboard mailing tube (about 3.25″ in diameter). I used a cardboard tube that a whiskey bottle came in and it couldn’t have been more perfect.

Japanese-style cake roll with a cute cartoon strawberry design on the outside. Close up shot of the cake roll slices and filling texture.

Cake Roll Troubleshooting

If you’re having issues with your cake roll coming out too flat/thin, or if your design wrinkles, cracks or sticks, there are a few reasons why that might be happening.

Wrong size pan. This recipe is written for a standard jelly-roll pan, which falls in between a half and quarter sheet, approximately 10-by-15-inches in size. A 13-by-9-inch pan would be the closest alternative, though you’ll end up with a slightly thicker cake layer and a shorter, squatter roll overall. If you only have a half sheet pan (13-by-18-inch), you’ll want to 1.5x the recipe (sort of tricky to do with 3 eggs, which is why I recommend getting your hands on a true jelly roll pan if you can).

The wrong kind of flour. You’ll notice this recipe calls for cake flour, which is more finely-milled and lower-protein than cake flour. All-Purpose flour is just too heavy for this kind of cake, and you’ll end up with a super thin, dense layer of cake instead of a light and fluffy one. Trust me on this one and don’t use AP flour.

Too much flour. Using too much flour resulted in a base batter that was much thicker, and much harder to incorporate the egg whites into. This ultimately resulted in a batter that was over-mixed and lacking the air it needed to properly rise. I highly, highly recommend using a scale to measure out your flour to be sure you’re using exactly the right amount.

I have a feeling the majority of issues people have with this style of cake is a result of using the wrong kind of flour or over-measuring the flour.

Unstable meringue. 100% of the lift in this cake recipe is from the meringue: from the air beaten into egg whites. If your meringue is underbeaten, overbeaten, or just plain unstable, it won’t give the cake the lift it needs. Weather can sometimes affect meringues, as can the freshness of your eggs (fresh, cold eggs are best here). I do not recommend using liquid egg whites as they just won’t whip up. Also, use the egg whites immediately after they are beaten; if you let them sit they tend to deflate (so mix the egg yolk/flour batter first, then whip the egg yolks and fold it in).

Overmixed batter. When you add the egg whites to your base batter, you want to gently fold the egg whites in until they are just incorporated, no more. Check YouTube for proper folding techniques if you’ve never done it before (don’t be like David and Moira).

Cracks. An overbaked cake, because it is drier and slightly browned/crispy around the edges, is much more likely to crack when you try to roll it up. Pull the cake out of the oven when the top is spongy and the edges are just barely (I mean barely!) starting to brown. Then, keep your potholders on and flip the cake out right away. Dust with sugar and roll it up in a tea towel while the cake is still warm, as this will give it a ‘muscle memory’ that will also keep it from cracking.

Wrinkles. Not all parchment paper is created equal, and this is one recipe where you want to use something good and thick. Thin parchment tends to wrinkle when it comes in contact with moisture (like, say, a moist cake batter), and those wrinkles will show up in your final cake roll. I use King Arthur’s parchment paper sheets, which are nice and thick and doesn’t easily wrinkle.

Sticking. Additionally, if you find your design is sticking to the parchment when you try to peel it off, try a different brand of parchment paper or even a silicone baking mat. You can also coat the surface with a very thin layer of butter before adding your design.

With the King Arthur parchment I did not need butter; when peeling the parchment just do it slow and carefully so you can catch and peel off any bits of the design that are sticking before they come off the surface of the roll. Ideally, the design will stay put, but the thin surface of the cake base will peel off with the parchment, revealing a slightly raised design and bubbly surface texture around it. It doesn’t always work exactly this way but the design still looks lovely even when it’s imperfect.

Japanese-inspired Spring Strawberry Cake Roll on a cutting board with fresh strawberries on the side.

This same technique could be used to create just about any design your heart desires!

Whatever design you go with, I recommend creating a template or drawing the design on the back of your parchment before you start piping. I know I personally have trouble controlling the piping tip (my hands just don’t have that kind of strength), so not having to think about the design as you go is immensely helpful.

I’ve created a printable template with my design (scroll down below the recipe to get it). Just print the template onto a sheet of letter sized paper, and place it under your parchment paper to help you pipe the precise design. Just don’t forget to remove the paper before baking!

