This Lemon Swiss Roll is a rolled up, lightly flavored and spongy lemon cake filled with lemon curd. And it’s a bright and pretty citrus cake roll that melts in your mouth! It’s a super elegant and beautiful classic dessert to serve with tea or coffee, but it’s actually quite easy to make.
If you enjoy the Lemon Swiss Roll, be sure to keep my Gingerbread Cake Roll recipe on hand for the holiday season!
What is a Swiss Roll?
It’s a classic dessert recipe that dates back to the 1800’s. Despite its name, it did not originate in Switzerland. Instead, it is believed to have originated in Central Europe. A Swiss roll is a type of light sponge cake that is baked into a thin layer, filled with something sweet (jam, whipped cream, chocolate ganache, lemon curd) and then it’s rolled up into a spiral log. Other names for a Swiss roll are: jelly roll, cake roll and roulade (French).
Ingredients Needed:
- The Basics: All purpose flour, granulated sugar, vanilla extract, baking powder and salt
- Lemon Zest: You’ll be zesting two teaspoons of lemon zest for this recipe using a microplane. Since lemon juice is not being use in this Lemon Swiss Cake recipe, save it for another use. It can be frozen, if needed. Suggested: make my lemon bread or some amazing lemon bars!
- Lemon Curd: It’s perfectly okay to use store-bought lemon curd for this lemon cake roll recipe, or you can make homemade lemon curd.
- Powdered Sugar: Run the powdered sugar through a sifter to get rid of any potential lumps. You’ll be using it to dust the cake roll after it’s all rolled up. It’s helpful if you have a mini sieve.
How to make a Lemon Swiss Roll:
- Preheat the oven to 375℉. Line a 15x10x1-inch rimmed pan (a jelly roll pan) with parchment paper; generously grease the foil or paper with shortening or spray with cooking spray. Then sprinkle on a bit of white sugar or powdered sugar. This is going to help keep the cake from sticking to the parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the eggs on high speed for about 5 minutes, or until it’s a very thick and pale colored mixture. You can use a hand mixer or a stand mixer. Gradually beat in the sugar, and then the water and vanilla. Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan, and spread the batter evenly across the pan. Bake!
- The cake will be finished baking in about 12 minutes or so. It bakes quickly since it’s so thin. While still hot, turn the cake out onto a clean kitchen towel that has been sprinkled lightly with powdered sugar. Peel off the parchment paper. If the edges aren’t looking clean, you can use a sharp knife to slice a thin piece off the edges of the cake. Carefully roll the cake with the towel from the narrow end. Let cool on a rack for 30 minutes.
- Unroll the cake. Beat the lemon curd slightly with a fork to loosen it up; spread the lemon curd over the cake.
Roll up the cake again (without the towel!); place the cake seam-side-down on a serving plate. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Slice it carefully (I like to use a bread knife) into spiral pieces for serving.
Recipe Tips
- Some Lemon Swiss Roll recipes call for separating the eggs, and some call for just beating whole eggs. This quick and easy recipe allows you to use whole eggs and just beat them until thick and pale-colored. It’s perfectly fine to make the cake that way. Separating the eggs creates a cake that is a bit more light and airy. If you’d like to do that, then separate the eggs, beat the egg whites with a mixer until the “stiff peaks” stage; set them aside. Beat the egg yolks separately, continue with the rest of the recipe, and then fold the whipped egg whites in by hand at the end.
- The cake is quick to bake since the batter is spread so thin, so keep an eye on it.
- Many Lemon Swiss Roll recipes incorporate whipped cream into the filling. You can certainly do that if you want a thicker filling. Fold the lemon curd into the whipped cream, or spread them on as two separate layers. You can also used whipped mascarpone cheese.
Lemon Cake Rolling Tips:
- If you don’t wish to roll the cake into a towel, you can also roll it in parchment paper.
- Be sure to sprinkle some powdered sugar on the towel or parchment paper to help prevent a sticking situation.
- Make sure you roll the cake while it’s still hot. This will keep the cake from cracking after it’s filled, and it will lock in the moisture of the cake. It will also “teach” the cake that it can roll and unroll and be flexible.
Storage and Make Ahead Tips:
This cake is best when eaten the day it’s made, but leftovers can be stored in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
To make ahead, keep the unfilled sponge cake rolled in the towel, and store it at room temperature in a sealed container for up to 24 hours before unrolling and filling.
To freeze, keep the unfilled sponge cake rolled in the towel, put it in a sealed container and freeze it for up to 3 months before letting it thaw and unrolling.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe:
- While lemon layer cakes, lemon pound cakes and lemon chiffon cakes are all delicious, this is a fun way to make a lemon cake all rolled up in an elegant dessert!
- I think you’ll find that it’s easier to make than it looks.
- It’s incredibly delicious, and it’s a melt-in-your-mouth kind of dessert.
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Preheat the oven to 375℉. Line a 15x10x1-inch pan with parchment paper; generously grease the foil or paper with shortening. Then sprinkle it lightly with powdered sugar.
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In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the eggs on high speed for about 5 minutes, or until very thick and pale lemon-colored. Gradually beat in the granulated sugar. Beat in the water and vanilla on low speed. Gradually add the flour, baking powder and salt, beating on low speed just until smooth. Pour the batter into the pan, spreading evenly to the corners.
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Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Immediately loosen the cake from the sides of the pan and turn upside down onto a slightly damp towel that has been generously sprinkled with powdered sugar. Carefully peel off the parchment paper. Trim off any unruly edges of the cake if necessary. While the cake is hot, carefully roll the cake and towel from the narrow end. Cool on a cooling rack for at least 30 minutes.
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Unroll the cake. Beat the lemon curd slightly with a fork to loosen it up; spread the lemon curd over the cake. Roll up the cake again, without the towel; place the cake seam-side-down on a serving plate. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 185kcal, Carbohydrates: 36g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 3g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0.04g, Cholesterol: 56mg, Sodium: 168mg, Potassium: 32mg, Fiber: 0.3g, Sugar: 29g, Vitamin A: 81IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 34mg, Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.