huge disaster

[helen_bakes]

I recently tried to make a swiss roll, but it came out more like a swiss fold than anything because it kept breaking and refused to be a roll-like thing. The real problem here though is that the top of it [which was supposed to be the outer part of the swiss roll] came out really sticky - if touched, bits of it would easily come away stuck to my

Comments

[oncelikeshari]

The only thing I remember about Swiss rolls is that they say to roll it when it's first out of the oven but still on the greaseproof paper, then let it cool and unroll it. Put in your jam or curd and then re roll it while peeling the paper off.

[kamaliitaru]

This. Roll it when it's warm between two sheets of parchment. If it's sticky still, dust it with powdered sugar, and that controls the stickiness.

[amaelamin_]

i didn't realise that dusting it with sugar [which was in the recipe] was actually to control the stickiness - i left it out because i thought there was enough sugar in the cake already! that makes a lot of sense, thank you :)

[kamaliitaru]

Yep, I omitted it the first time too, and I had a mess. What I do is I use 2 sheets of parchment - one for the bottom of the pan, the other for rolling. When I remove from the oven, I place a dish towel down, then the unused parchment. Dust with powdered sugar, then invert the cake onto that. Then, take the parchment off the bottom of the cake (which will be the top after you have inverted). Sprinkle with more powdered sugar, and put the used parchment back. Then roll up in the towel.

Until I made a roll, I didn't realize how much moisture cakes give off while cooling. That's one of the reasons you need the parchment and the powdered sugar.

Also, if you notice your edges are a bit crisp, you may want to cut them off before you roll - it helps to reduce cracking.

[deborahkla]

Agreed. This is what you need to do. Be sure that you're using a spongecake recipe, and let it completely cool before you attempt to unroll and fill it. It helps to wrap a dishtowel around it as well, to absorb any excess moisture during the cooling process. Good luck! :-)

[amaelamin_]

i thought the dishtowel was to keep the moisture in, haha! why does moisture need to be absorbed? so it doesn't go soggy?

[deborahkla]

So it doesn't go soggy, and also to help the cake keep its shape as it cools. :-)

[amaelamin_]

thanks!

[amaelamin_]

ahhh i see. the recipe said to let it cool completely WHILE FLAT so that's probably it. i'll keep this in mind next time, thank you very much!