Since piping a design like this is somewhat tedious, you can save yourself some effort and only put the design on the outer 2/3 of the cake. The rest will be rolled up inside the final cake roll, after all, so only the part of the cake will actually be visible on the outside of the roll. (If you do this, just be sure that when you roll up your cake, you start with the blank side, otherwise your beautiful design will end up on the inside of the roll where no one can see it.)

UPDATE 8/31/20: After testing this recipe numerous times I’ve adjusted the design paste recipe. The original paste was a thick batter, and while it held detail nicely, it was rather tough to pipe, and thinning it out made it harder to get a detailed design. The new and improved design paste uses softened butter rather than vegetable oil, making for a more butter-cream like consistency that’s quite easy to pipe with a piping bag. It’d also work really well with cake stencils!

The updated design paste blends better with the cake, so the design won’t be quite as ‘raised’ looking as the photos. It’s also softer, and easier to cut than the old version.

For reference, if you’ve made this recipe previously and want to replicate it, the original design paste called for 1 large egg white (30g), 2 tablespoons (16g) powdered sugar, 1/2 cup (50g) cake flour, 1 tablespoon (15g) vegetable oil, and 1-2 teaspoons milk as needed. The updated recipe is shown below.

Spring Strawberry Cake Roll

Strawberry Cake Roll

A Japanese-inspired strawberry patterned roll cake perfect for spring, filled with a fluffy strawberry whipped cream.
4.69 stars (16 reviews)

Ingredients

For Paste:

  • 2 tablespoons / 30 g unsalted butter, softened (softer than room temp, but not melted)
  • 2 ½ tablespoons / 30 g granulated sugar
  • cup / 40 g cake flour, sifted
  • 1 large / 30 g egg white
  • food coloring

For Cake:

  • 3 large eggs, separated
  • 6 tablespoons / 75 g granulated sugar, divided
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 ½ tablespoons / 23 g whole milk
  • ½ teaspoon almond extract
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • cup / 67 g cake flour*, sifted
  • food coloring

For Filling:

  • 1 cup / 240 g heavy whipping cream
  • ¼ teaspoon unflavored powdered gelatin
  • ½ ounce / 14 g freeze-dried strawberries
  • 3 tablespoons / 38 g granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon / 8 g powdered sugar

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter or grease the bottom and sides of a 15 by 10-inch jelly roll pan; line with parchment paper (if using a design template, place the printed template underneath the parchment paper, or trace it onto the back side of the parchment with thick pencil lines).
  • To make design paste, with a spatula or wooden spoon, mix butter and sugar together until you get a smooth paste. Add flour and mix until partially incorporated, then add egg white and mix until smooth. Paste should have a buttercream-like consistency.
  • Divide paste into 3 bowls (how you divide it proportionally will depend on your design) and add food coloring as desired. (I mixed 20g paste with 1 drop leaf green; 60g paste with 1 drop deep pink and 1/2 drop red; and 40g paste mixed with 1 teaspoon of the pink paste to produce a lighter shade of pink for the dots).
  • Transfer pastes into piping bags fitted with small round piping tips (I used my smallest #1 tip for the green, a #3 tip for the light pink dots, and a larger #5 tip for the berries).
  • Pipe design onto parchment. Start with the green, then pipe the darker pink berries on top, and finish with the lighter pink dots. Place pan in freezer to allow the design to set while you prepare the rest of the batter.
  • Place egg yolks in a mixing bowl. Add 1/4 cup sugar and whisk until sugar is dissolved and yolks are lightened in color. Drizzle in vegetable oil, whisking constantly, until incorporated. Whisk in milk, almond extract and salt. Add food coloring as desired (I mixed a bit of Deep Pink and Red with a toothpick, then added just a toothpick's worth to the batter.)
  • Sprinkle sifted cake flour over batter and fold until incorporated.
  • In a clean mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites until frothy. Add remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and beat on high speed until whites hold medium-stiff peaks.
  • Fold a third of egg whites into batter to lighten it, then add the remaining egg whites and fold until just incorporated.
  • Pour batter over top of frozen design, spreading the batter into an even layer using a large offset spatula. Bang the pan a few times on the countertop to remove any air bubbles and level out the top.
  • Bake for about 10 minutes or until top is springy and edges are just barely starting to brown.
  • Remove from oven. Carefully invert warm cake onto a piece of parchment backed by a solid surface like a large cutting board. Peel off parchment paper backing, revealing the design. Liberally dust a clean tea towel with powdered sugar and lay on top of cake. Flip cake over so the design is facing down.
  • Starting with the side of the cake without the design, carefully roll up the warm cake in the towel. Doing this while the cake is still warm will give the cake a 'muscle memory' and allow you to roll it up later with the filling without it cracking.
  • Let rolled cake cool for about 1 hour or until completely cool to the touch.
  • Meanwhile, to make filling, in a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 1 tablespoon cool water and let soften for 5 minutes. Microwave the mixture in short, 5 second increments until the gelatin is completely dissolved and liquefied. Let cool slightly (but don't let it firm up, if it does, microwave it again).
  • In a food processor or clean coffee/spice grinder, pulse freeze dried strawberries together with sugar until very finely ground.
  • Place whipping cream in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium speed until frothy, then add powdered sugar, increase to medium high and beat until the paddle starts to leave trails in the cream.
  • Mix a spoonful of the partially-whipped cream into the bowl with the melted gelatin until completely incorporated, then, with the mixer running on low, add this back to the bowl with the rest of the cream. Add strawberry sugar mixture and increase speed to medium high, beating until cream holds medium-stiff peaks (take care not to overbeat).
  • Carefully unroll cake and remove towel. You may need to hold it with your hand as it will try to roll back up (see, muscle memory!) Spread filling into a thin even layer over the whole cake, leaving about 1/2 inch bare at the far end. You may not need all of the filling, depending on how thick a layer you want.
  • Gently roll up the cake, taking care not to use too much pressure lest the filling squeeze out the sides. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight, until filling is set. If you happen to have a cardboard tube lying around, place your cake roll in the tube to keep the bottom from flattening out as it chills (I used a 3 1/2-inch-diameter tube for a whiskey bottle and it was the perfect size).
  • To serve, cut into slices with a sharp serrated knife (the design bits are harder than the cake itself. The slices will look best if you cut using a sharp serrated knife, pulling the knife gently towards you, letting the weight of the knife do the cutting; it may take a few strokes to get through the firmer design parts. Try not to saw back and forth or press down or the design will compress into the cake).
  • Cake roll will keep, tightly wrapped and refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

