easy chocolate roulade recipe

Chocolate roulade recipe

I’m the big chocolate fan in our house. N would rather have other cakes and puddings, but he does enjoy a chocolate roulade. I don’t make them often, but made one over the Christmas holidays when I had plenty of time to play with.  

Apart from the amazing chocolate taste against the cream, and the lightness of a flourless sponge, I like that you can make the sponge ahead.  

easy chocolate roulade recipe

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Many chocolate roulade recipes say to cover with a damp tea towel (ideally raised up slightly with a wire rack above the cake) once it’s cool to keep it moist if it’s going to be a while before you fill and roll it. The recipe I used also recommended encasing it with the tea towel over in a plastic bag. I was a bit half hearted about this as it is a faff.  

More and more recipes nowadays say you don’t have to do this including Mary Berry’s chocolate roulade recipe. So it’s your choice with whatever works better for you. I always still cover with a damp tea towel unless I’m rolling it as soon as it’s cool.

I kept it plain with just whipped cream inside. But you could spread a jam, cherry pie filling or defrosted frozen berries then top with cream before rolling up if you want to add something different. There’s also the option to add a bit of flavour to the cream once it’s lightly whipped to give a hint of orange or mint from an extract.

But I stuck with it plain. Just cream which offsets the intensity of the plain chocolate really well. 

slice of cream filled chocolate roulade in bowl

The roulade keeps well covered in the fridge for up to 3 days, so if you can make it last that long, it’s an easy pudding for the next couple of days.

This chocolate roulade is really easy to make. The hardest thing is separating the eggs! My tip for that is to always separate into cups so you can make sure the whites are just the whites before adding to a clean mixing bowl and whisking to stiff peaks

stiff peaked egg whites

Once the chocolate is melted and slightly cooled, you can add it to whisked sugar and egg yolks. Then gradually fold in the egg whites, plus the cooca. Smoothing the batter into a swiss roll tin then baking for around 20-25 minutes. Once the roulade is cooled, you can turn it out, spread on the filling and roll it up using baking paper to help it roll.  Don’t worry about it cracking because chances are it will.

chocolate roulade side on

Useful equipment I like

How to make chocolate roulade recipe

Serves 8
Prep time 20 mins
Cook time 25 mins

Ingredients

  • 175g plain chocolate
  • 175g caster sugar
  • 6 large eggs, separated
  • 2 tbsp cocoa powder, sifted

To fill and finish

  • 300ml double cream 
  • icing sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas mark 4. 

2. Lightly grease a swiss-roll tin (around 33cm x 23cm),  lining it with nonstick baking parchment.

3. Melt the chocolate either in a bain marie (chocolate pieces in a bowl stood on top of a pan of simmering water) or in a microwavable bowl, stirring every 30 seconds until melted. Leave to cool a little.

4. Whisk the sugar and egg yolks together in a bowl until light and creamy. Add the cooled chocolate and stir gently until evenly blended.

5. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks. Gently stir a spoonful at a time of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Then fold in the remaining egg whites and the sieved cocoa powder.

6. Spread evenly in the prepared tin. Bake for about 20-25 minutes until firm.

7. Remove the cake from the oven, leave in the tin, cover with a damp tea towel and leave until cold.

8. Whip the cream until it’s just holding its shape. Dust a large piece of greaseproof paper with sifted icing sugar. Turn out the roulade and peel off the paper.

9. Score a line with a knife, about 1 inch in, along the short edge, 

10. Spread the cream then roll up tightly like a swiss roll, using the paper to help. The roulade will crack a bit.  Serve with a dusting of icing sugar

chocolate roulade with cream filling

You can freeze this roulade, without the icing sugar dusting, for up to 1 month. Wrap well in cling film then foil so it’s airtight. Defrost at room temperature for an hour or so, or in the fridge for longer before serving.

Are you a roulade fan?

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4 Comments

  1. I love roulade and I’ve always wanted to make one myself, but I’ve been nervous about the whole rolling part.
    This chocolate and cream one looks delicious though!

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