Striped Christmas Cake Roll
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This festive, striped Christmas cake roll recipe features a delicate red-and-white striped sponge cake rolled around a homemade chocolate peppermint buttercream filling. Inspired by the stripes on a candy cane, this colorful cake is rolled around a cloth towel to create the classic Swiss roll shape, then slathered with a thick layer of creamy dark chocolate peppermint buttercream. The best peppermint cake roll for Christmastime!
Christmas Cake Roll Recipe Ingredients
- Eggs – A good sponge cake starts with whipped eggs! For this recipe you’ll need four large eggs, at room temp.
- Granulated Sugar – Granulated sugar adds sweetness and moisture to the sponge cake. You can substitute another fine white sugar, like caster sugar or superfine sugar, measured by weight rather than volume
- Vanilla Bean Paste – I recommend Nielsen-Massey or Taylor & Colledge. Or, substitute the scrapings of a vanilla pod. If you don’t have access to vanilla pods or paste, a good-quality extract will also work. Avoid cheap imitation flavorings.
- Self Rising Flour – Self rising flour is a flour blend which already contains baking powder and salt, so you don’t need to add any additional chemical leavening agents to the batter. For this recipe you’ll need 170 grams of self rising flour, weighed into two 85-gram portions. Save the rest to make scones or bara brith.
- Red Gel Food Coloring – You’ll need red gel food coloring to tint the batter. Chefmaster’s Super Red and Christmas Red will both work nicely. Whichever brand you choose, opt for gel coloring rather than water-based; water-based colors are much less concentrated, and you’ll end up using most of the bottle to achieve the vibrant red shown here.
Buttercream Ingredients
- Unsalted Butter – I find it easiest to start with softened, unsalted butter. If the butter is too cold it will not blend smoothly with the sugar. You can substitute salted butter with minimal impact to the finished product.
- Cocoa Powder – Choose unsweetened cocoa powder, not the sweetened kind used for making hot chocolate. Make sure you’ve selected natural cocoa powder, rather than Dutch processed.
- Confectioner’s Sugar – Confectioner’s sugar (icing sugar, or powdered sugar) forms the base for the buttercream, along with softened butter. Remember that you will need plenty of additional confectioner’s sugar for dusting the tea towel and the sponge to prevent the cake from sticking to the surfaces as you work.
- Whole Milk – You’ll need a few tablespoons of whole milk or whipping cream to adjust the consistency of the buttercream. You can also substitute skimmed milk or your favorite plant milk. Even water will work in a pinch, but the higher the fact content in your liquid, the creamier the consistency of your finished buttercream .
- Peppermint Oil – Opt for natural peppermint oil (not an extract or flavoring) but add it sparingly. Too much peppermint oil can quickly overwhelm. A few drops are all you’ll need to make a deliciously pepperminty cake.
Tips for Piping the Stripes
After dividing the batter into two piping bags, you’ll pipe it in alternating, diagonal stripes across a quarter sheet (13 x 9-inch) baking tray to create the classic “peppermint stick” pattern. Start by piping two or three stripes of each color:
From there, continue piping until you’ve filled the entire tray with peppermint stripes:
Finally, go back around the edges “touch up” around the sides, filling in any open spots:
Aim to use most of the batter, or your sponge cake will be too thin too roll. If you have lots of batter left over, go back and reinforce any thin-looking or uneven stripes.
Tips and Tricks
- Don’t overmix the sponge cake batter. Use a flexible rubber spatula to fold the flour into the eggs until just barely combined, with no dry spots remaining, but do your best not to deflate the mixture or your sponge will be tough and dense rather than light and airy.
- Rely on tangible and visual cues. The striped sponge should look fully set, not wet or shiny, and the top should should feel dry and should spring back quickly when touched.
- Go easy on the peppermint oil. When making the buttercream, add the peppermint oil in small increments. Natural peppermint oil can quickly overpower a dish, so start with a few drops then taste and adjust as necessary.