Video

Notes

  • *Cake flour is very important for this recipe to work (AP is just too heavy and you'll end up with a super thin, dense layer of cake instead of a light and fluffy one).
All images and text © for Love & Olive Oil.

Did you make this recipe?

Let us know what you think! Leave a Review below or share a photo and tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #loveandoliveoil.

Printable Template

If you want to replicate my design exactly, download the printable PDF template below. Letter-size paper is a bit smaller than a standard jelly roll pan, so you can either print multiple pages to fill the pan, or move the paper around underneath the parchment as you go along.

Happy baking!

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121 Comments

  1. This recipe is fantastic! My gf and I had such a fun time making this, and it tasted great! We’re definitely amateur bakers and the directions were still easy to follow and evidently it worked out very well. Thank you so much!

  2. Fantastic recipe. My cake turned out great except for the color. Mine came out light peach instead of light pink. Any idea where I went wrong? 

  3. Hi! I’m a fairly new baker and would like some advice. I have just attempted this recipe and the amount of batter is so little. I’m not sure where I went wrong. I followed the instructions but the amount of batter I got looked like less than 1 cup… I knew I couldn’t get it to fit inside a 10×15 pan so I used a 6×9. Even then it was barely able to cover the bottom. Maybe I didn’t whip the eggs enough to give it volume but even then it wouldn’t seem like it could fit a 10×15 pan. Please help!

    • Guessing you may have overmeasured the flour… this produces a thicker batter than needs more folding to incorporate the egg whites, resulting in a loss of air. Simply overmixing can do the same thing. Try weighing your flour next time? Be sure to watch the video in this post too which should let you see the consistency of the batter.

  4. Hi! For the paste, can I use gluten free flour/corn flour etc. instead of cake flour? :)

  5. Is there any way to make the cake chocolate instead of the regular almond? Do I just replace some of the flour with cocoa powder? Thanks!

  6. I made this yesterday and being a perfectionist I am shattered it did not look as perfect as yours first go :)

    Actually pretty happy with it – might use half an egg white next time but also learned I have to not be heavy handed with the paste. Less is more else it smears a little.

    The flavour with the freeze dried strawbs is AMAZING – you can almost taste a spring afternoon tea when you eat this !

    Thanks for the recipe, will definitely do it again and didn’t find the rolling etc that difficult.

