Pumpkin Roulade with Ginger Buttercream

Update:  This fabulous Roulade is my original post from back in 2013 and I thought I’d honor the beginning of pumpkin season with a re-post. Once you taste it, you’ll see why it’s one of the front runners! 🙂

When autumn arrives and the weather cools, there’s one flavor of the season that cannot be ignored. That of course would be pumpkin. It’s pumpkin this and pumpkin that… I have so many absolutely amazing tried and true recipes using pumpkin, I don’t even know where to begin. Of course I’m not going to post them all in one year, but I will start sharing a sprinkling of them and I just know you’ll enjoy them as much as we do. I’ll begin with this pretty and mouth watering Pumpkin Roulade. The flavors of pumpkin and ginger go so perfectly together and here they’re all rolled up and wonderfully showcased in this scrumptious, easier-than-it-looks fall treat. The texture of the flavorful pumpkin cake stays wonderfully moist and the gingercream is…. well… you’ll find yourself sneaking repeated fingertip samples out of the bowl. In-credibly delicious! Your friends will think you have some kind of special baking talent, but no one says you have to tell them just how simple it was to make. A great keeper of a fall dessert!

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Bake your cake and lay out onto a thin kitchen towel spread evenly with powdered sugar.

Roll the cake up gently in the towel without pushing or putting too much pressure on cake.  Place the rolled up cake on a cooling rack and let cool completely.

Mix together the ginger cream.

After cake has cooled, spread gingercream evenly over the the cake. Using the towel to help you, roll the cake back up and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Pumpkin Roulade with Ginger Buttercream

(Adapted barely from Ina Garten)

Prep Time:  45 min

Inactive Prep Time:  1 hr

Cook Time: 12 min

Ingredients

For the cake:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup canned pumpkin (not pie filling)

1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus extra for dusting

For the filling:

12 ounces Italian mascarpone cheese

1 1/4 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1/4 cup minced dried crystallized ginger (not in syrup)

Pinch kosher salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 13 by 18 by 1-inch sheet pan. Line the pan with parchment paper and grease and flour the paper.

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt and stir to combine. Place the eggs and granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed for 3 minutes, until light yellow and thickened. With the mixer on low, add the pumpkin, then slowly add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Finish mixing the batter by hand with a rubber spatula. Pour into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake the cake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the top springs back when gently touched.

While the cake is baking, lay out a clean, thin cotton dish towel on a flat surface and sift the entire 1/4 cup of confectioners’ sugar evenly over it. (This will prevent the cake from sticking to the towel.) As soon as you remove the cake from the oven, loosen it around the edges and invert it squarely onto the prepared towel. Peel away the parchment paper. With a light touch, roll the warm cake and the towel together (don’t press!) starting at the short end of the cake. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, make the filling. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the mascarpone, confectioners’ sugar, and cream together for about a minute, until light and fluffy. Stir in the crystallized ginger, and salt.

To assemble, carefully unroll the cake onto a board with the towel underneath. Spread the cake evenly with the filling. Reroll the cake in a spiral using the towel as a guide. Remove the towel and trim the ends to make a neat edge. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve sliced.