my bane!

I titled this post "my bane" for a reason, yes, swiss rolls are my bane. They made me annoyed, frustrated and sleepless. The first time i embarked on my swiss roll journeys was sometime last year, before i started out this blog.

I failed countless times, from a swiss roll that became a layered cake (so can you imagine how badly it cracked? no, infact it tore apart zzz) to a swiss roll that was with cracks, to finally, a swiss roll without a crack. yay! BUT, still looks pretty ugly.

I stopped making swiss roll after my last attempt which i considered a "success" since it didn't crack because i was afraid that i just got lucky. This time, i faced my fears and tried it again.

The picture below, were the last few swiss rolls i did before this chocolate swiss roll. See how horrible they were? I tried various recipes/methods.

top left:
-sponge cake method
-rolled up perfectly
-cake was super dry. *faints*

top right:
-chiffon cake method
-rolled up like crap, with tiny cracks here and there
-tasted superb!

For a while i hoped they could combine their powers and i'd arrive at my totally perfect swiss roll. but no, it didn't happen in my dreams. Then on, i went to try a green tea flavoured one..oh my! it had a huge crack. that was it. I had enough. No more swiss rolls. till now.

I've no idea what made me conquer my fear, but somehow i did. To make things worse, I even tried rolling with fruits in it! I must be crazy. Rolling it up without a crack was bad enough, and to roll it up with fruits?!

Well, I braved my fears and went ahead. to my surprise, the cake was soft, springy and really "foldable". I guess people who failed in making swiss rolls would probably understand my agony. If you've ever come across sheet cakes that are dry like anything, they crack and give way the moment you start. And i tell ya, that's uber heart-breaking. and annoying!

This time, I did not try folding so much in the beginning for the fear it would crack and i would cry, so that explains the really ugly turn out. Also, my 1" thick cake became 1/2" thick probably cos i was over-zealous in tightening the roll like nobody's business. (wrong choice)

and of course, i stuck to the chiffon method because somehow, i just feel safer with it. I can never fold in flour into beaten eggs without having bits of flour here and there.

Although things turned out ok, i still don't know when will be my next time attempting another swiss roll. =X

And now, the recipe. I adapted it from some HK blog and made minor changes and translated it to english. for the original version, please refer here

Chocolate Swiss Roll makes one 11" x 14" cake
(Printable Version)

Ingredients:
(A):
80g egg yolks (about 5 egg yolks) **
40g caster sugar
67g corn oil
50g water
1/8 tsp salt

(B):
85g cake flour
15g cocoa powder
1g baking powder

*sift together

(C):
167g egg whites (about 5 egg whites) **
50g sugar
¼ tsp cream of tartar

**: depending on size of egg

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 170C.
2. Line a 11” x 14” tin. *no need grease
3. Whisk together egg yolks and sugar (group A) till pale yellow or till sugar dissolves.
4. Add in salt and corn oil, emulsify well.
5. Add in water, stir well to mix.
6. Add in flour mixture (group B) and mix to form a smooth batter. *batter will be quite thick
7. Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy, add in sugar in 3 additions and whisk till stiff peaks form.
8. Fold in 1/3 of the beaten egg whites into the prepared batter. Fold in the rest of the egg whites 1/3 at a time. Be careful not to deflate the batter.
9. Pour batter into tin and bake in preheated oven for 20 min.
10. Remove cake from oven when done and let it cool.
11. Unmold the cake and spread desired fillings and, using parchement as a guide, roll up.
12. Refrigerate cake at least 30 min to allow shape to set. Cut and serve =)
Here's a video showing how roll up the swiss roll with the parchment as a guide.
Good luck!
updates: the swiss roll stayed soft and moist despite leaving in the fridge uncovered for 1 night.