    Cheers

    Dave

  7. I really want to make this recipe, but my baking sheet is 11 in x 16 in and was wondering what adjustments do I need to make to accommodate my baking sheet, if possible?

    • You’d need to calculate the volume of your pan and scale accordingly. It’s not that much larger than the 10-by-15 pan the recipe calls for, you may be ok using the recipe as written though the cake would be thinner overall.

  8. I just wanted to come here and say that I found the tube you used, to keep your cake shaped, on Ebay. It was only $10. $5 for tube and $5 for shipping. I’ll be using it for a long time as I’ll be making these jellyroll cake till I die, haha!!!

  9. I tried this last night and my cake turned out like a thin biscuit, so flat and hard. There wasn’t a hope of rolling it, it just cracked straight away. I felt that there was very little batter in this recipe I might try it again with double.

    • Sounds like you didn’t have enough air in the batter (that’s what gives this cake its lift). Maybe your meringue wasn’t sturdy enough (try adding a pinch of cream of tartar next time), or, more likely, the batter was overmixed. Fold in the egg white very gently and just until incorporated, no more, as you want to preserve as much air as possible. That would be my best guess at least!

    • To the naysayers, this DOES work. I tried it, and it works. Watch mosogourmet Little Orange Bear Cake and make one of those first to practice this kind of cake. Then make this recipe. If it didn’t work, you’re doing it wrong. The recipe IS fine for the most part. (Also, follow his recipe for the whipped topping: you DON’T need gelatin).

      My ONLY issue is that there was barely enough batter. It still worked beautifully though: it was just skinnier than a 3.25 diameter. It had like a 2.5 diameter but still rolled up perfectly. (Yes, I DID use the official jelly roll pan and mine was 11 * 13 inches which is 7 sq inches LESS than her recipe, and it still barely filled). 

      WATCH your pan like a hawk. Put two pieces of normal paper underneath your parchment paper like moso did, and also put foil underneath the baking pan so it doesn’t burn on the bottom. As soon as the edges start browning SLIGHTLY, pop open the oven door and tap the top. If it sinks/dents, cook another minute. Repeat till the top of the cake is bouncy. 

      My only critique was that the cake flavor itself was odd. Too sugary. (Sponge cakes do be that way tho). 

  10. I’d love to adapt this for a “boozy” version for St. Patty’s day.  Any suggestions for how to do that?

  11. Question about the piping bottle. I’ve bought Ateko brand #1, #3, & #5 piping tips. I’m not very steady with my hands, but if I have to, I will use the piping bags with the corresponding tips for each phase of the outer roll design. The link to the piping bottles leads to a product page that now says “unavailable.” I found similar products, but I’m unsure if they are designed to be used with other tips. When researching the page, I could not find anyone who was willing to elaborate on that detail. I would really like to get piping bottles if I can. Are there any others that you’ve used and can therefore recommend? Any that will accommodate the piping tips that I mentioned buying in the beginning of my comment? I appreciate any help you can offer to me. I cannot wait to make this!! This will be my first time making something like this. I’ve only made cookies, moon cakes, and bread before….so this is going to be so new for me. I will certainly give you a mention in my post on IG and other pages. I love all of your creations.

    • For the new revised recipe I recommend using a piping bag. The paste is very thick and I think you’d have a really hard time getting anything out of a bottle.

      • I’ve made this cake multiple times and it always comes out so pretty! I’m not a huge fan of overly sweet pastries so this is perfect. I usually use some sandwich bags with a very small hole cut out the tip for making the designs because I am cheap and it’s definitely more difficult but I think the strawberries still come out fine.

        Question I want to bake this for a family member who is allergic to nuts and wondering about substituting the almond extract for something else might mess with the recipe or if forgoing it entirely will change the flavor too much?

      • Definitely ok to swap the almond extract, vanilla perhaps? It’s just a tiny bit of liquid so removing or replacing it won’t affect the final texture or anything!

    • Hi! I’m looking forward to trying this recipe. It is strawberry picking season here in Japan. Would love to make this with fresh strawberries.

      Have you heard of anyone substituting the flour for gluten free all purpose flour? Or, possibly rice flour? 

  12. what size tray would you bake the cake in? is 9×13 okay

  13. Thanks For Sharing this Amazing Recipe. My Family Loved It. I will be sharing this Recipe with my Friends. Hope They will like it.

