Coffee Swiss Roll Cake

Attention to all coffee lovers! This coffee Swiss roll cake is a festive dessert made with a biscuit Joconde soaked with maple syrup and generously covered with the coffee-flavored mascarpone cream.

After making rich Royal chocolate cake and chocolate meringue cake Concorde, it is time to please coffee lovers with a new coffee-flavored dessert.

You can make this coffee roll cake as a Yule log using Christmas edible decorations. Or make a simplified version of the cake - coffee Swiss roll - perfect for any occasion.

Why you should try this recipe

This yummy coffee Swiss roll is the perfect treat to enjoy on lazy mornings. With an elegant taste of pure deliciousness, this slice goes great with a cup of coffee.

The recipe is as straightforward and simple to make, with a preparation time of just 2 hours.

It is best served for birthday parties: add alcohol to the cream to serve adults and keep it as in the recipe if you serve for kids.

Topped with Christmas chocolate decorations, meringue mushrooms, nougatine pieces, or chocolate crisps, this roll cake is easily transformed into a coffee Yule log.

Ingredients

Here is a quick overview of what ingredients you will need. Follow the full recipe below for exact amounts and instructions. I recommend making the recipe as written for the best results.

Almond flour: use blanched finely ground almond flour (not a coarse almond meal).

While measuring almond flour, spoon it from a container gently into a measuring cup. Please, do not press it down.

Icing sugar: make it yourself with a coffee grinder or use a store-bought powdered sugar.

Sugar: use granulated sugar or replace it with caster sugar.

Flour: the recipe calls for all-purpose flour.

Butter: use unsalted butter melted and cooled to room temperature in advance.

Eggs: use whole large eggs and large egg whites. To separate egg whites from egg yolks, use an egg separator.

Hazelnuts: use store-bought roasted hazelnuts or roast nuts yourself.

Maple syrup is used to soak the biscuit. Replace it with light corn syrup if desired.

Mascarpone is added to stabilize the whipped cream. Take mascarpone out of the fridge for 15 minutes (at maximum!) before you start making the cream.

Whipping cream: use whipping cream with at least 30% fat content.

Espresso coffee is the star of this coffee roll cake. Use your favorite one.

Instant coffee powder: use your preferred brand of instant coffee. To make it powdered, use either a coffee grinder or mortar and pestle.

Dark chocolate crisps: this is an optional chocolate decoration. Also, decorate the cake with store-bought chocolate thins or homemade pieces of tempered chocolate.

Caramelized hazelnuts: follow the instructions on how to caramelize hazelnuts.

How to make coffee Swiss roll

To make the biscuit Joconde, heat the oven to 355 F/180 C. Place icing sugar, almond flour, all-purpose flour, and 2 whole eggs in a mixing bowl. Whisk at a slow speed using an electric or stand mixer.

Increase the speed and continue to whisk. Add the other 2 whole eggs, cooled melted butter, and mix again (photo 1).

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until they are mounted. Add granulated sugar and beat again until stiff peaks (photo 2).

Add half of the meringue to the main preparation and mix gently with a rubber spatula. Finally, add the rest of the meringue and combine (photo 3).

Pour the biscuit dough on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or on a non-spill baking sheet to the thickness of 25/64 inch/1 cm. Sprinkle with half of the chopped roasted hazelnuts (photo 4).

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the biscuit from the oven and let it cool for 30 minutes.

To make the mascarpone cream, place the prepared mascarpone (see the notes) in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whip the cheese for a few seconds.

Then add whipping cream, icing sugar, espresso coffee, and instant coffee powder to the bowl.

Mix with a hand whisk to homogenize everything. Then whisk with the stand mixer until firm (photo 5).

Cover the bowl with plastic film and refrigerate the cream until assembling the cake. 

To assemble the roll cake, flip the biscuit on a sheet of parchment. Then peel parchment paper or the baking mat.

Soak the biscuit with maple syrup using a silicone brush. Spread the mascarpone cream and even the surface with a bent spatula. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped roasted hazelnuts.

Roll the biscuit from top to bottom along the biscuit's long side, using the parchment sheet (photo 6). Tight it as much as possible.

While rolling the baked biscuit, it may crack. Continue to roll the biscuit, tighten it into parchment paper, and refrigerate. It will be fine once it is chilled.

Refrigerate the rolled biscuit for 4 hours.

To decorate the cake, cut the roll cake 10-inch/25 cm long. Use a knife to make the ends of the cake neat. Spread a layer of cream on the rolled cake (photo 7).

Place the remaining cream in a pastry bag with a St. Honore tip and cover the cake's entire surface. Pipe straight lines, starting from one side of the cake and moving towards another side.

Decorate it with dark chocolate crisps and caramelized hazelnuts (photo 8).

Recipe variations

This recipe for a coffee Swiss roll is so simple, but it's the little touches that make all of the difference.

You can add one tablespoon of white rum or Grand Marnier to the mascarpone cream if you serve the cake to adults.

The full-bodied taste of coffee is beautifully married with other types of nuts such as walnuts, almonds, and chestnuts. So, try to replace hazelnuts.

Other recipe variations include cake decoration. Want to be inspired by the roll cakes' decorations?

Please, have a look at this Nutella cake roll or raspberry pistachio roulade. You will fall in love with their simplicity.

Equipment

What baking equipment will you need to make the cake?

Making a roll cake is as easy and fun with the right baking tools. You will need some mixing bowls, a stand mixer or an electric mixer, a rubber spatula, and a non-spill baking sheet to make the biscuit.

You can use a baking tray lined with parchment paper if you don't have a special silicone sheet for making roll cakes.

To prepare the cream, make sure you have a hand whisk and a silicone brush. Use a bent spatula or the back of a spoon to decorate the cake.

Storage instructions

For the best taste, make this roll cake on the day of serving.

Since the mascarpone cream tends to dry out quickly, it is best to assemble this mascarpone-filled cake 1 hour before serving. Keep it in the refrigerator, being wrapped until assembling.

Store leftover cake in the fridge for up to 24 hours. It is not recommended to freeze it.

Expert tips

1. Refer to the recipe on how to caramelize hazelnuts.
2. To make the mascarpone cream, make sure to use the chilled mascarpone but a slightly softened one. Take it out of the fridge for 15 minutes at maximum before whisking the cream. It is essential.
3. If the cream starts curding, use a water bath to sightly heat the curded cream while constantly whisking it. Once the lumps are gone, stop the heating. Let the cream get to room temperature and whip it one more time for a few seconds.
4. Keep the cake wrapped in parchment paper until assembling. Since the mascarpone cream tends to dry out quickly, it is best to assemble the cake 1 hour before serving. Keep it refrigerated until ready to serve.
5. Make ahead option: bake the biscuit, roll it with ½ of the cream, and wrap it one day ahead. Store it wrapped in parchment paper in the fridge. Next day, one hour before serving, decorate the cake with cream, nuts, and chocolate crisps, and keep it in the refrigerator. In this case, I recommend making the mascarpone cream twice: ½ of the cream to fill the cake, and the next day ½ of the cream to decorate.
   

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The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.

The recipe was adapted from here https://www.femmeactuelle.fr. It was originally published on December 17, 2018. It has been revised to include the improved recipe and photos. All posted pictures are mine.