The 90s are back! I will admit that bucket hats were never, and still are not, a good look lol. It makes me so happy to see things I grew up with getting super popular right now. This 90s revival has definitely made me nostalgic for some of my favorite after school snacks.
I used to grab a Hostess Ho Hos to snack on as I started my homework. I would pick off the chocolate coating and then unfurl the cake. Clearly, playing with my food is something I never grew out of. But I have grown out of super sugary treats. Ho Hos are way too sweet for me today so the best way to satisfy this craving is to make it myself!
I am so excited to team up with Unico Nutrition to make this homemade chocolate swiss roll!
Protein Powder in Cakes
Swapping out flour for protein powder is a good way to sneak in some extra protein. Protein powder can be used in so many different applications than just shakes. It’s such a versatile ingredient to use in baking. Different protein powders have different ratios of ingredients so always test it out first! Just remember that protein powder is not a 1:1 substitute for flour. I recommend starting off by swapping 1/4 cup of protein powder for every 1 cup of flour.
For this recipe, I tested out the cake four times before I nailed down the perfect texture and moistness. I absolutely love the Cosmic Chocolate GEMINI Organic Vegan Meal Replacement Shake protein powder I used for this cake. They use Valrhona chocolate to flavor their protein powder which is absolutely essential to making this rich chocolaty cake.
Rolling Tips and Tricks
I’ve learned a few tips from GBBO on how to keep a swiss roll from cracking:
- Never, ever roll a cooled cake! The cake is most pliable when it’s hot from the oven. In order to avoid cracks and breakage, roll the cake while it’s still hot. Then allow it to cool into the shape you want.
- Making the cake ahead of time? No worries! I do this all the time to break up the workload. Warm the cake a bit in the microwave at 30 second intervals until it’s soft and spongey again. You’ll definitely want the cake to be warm when you unravel it for cream to avoid aforementioned breakage.
- Use a fresh sheet of parchment paper or clean kitchen towel when rolling. To avoid the cake from sticking to itself in the rolling process, use parchment/towel to roll the cake. You can dust the parchment/towel with a bit of powdered sugar or cocoa powder to decrease the sticking even further.
The Cream
The cream does not melt in normal Ho Hos. This means I have to stabilize the cream in the cake! What the hell is stabilizing cream?
Without stabilization, whipped cream melts in room temperature even if whipped to stiff peaks. There are a few ways to stabilize whipped cream. Two of my favorites are with gelatin or corn starch. I prefer corn starch the most because it’s an ingredient I always have at home and there are no added steps of blooming and melting the gelatin.
My recipe uses corn starch but feel free to stabilize the whipped cream in any way you like!
If you plan to make this recipe, I would highly recommend using the protein powder I did. Head over to Unico Nutrition and use my code sandy25 for 25% off your order!
Homemade Chocolate Swiss Rolls
Ingredients
- Cake
- 1/2 cup Unico Nutrition Gemini Protein Powder - Cosmic Chocolate flavor
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Cream
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream, cold
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- Chocolate Ganache
- 5 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat oven to 350F.
- Step 2 Grease a 9×13 sheet pan with oil and line with parchment paper.
- Step 3 In a large mixing bowl, sift together protein powder, flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder.
- Step 4 In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, sugar, oil, and vanilla extract until well mixed.
- Step 5 Add wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk until well mixed and glossy.
- Step 6 Pour batter into greased pan. Tap pan on a flat surface several times to remove any air bubbles. Pop any large bubbles on the surface with a toothpick if necessary.
- Step 7 Bake for 12-14 minutes until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.
- Step 8 DO NOT ALLOW CAKE TO COOL! Run a knife gently along the edges of the cake to release from the pan if needed. Remove cake from pan and transfer to a new sheet of 12×16 parchment paper or clean kitchen towel.
- Step 9 While the cake is still hot, roll the cake tautly lengthwise.
- Step 10 Allow cake to cool slightly in the cylinder shape.
- Step 11 In a stand mixer (or using a hand mixer), whip cream until soft peaks on medium speed. Add sugar, vanilla extract, and cornstarch and whip until firm peaks. Set aside.
- Step 12 Unroll the cake and cut in half lengthwise to yield two cakes.
- Step 13 Divide the whipped cream between the two halves and spread evenly on the cakes.
- Step 14 Re-roll the cakes lengthwise with the cream inside. Place cakes on top of a cooling rack.
- Step 15 Heat cream in a small saucepan until it reaches 200F.
- Step 16 In a medium bowl, add chocolate and butter. Pour hot cream over the chocolate and gently stir until all chocolate is melted.
- Step 17 Pour half the ganache onto each cake and use an offset spatula to spread over the cakes to coat.
- Step 18 Sprinkle with crunchy sea salt (optional) and allow ganache to set up about 10 minutes.
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