Pumpkin Roll Cake (Vertical)

I started working on this two falls ago after seeing all the pumpkin roll cakes appear on my screen. My thinking was, the traditional shape is great… but what wouldn’t it be cooler if I made it vertical??? I thought it would be gorgeous and, well… it just IS. 

Last fall I made the cake again with the intent to share but I had used a meringue as the filling and it didn’t work well with the cake. This year I said, let’s keep it simple: whipped cream. But of course, we’ll use my stabilized food processor whipped cream method. 

What is a pumpkin roll cake? 

It is essentially a pumpkin version of a swiss roll cake. Swiss roll cakes are made from sponge cakes which are usually leavened with eggs (usually beaten whites) and don’t have added fat (butter/oil). The texture is in the name: it’s spongy and soft, not buttery or crumbly. 

Recipe origins 

This one is adapted from Libby’s pumpkin roll cake. Mostly I follow it, but I double the recipe, split the sugars and have a different way to assemble the cake. We’re wrapping it and making it into a cake with vertical layers. It’s gorgeously striped and a really unique way to present a traditional pumpkin roll cake. 

Recipe Ingredients 

Eggs: whole large eggs 

Sugars: fine granulated sugar and brown sugar, light or dark is fine 

Pumpkin spice: or a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves/allspice 

Salt & vanilla: fine sea salt and pure vanilla extract 

Pumpkin puree: I prefer Libby’s because it’s not watery. Make sure you aren’t using pumpkin pie filling, the ingredients should say “pumpkin” only. 

Flour: all purpose flour 

Baking powder & baking soda: check they are fresh! 

How to Make a Pumpkin Roll Cake 

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Grease a jelly roll pan then lay a sheet of parchment paper on it and flour and grease the parchment paper (yes really, this is a sticky cake!). If you have two jelly roll pans you can repeat with the other, otherwise repeat this step after the first cake bakes. 

Make the batter 

In a large bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer) add all the eggs and whisk them together. Add the pumpkin spice, salt and vanilla and whisk. 

Pour in both of the sugars and beat, after a couple of minutes the mix will become light colored, thick and kind of frothy. 

Add the pumpkin puree and beat to combine – until you can’t see any streaks of orange from the puree 

Sift in the flour and baking powder & soda and beat to just combine – don’t over do this, we don’t want to make the cake tough by developing any gluten 

Bake the cake(s) 

Spread half of the batter into the prepared cake pan. Shake the pan gently so that all the batter is in an even layer. 

Bake it for about 13-14 minutes, until it springs when gently pressed at the top 

As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, dust it generously with powdered sugar 

Then place a flour sack or large tea towel over the cake and carefully overturn the cake onto the towel

Peel off the parchment paper and dust the other side of the cake with powdered sugar 

Roll the cake up from the short side and wrap the tea towel around it. Leave it to cool for a few hours 

Repeat the same steps with the remaining cake batter 

Assemble the cake

Make the cream cheese whipped cream by pulsing the cream cheese with the vanilla & salt, then adding the sugar and heavy cream and processing until thick. 

Carefully unroll one of the cakes, spread some of the whipped cream over it then, slice it in half so you have two long strips (use a ruler to be exact about measuring the strips) 

Roll one of the strips like you would a cinnamon roll log then place it on the cake plate/stand

Lift the second strip up, peeling away the tea towel, and wrap it around the first cake roll, starting from where the first ended 

Now take the other cake, unroll it, spread whipped cream, slice it in half and wrap the third and fourth cake strips around the cake in the same manner – it will took like the rings of a tree trunk =) 

Spread the rest of the whipped cream all over the cake to cover it, decorate with nuts if you like 

Slice it like a layer cake to serve and store leftovers in the fridge 

Tips for making a perfect pumpkin roll cake 

• Use a jelly roll pan: these are the perfect shape to make a roll cake. They are also usually non-stick which helps with the release. 
• Grease and line the pan, then grease and flour it: we wan to be able to very easily remove the cake from the pan, first by turning it upside down and then removing the pan from the cake and the parchment from the cake. 
• Divide the batter in half using a scale: this way you have exact cakes that will wrap around each other evenly. 
• Dust the baked cakes generously with sugar: I think I could have done a better dusting for the photos, the more you dust with sugar the easier it will be for the cake to come off the tea towel. 
• Roll up while still hot: careful with your fingers, the cake will be hot! Use a tea towel or oven mitts to help you release then roll up the cake. 
• Let completely cool before unrolling: the goal is for the cake to completely take on the rolled shape. Rolled when warm, then cooled in this shape, it will hold. 

Pumpkin Roll Cake Recipe

Pumpkin Roll Cake (Vertical)

Super soft and moist pumpkin roll cake shaped so it has the appearance of a layer cake, but when sliced: vertical layers of cake interspersed with vanilla bean cream cheese whipped cream.

Prep Time: 1 hour hr

Cook Time: 30 minutes mins

Chill Time: 3 hours hrs

Yields: 8 slices

5 from 1 vote

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Ingredients

Pumpkin Cake

• 6 large eggs
• 200g or 1 cup fine granulated sugar
• 200g or 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• ½ tsp fine sea salt
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 325g or 1 ⅓ cup pumpkin puree
• 190g or 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda

Cream Cheese Whipped Cream

• 226g or 1 brick cream cheese softened to room temperature
• 240g or 1 cup heavy cream cold
• 65g or ½ cup powdered sugar more if you'd like it sweeter
• 1-2 teaspoons vanilla paste or extract
• ¼ tsp fine sea salt

Method

• Preheat the oven to 375° F. You will need two jelly roll pans or you can bake the cakes one at a time (I did the latter). Grease the pan then lay a sheet of parchment on top and grease and flour the parchment paper.
• Beat eggs, spices, salt, vanilla and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl until light, fluffy and thick.
• Add the pumpkin puree and beat to combine. Add the flour and leavening (baking soda and baking powder) and briefly beat, to just combine.
• Spread half of the batter evenly into the prepared pan (spread the other half into your second jelly roll pan or reserve it until the first is out of the oven).
• Bake the first cake until the top of the cake springs back when touched, about 15 minutes.
• When the cake is done baking, sprinkle powdered sugar over the top, generously. Cover it with a flour sack or large, thin kitchen towel and then carefully overturn the cake onto the towel, ensuring that there is a border of towel around the cake.
• Peel off the parchment paper and dust the cake with a thin layer of powdered sugar. Fold the towel on the shorter side over the cake then gently and carefully roll it up. Tuck the towel around the cake and leave to cool. If you only have one jelly pan, clean it and bake the other cake now, following the same steps.
• When both cakes are completely cool (after at least an hour), make the whipped cream:
• In a food processor, add the softened cream cheese, the vanilla and salt and run it on low until mixed. Add the heavy cream and powdered sugar and run the processor until the mix is thickened, keeping a close eye on it.
• Unroll the cakes and spread some of the cream cheese whipped cream on each cake. Slice them in half, horizontally so you have two long strips of cake. You will have four cake strips.
• Roll one of the four cakes into a log. Take a second cake strip and wrap it around the log, starting from where the first ended. Repeat with the second and third cakes until you have what looks like the inside of a tree. Spread the remaining whipped cream all around and over the cakes. Decorate as you please.

Notes

In the main photo the cake is covered with shards of white chocolate made by melting, then spreading white chocolate on a sheet of parchment, rolling it up then chilling it. Unrolled the chocolate will break into shards. 

Did you make this recipe?

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