I was invited to a ‘Safari’ themed birthday BBQ party over the weekend and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to make an animal-orientated cake of some kind. Once again, I turned to Pinterest for my inspiration and found the perfect thing! - A Giraffe Swiss Roll.
This swiss roll is super simple to make, and I would urge everyone to give it a go since it makes a big impact on the table, but doesn’t break the bank to make or take up too much time.
Ingredients:
Egg Yolk Batter
3 egg yolks
15g caster sugar
60ml milk
40ml vegetable oil
72g plain flour
1/2 Tsp vanilla essence
8g cocoa powder
Pattern Batter
1 egg white
2 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp plain flour
2 tbsp of egg yolk batter
Egg White Batter
3 egg whites
50g caster sugar
¼ tsp cream of tatar
Filling
300ml double cream
2 tbsp icing sugar
Good quality strawberry jam
Method:
1) Preheat your oven to 175C / 350F.
2) Print off a picture or two of your giraffe print found on the internet - Choose a pattern that is quite intricate. Cut it to the size of your 35cm x 5cm tin and place a piece of baking paper over the top of this.
TIP: When cutting your baking paper, ensure that the edges are longer so you can pull it out of the tin easier.
3) Aside from the cocoa powder and flour, mix the ingredients of the ‘Egg Yolk Batter’ together until all of the ingredients are well combined. Then, add in the flour afterwards and mix again until the flour is fully incorporated.
4) Remove 2 tbsp of this batter and put it in a separate bowl and add 1 teaspoon of plain flour to the mix. Set aside.
5) To the remaining ‘Egg Yolk Batter’, add in the cocoa powder, mix well and set aside.
6) In a separate bowl, whisk together one egg white with 2 tsp of sugar until you achieve stiff peaks. Add in your 2 tbsp of batter and flour mix you set aside earlier and carefully fold the two together.
7) Scoop the ‘Pattern Batter’ mix you just made into a piping bag with a thin nozzle on the end. Carefully pipe out the ‘white part’ on your giraffe pattern. Once complete, place in the freezer for 30 minutes.
8) After 20 minutes has passed, whisk together your ‘Egg White Batter’ until you have stiff peaks. In a few batches, gently fold in the ‘Egg Yolk Batter’ you made earlier in with this.
9) Once your 30 minute timer is up, remove the giraffe pattern baking tin from the freezer and add the batter mixture you made a moment ago. Carefully smooth the mixture over the top of the pattern, ensuring that it is even and completely covering all areas.
TIP: Bang the tin on the counter a number of times to remove the air bubbles from the mixture.
10) Place in the oven for 10-15 minutes. You will know if it is ready by gently pressing your finger on top of the cake - if it springs back, it is done.
11) Shortly after removing it from the oven, score the width of the sponge using a knife, making sure you do not go all the way through it on the end of the sponge where you will begin your roll - this helps starting the rolling off. Then, sprinkle a very small amount of sugar on the sponge and roll it up into a swiss roll shape (with baking paper still on), making sure the pattern is visible on the outside - this will help shape the sponge later and stop it cracking. Leave to cool for 30 minutes.
12) Once cooled, unroll the sponge and remove the baking parchment. Whisk together the double cream and icing sugar. Spoon it onto the sponge and using a palette knife, smooth the surface. Then,add a layer of jam over the cream. Make sure to leave around an inch of space with no filling on the opposite end of where you will start your roll to stop the filling spilling out.
13) Roll up the swiss roll. Should you have any extra filling spilling out of the end, carefully remove this. Wrap the roll tightly in cling film and leave in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, after which, it will be ready to serve.
This Swiss Roll can be stored at in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Credit to: All Day Chic