  14. Hi and Happy New Year!!!!
    My household is vegetarian so I do not use gelatin. Do you think that another thickener would work for the filling such as pectin or arrowroot? Thank you

    • The gelatin helps set the whipped cream so it is more stable and long-lasting. Unfortunately I have not tested vegan alternatives here, so I cannot say what may/may not work in a similar way, sorry!

    • Kolina, try using Dr. Oetker whipped cream stabilizer sold in a double packet and is called Whipit. One packet will firm 250 mls of heavy cream and does not contain gelatin. If you can’t find that, one tablespoon cornstarch per 250 mls cream added after sugar OR 3 tablespoons milk powder per 250 mls cream OR 3 tablespoons vanilla pudding powder per 250 mls. All will work just fine.

  15. this was a good swiss roll cake but there was to much salt in the recipe i would recommend to add a pinch of salt instead but the strawberry cream was delicious it makes the swiss roll so good

    • The recipe was developed using Diamond kosher salt. Other brands of kosher are saltier, as is table salt. If you are using table salt I recommend 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon per 1 teaspoon called for.

  16. It looks so beautiful! Too cute not to try! Bet that my kiddos will love it!

  17. Delicious and beautifull recipe!!

  18. Hi, I just made this cake and used a watermelon design instead of strawberries. My issue is the watermelons were slightly stuck to the parchment and then they all popped off when I rolled up the cake! I’m prettty sure I followed all the instructions exactly but just changed the design. Any ideas why this happened? 

    • I’ve found different parchments are stickier than others. The thicker the better. Also, you have to peel it off very carefully, if any pieces of the design start to stick you can pick it off as you peel to keep it with the cake.
      Silpats also work amazingly well here, nothing sticks at all!

  19. I only have a 9×13 inch pan and a baking sheet. Can I use either of those to bake the roll cake?

    • The recipe is written for a 10×15 jelly roll pan. This is larger than a 13×9, and smaller than a standard half sheet (13×18). Your best bet is probably to 1 1/2 times the recipe and use the half sheet pan, although this is going to make a much larger diameter roll than what’s pictured, so it may be a bit tricky to handle and roll.

  20. I made this yesterday and today! The first attempt, I didn’t whisk the egg whites enough, although today’s cake was still very thin even with properly whisked egg whites. (I don’t think it’s ‘wrong’; but I’m wondering if I can increase the batter by 25% to give a thicker sponge). I didn’t add milk to the decoration batter; yesterday’s was very runny even without, but I’m blaming the heat for that. Today I didn’t have quite as much oil even, and was ok if somewhat tacky. Didn’t have almond essence so used rosewater instead which was nice. Today made a strawberry coulis to go with the (freeze-dried) strawberry buttercream. (didn’t use whipped cream). I’ve made patterned cakes before, and the baking paper always pulls off the pattern, but whether your batter is better, or I used different baking paper, or I’m just getting the hang of it, I was very pleased with the result. Will make this again!

  21. Amazing! I have tried many “from scratch” recipes and this one beats them all by far!
    I will use a bit less of the batter next time though, maybe use a bit for cupcakes.
    I made a cheesecake type filling then spread some lemon curd over that.
    So good and highly recommended!

  22. Hi Lindsay, thank you for the beautiful recipe. However, it didn’t work for me.

    1) The strawberry and polka dot design was stuck to the parchment paper.

    2) I did not manage to reach stiff peak at all for my whipped cream despite freezing my mixing bowl beforehand. Whipping cream was cold from fridge as well.

    Could you help to figure out why please? 

    • Sorry you had troubles with this!
      1. I imagine different brands of parchment may behave differently? Also be sure you’re indeed using parchment, not waxed paper (which won’t work!) A silicone mat would work here too. I’ve never had an issue with the design sticking.
      2. Be sure you are using a true ‘heavy whipping cream’, sometimes things labeled just whipping cream aren’t high enough fat to properly whip, temperature aside. Look for the carton with the highest fat %, not an ultra-pasteurized if you can find it, as that’ll likely give you the best results.

  23. This recipe sucked. Tried another instead. What a waste.

    • Sorry you had issues with this recipe. Can you let me know what happened? I’m sure we can determine what happened, I just need a bit more info.

