Blackberry and almond chantilly cream roulade

Call it a Swiss roll, jelly roll, cream roll, roulade or gâteau roulé, all it is really is a delicious dessert and I could eat a lot of it!
Its light and thin sponge base is traditionally baked in a rectangular baking tray. It is then spread with cream and/or jam and delicately rolled in the shape of a small log. The great thing about this dessert is that it can be made in a lot of different ways with the large choice of jams and preserves that can be found these days.
Since it is blackberry picking season, I used blackberry jam for my recipe (it is also a berry I am very fond of, as seen here and there).

I used to go foraging for blackberries with my mother and brother when we were little kids. Then, back home, a few jars of jam would be made and some would be kept aside for times when we were asking for a delicious roulade à la confiture to be made. It is a very easy cake to make and we loved helping, covering our little hands and aprons in flour and cake batter. A light and sweet Chantilly cream would be whipped. Spoonfuls of it would be stolen before it had a chance to be spread on the cake. Once the jam and cream had been spread, and the cake rolled carefully (by our mum this time to avoid a beautiful mess of a cake), we had to play the patience game while our roulade was setting in the fridge.
I would always eat my first slice slowly and appreciate every bite of it, trying to keep intact layers of sponge, cream and jam on my little spoon. Then I would devour a second slice, be told a third would be too much, and go finish the day with an afternoon of board games, Lego construction, reading, drawing or day dreaming.

For my recipe below, I added a bit of extra deliciousness by mixing some crumbled toasted almond flakes with the Chantilly cream. You could make this cake using a seasonal fruit jam. And if you have just made some fresh blackberry jam after a foraging session, try the recipe, it is so easy and delicious!

Blackberry and Almond Chantilly Cream Roulade Recipe (Vegetarian)

Ingredients (make 8 to 10 slices)

For the cake
100g caster sugar
3 egg yolks
3 egg whites
100g sifted plain flour

For the almond Chantilly cream
100ml cream
1 tablespoon icing sugar (plus extra for dusting)
4 tablespoons toasted almond flakes (lightly crumbled)

4 tablespoons blackberry jam

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
Line a rectangular baking tray with greaseproof paper (the tray I used is 24cm x 34cm and 2cm deep).
In a large baking bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar together until the mixture is thick and pale. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they reach soft peak. Fold the beaten egg whites with the egg yolk and sugar mixture. Pour in the flour and mix well together.

2. Pour the cake batter in the tray over the greaseproof paper. Tilt the tray to spread the batter evenly. Put on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cake is cooked and the blade of a knife comes out clean when put through it.
When the cake is cooked, transfer it with the paper on a flat surface. Line the top of the cake with a large piece of greaseproof paper. Cover with a wet tea towel as tightly as you can. Let it cool down completely.

3. To make the Chantilly cream, beat the cream and icing sugar together in a large mixing bowl until soft peaks form. Fold in the crumbled toasted almond flakes.

4. Uncover the cooled cake. Spread the blackberry jam over the surface (not too close to the edges) and then the almond Chantilly cream over it.
Starting from one of the shorter sides of the cake, roll it while delicately removing it from the paper underneath. Keep rolling all its length until you get a log shape. Transfer the cake onto a long serving plate, cover with clingfilm and set in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.

Dust the roulade with icing sugar just before serving. Bon appétit!

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