Pumpkin, cream cheese and spices; OH MY! This dessert is a favorite of my husband Rob. Each year round about this time he asks when I am going to make a Pumpkin Roll. This week when he asked I said, "Yes". One of the best pumpkin recipes in the history of pumpkin recipes, this roll is delicious, easily adapted to your taste and is easy to make. See the "tips" at the bottom of the recipe for how to make this dessert your own. Yes, it takes a bit of time to make this Pumpkin Roll, yes you could just grab one at the grocery store, but why? Why do that when you can spend an hour or so in the kitchen and say, "I made this".
Kitchen Equipment:
12" x 17" jelly roll pan
parchment paper
hand mixer
Pumpkin Roll:
1 c. cake flour (I use Swan's Down)
2 t. pumpkin pie spice (or 1/2 t. each of ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves)
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
5 large eggs
1 c. sugar
1 c. canned pumpkin puree
powdered sugar in a sifter
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray jelly roll pan with cooking spray; line with parchment paper.
3. Whisk flour, spice(s), baking soda and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
4. In a medium bowl; beat eggs and sugar with an electric mixer, set on medium high, until pale yellow and thick (about 3-4 minutes). Add pumpkin, mix on low until incorporated.
5. Fold in flour mixture until combined.
6. Spread batter into prepared pan.
7. Bake until cake is firm and springs back when touched, about 15 minutes. Before cooling, run a knife along the edges of the pan to loosen.
8. Place a clean sheet of parchment onto a cooling rack sprinkle with powdered sugar (lightly), turn pumpkin cake over onto fresh parchment. Cool for about 5 minutes. Begin peeling off the parchment that was in the bottom of the pan; be gentle when peeling off. Cool another 10 minutes.
9. Make the cream cheese filling while cake is cooling
Cream Cheese Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, soft
1 stick butter, soft
16 oz. powdered sugar
2 T. milk
1. Place cream cheese and butter into a bowl; mix with electric mixer until smooth. Add powdered sugar a bit at a time with some milk; blend until smooth. Continue adding powdered sugar and milk until smooth. Set aside until pumpkin cake is cool.
Assemble the Pumpkin Roll:
Spread the cream cheese filling onto the cake leaving a 1/2" border around the edges. I prefer to roll along the long side of the cake (place the 12" side by your stomach and roll away from you); start by making the initial turn as tight as possible, if you begin to see cake cracking, that's ok because that first turn will be inside the roll. You will have a 12" long roll if you start this way; if you need more servings, you can roll the 17" long side (start with the 17" side by your stomach and roll away). But, with this size, you won't have as nice of a roll look inside when you cut.
Place the roll inside parchment, place into refrigerator for 1 hour or if you cover the sides you can chill for 1 day. Before serving, dust the top of the cake roll with powdered sugar.
*Tips*:
For a lighter roll: use 1/2 cake flour, 1/2 whole wheat flour; use light cream cheese for the filling
For cinnamon filling: add 1 t. ground cinnamon to the cream cheese filling
For a pumpkin cream cheese filling: add 3 T. of the pumpkin puree to the cream cheese filling