    • this cake did not turn out well for me at all. it was so dense and didn’t roll and turned out to be a thin cracker 👎 it’s hard to not over mix this was just bad and difficult

      • Did you use AP flour possibly? I’ve found that using AP flour, or using too much flour (not measuring the flour by weight) leads to overmixing and a thin, dense cake. The cake flour really makes a difference here!

  24. Hi, I noticed that the filling asks for powdered sugar but it’s not noted to use it anywhere in the instructions.

  25. There’s no leavening in this cake?? The egg whites are not enough. I got a pancake. I really think your recipe is off.

    • Sponge cake relies on egg whites for leavening. It doesn’t ‘rise’ necessarily but should be light and fluffy. If it wasn’t, it’s likely that too much air was pressed out of the batter while mixing, most likely?

  26. Hi! Would it be possible to substitute the vegetable oil for butter instead? Looking forward to trying out this recipe over the weekend!

    • I have not tried this personally, but I have a feeling you may have a harder time rolling the cake (it’ll be prone to cracks). The vegetable oil helps keep it flexible. You could use any other neutral flavored oil here too, like grapeseed or avocado, with similar results (I’d do that over butter if you can).

  27. I was so excited to make this and it did not turn out. Very disappointing. I’ve read many people have had to alter the recipe to get it right. Make sure you check to see if a recipe is legit before you waste time and ingredients!! 

  28. I loved this design so i tried it but i didnt like the eggy smell i think since it has alot of them although I used cake flour and vanilla but still it was so eggy for me so the second time i made it i let it little longer in the oven but still has a smell of egg in addition it had a crack while rolling it , I was sad for that but still has intention to retry it with another cake recipe.

    • Sponge cakes are egg-based cakes by nature, the whipped egg whites are what makes it so light and airy. That said, I didn’t find this cake overly eggy. It could be your eggs, you may want to try a different brand of eggs, the fresher they are the less of a noticeable scent they have. Also, cracks usually imply the cake is overbaked, which if you left it in the oven longer that would definitely explain why!

    • letting an highly egg based cake cool in any type of breeze/temperature higher than room temp can make them taste eggier! i dont know why, but it could be a factor.

    • Hello Amani, a chef ( 25yrs experience in the kitchen ) once advices me to keep my eggs in the fridge as I buy them,  then remove & let come down to room temp. before using ; apparently this tales down the eggy smell …he adviced me this after  tasting my lemon meringue ; I haven’t tried it yet but will do at next baking . Hope it helps u .

  29. What can I use instead of cake flour?

    • All purpose flour will work in a pinch (bleached over unbleached if you have a choice), the cake texture just won’t be quite as soft and delicate.

  30. Oh what a fun cake to make. It was time-consuming, but made a wonderful presentation! Surprisingly, it looked like the one pictured here, which seldom happens to me! :-) Here are the problems I had; I really want to figure out what I did wrong, because I totally want to do it again. 1. The paste for the design was entirely too thick to pipe, so I added some milk like a reviewer suggested, but it was so stringy that I had a lot of difficulty piping the designs. The recipient recognized that they were strawberries, so I didn’t do too badly. 2. Because my pan wouldn’t fit in the freezer, I just made the designs on parchment paper to be transferred after they were frozen; however, because I didn’t have a correctly composed paste, they didn’t freeze so I couldn’t transfer them. I just cut the paper into sections and placed them in the pan, and it worked ok. 3. I think I will use a slightly different pan next time, as I used the official jellyroll pan, and I believe it was too large. But it was such a lovely cake and quite impressive. Thank you so much! I may try a different recipe for the piping paste, but I will certainly make again.

  31. Wow! This was the BEST roll cake recipe I have ever tried. I wasn’t able to find freeze dried strawberries, so I substituted them with strawberry jello mix and it worked perfectly. The pattern on the outside was beautiful. I would 100% recommend :)

  32. Hi Lindsay, can I substitute the almond extract with Vanilla Extract and strawberry with chocolate for filling? Thank you.

    • You can definitely swap the extracts; swapping chocolate would be a more major change and I really can’t say how it would affect the filling though.

  33. This looks absolutely fabulous and I really want to make this. However, I don’t eat any pork and wanted a good alternative. I’ve tried vegetarian gelatin but this doesn’t seem to set. any suggestions please?

    • Maybe try a whipped buttercream in the center instead of whipped cream? The gelatin helps stabilize and set the whipped cream, without it it might be too fragile to roll up. But a light buttercream should work here too!

