SWISS ROLL CHINESE STYLE
Chinese swiss rolls may be found in a Chinese bakery near you. We intended to create a lighter, Asian-style Chinese Swiss roll recipe instead of the more classic Swiss roll. Sponge cake and sweetened whipped cream top a delicately sweetened sponge cake for this light and airy dessert. A slice of this cake costs approximately $2.00 in Chinatown bakeries, so I felt we should make our own.
This Chinese swiss roll is one of my favorite desserts, despite my preference for salty, savory foods. During developing this recipe, I must have eaten at least half of each batch I produced, which is something I’m ashamed to say. A middle-aged woman chowing down on cake when the kitchen is completely deserted? This isn’t a pleasant sight. Instead of focusing on the picture in front of us, let’s darken it for my benefit.
For simplicity, we went with a plain sponge cake layered with cream. You can, however, alter the recipe in any way you see fit. A chocolate whipped cream, fresh fruit, or plain jam can also be used as a filling for the cake. In addition, I used a 1010-inch square pan, as shown in the photos. A 9×13-inch pan is recommended because the cake was too thick to spread easily.
INGREDIENTS:
- 1/2 cup of cake flour
- 1 tbsp. of cornstarch
- ¼ tsp. of baking powder
- 3 pcs. of eggs (separated)
- 5 tbsp. of sugar (divided, plus 1 teaspoon)
- 2 ½ tbsp. of vegetable oil (or canola oil)
- 2 tbsp. of milk
- 1/3 cup of cold heavy cream
- 2 tbsp. of powdered sugar (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Before using, sift baking powder, cornstarch, and cake flour. Repeat the sifting process. It’s a painstaking process, but it’s essential if you want this cake to be fluffy and light.
- 3 yolks and 2 1/2 teaspoons of sugar are whisked together in a large dish. When the mixture turns a bright yellow and becomes emulsified, you know it’s done. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet components and mix thoroughly until there are no lumps. Dispose of.
- Whip the egg whites in an electric mixer with a whisk attachment until they form soft peaks. Whip the egg whites with 2 1⁄2 teaspoons of sugar until stiff peaks form.
- Create a light and airy batter by folding in 1/3 of the egg white mixture at a time into the egg yolk mixture. Make sure all of the ingredients are completely mixed before serving—Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). To achieve a clean corner, you can cut four corners of the paper and then overlap them together.
- Smooth the batter in the pan after you’ve poured it in. The batter must be uniformly distributed throughout the pan. To get rid of huge air bubbles, tap the pan on a tabletop several times (you can protect the table surface with a kitchen towel if you want to avoid breaking anything).
- To keep your pan submerged in water, place it on a baking sheet with a rim and add a cup of water. Allow 15 minutes of baking time for your entire set-up on the middle rack in your oven.
- Remove from the oven and let it cool to the point where it can be handled. Turn the pan over onto a new piece of parchment paper. Remove the parchment paper that was used for baking the cake.
- Make stiff peaks out of the cream and sugar with a mixer. Spread whipped cream over heated cake while it’s still flexible but not hot enough to melt it.
- Take a rolling pin and position it under the parchment paper on which the cake sits. Then, roll the cake up. On one side, slowly roll the parchment paper onto the rolling pin while you continue to roll up the cake. Rolling a cake involves pushing it forward with a rolling pin. You’re also using the pin to wrap up the loose parchment paper at the same time as you are. Slice and serve after being rolled and dusted with powdered sugar, if desired. It pairs wonderfully with fresh fruit!