    • Late, but i used agar agar, and also used 1/4 cup powdered sugar and ditched the granulated sugar for the filling. it helps a lot with keeping it stable at room temperature :)

    • I don’t know where you live but in Canada we have a product by Dr.Oetker called Whipit. Sold in a double packet, it is a whipped cream stabilizer that does not contain gelatine. One packet will stabilize and firm up 250mls of heavy cream. I use it all the time with great success. Good luck!

  34. The cake batter was amazing. But the paste for print was very dry. I added few tablespoons of milk and little more oil to make it pipeable. Thank you for sharing the wonderful recipe. Your roll looks gorgeous👌🏻👌🏻

  35. I made this for my son’s birthday because he is obsessed with anything Japanese. We loved it. He’s allergic to milk so I used a non-dairy whipped topping instead of whipping cream. It was so good!

  36. do you spray your parchment paper with a nonstick spray prior to piping the design onto it?

    • I did not, the parchment is already coated with silicone for a nonstick finish. You could use an untextured silicone mat as well.

  37. I live in England, UK, and I don’t know if I can find cake flour here. Could you please recommend what to use as a substitute? Thank you. 

    • Basically cake flour is more finely milled and lower in protein than regular flower. I don’t think there’s a direct substitute, but I’ve heard you can use a mix of AP flour and cornstarch or potato starch (which helps lower the protein content of AP). Haven’t tried it myself though!

    • When I made this didn’t had the cake flour in hand. So I substituted with all purpose flour and cornstarch. It worked great. 
      1 cup all purpose flour. Remove 2 tablespoons of flour and replace with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. 

  38. This looks sooo cute! I will have to give it a try and hope it comes out looking as good as yours does.

  39. Thank you so much! I can’t wait to try this! :)

  40. Where is the PDF file? I’m not seeing it… Thanks!

    • Sorry, recent updates must have broken something. The form is back now, just enter your email address and you’ll get a link to download. :)

  41. Wow, so impressed and now I’ve impressed myself, really chuffed with the result. I cut the ends off with an electric knife, slips through the ‘strawberries’ easily. After leaving in the fridge for an hour or so, I could mould gently into a perfect cylinder. It really is a beautiful cake, and the most perfect instructions I followed to a tee.

  42. I tried to rip off the parchment paper but the skin was still stuck onto the cake and not left on the paper. How did you get it to peel off so nicely?

    • Could be the cake was slightly under baked? You could also use a Silpat or lightly spray the parchment with cooking spray before adding the batter next time. Different brands of parchment really vary in quality too. The thicker the better in this case!

    • This was so fun to do and you made it so straight forward so thank you! The template was super helpful and the paste easy to work with. My first cake went in the bin because I was scared of over baking it. Once it was cooled I unwrapped a moist, broken mess. I wasn’t too hot on it anyways as the decoration broke up a bit because it wasn’t piped consistently thick enough. The second round, the piping went well and I decided to change the sponge color to sky blue. This time the cake pulled away from the sides of the pan slightly in a sign it was more done. Success! It was even the most beautiful swirl, after realizing that initial tuck didn’t actually need to be tight. Let the cake roll itself (bake it right) and she’ll roll herself. The ends tasted mmmmmmm.

      Thanks for the fun Saturday project and the delicious Sunday eating! 

  43. Wondering if I could make ahead and freeze???

    • I have not tried freezing this cake. Not sure it’d work, I’d worry the whipped cream filling would deflate/weep when you tried to thaw it out…

  44. this is the most beautiful and adorable dessert i may have ever seen. and looks so yummy! 

  45. Wasn’t this same exact thing on an early season of Great British Bake Off?

  46. Hi can i just make this as a cake? Instead of roll cake? Thanks 

    • Not sure what you mean, but the recipe is meant to be baked in a jelly roll pan which would make for a very thin cake were you not to roll it up.

  47. now this is impressive, the parchment paper add on method is genius, couple with the roll up, wow

  48. I just love cake rolls! This strawberry roll looks absolutely gorgeous – so delicious and perfect for the summer!

  49. OMG! I almost made something very similar this past weekend, I’ve been collecting Japanese patterned cake rolls for a while, I am obsessed by them! 

     I ended up making a cake with a pattern Jaconde outside – should be on the blog this coming weekend, I hope you can stop by?   Anyway I will read your recipe carefully and try this very soon!  You did a perfect job….

    • Is there a substitute i can use for the whip cream filling? Where i live some ingredients are difficult to find.

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