- Keep the rolled cake cold. A cold Swiss roll is much, much easier to cut into clean, even slices.
Christmas Cake Roll
- Total TimeAbout 2 1/2 hours
- Yield1 9-inch cake roll 1x
A festive Christmas cake roll recipe featuring a red-and-white striped sponge cake rolled around a homemade chocolate peppermint buttercream.
Ingredients
Cake:
Nonstick spray, for greasing tin
4 large eggs, at room temperature
150 grams granulated sugar (3/4 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
170 grams self rising flour (1 1/3 cups), weighed into two 85-gram portions
Red gel food coloring
Chocolate Peppermint Buttercream:
200 grams unsalted butter, softened (7 ounces; 14 tablespoons)
42 grams unsweetened cocoa powder (1/3 cup)
420 grams confectioner’s sugar (about 3 cups)
45 milliliters whole milk (3 tablespoons), plus more to adjust consistency
3-4 drops natural peppermint oil, or to taste
Instructions
Cake Batter:
Preheat oven to 350° F (176° C). Line a quarter sheet rimmed baking tray with parchment and spray generously with nonstick spray.
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, whip eggs and granulated sugar on high speed until pale, fluffy, and voluminous, about 3-4 minutes. Mix in the vanilla bean paste.
Portion into 2 bowls. Each should weigh approximately 170-175 grams.
With a fine mesh sieve, sift 85 grams self-rising flour into each portion. Into one portion, add 3-4 drops red gel food coloring.
With a rubber spatula, gently fold the flour into the eggs. Try not to deflate the mixture.
Scoop each color into a separate disposable piping bag.
Pipe batter diagonally across prepared tray, alternating colors to form the classic “peppermint stick” pattern.
Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until dry to the touch.
Dust a clean tea towel with confectioner’s sugar. Immediately flip cake onto towel and peel away the sponge. Dust the top of the cake with more confectioner’s sugar.
With the shorter side facing you, tightly roll the cake in the towel. Set aside to cool completely, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, prepare the buttercream.
Buttercream:
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, whip butter on high speed until light and fluffy.
Add the confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder in small increments, alternating with the milk and mixing well after each addition. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, until you’ve fully incorporated all of the sugar.
Add the peppermint oil and mix until soft and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. If necessary, add more confectioner’s sugar or whole milk to adjust the consistency.
Assembly:
Carefully unroll the cake.
With a small stepped palette knife or flexible rubber spatula, spread the buttercream evenly across the surface, allowing a 1-inch border on one of the shorter sides.
With your hands, tightly roll the cake around the buttercream.
Wrap the cake in clingfilm/plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 8 hours, or overnight.
To serve, carefully peel away the plastic wrap. With a sharp chef’s knife, slice into 9-10 slices.
Store leftover cake in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Cakes and Cupcakes
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Christmas
Special Tools and Equipment
To make this Christmas cake roll (or any other Swiss roll, like my rainbow cake roll) you’ll need:
- Kitchen Scale – A kitchen scale is an absolute must. When making the batter for a piped sponge, it’s crucial to keep the portions precise or you’ll end up making too much of one color and not enough of the other. And don’t try scraping the batter into into measuring cups—deflated, overmixed batter yields a dense and gummy cake.
- Fine Mesh Strainer – Use a fine mesh strainer to sift the flour into the whipped egg mixture, and to dust your tea towel (and the top of your sponge!) with confectioner’s sugar.
- Quarter Sheet Tray – Tray size matters for this recipe, so a quarter sheet tray is a must. If your tray is too big or too small, your cake will be too thin or too thick to roll.
- Small Stepped Palette Knife – I recommend a small stepped palette knife for spreading the buttercream.
Make-Ahead and Storage Suggestions
To chill: Tightly wrap the cake roll in several layers of clingfilm/plastic wrap. Place on a small tray and refrigerate for at least eight hours, or overnight.
To serve: Carefully peel away the plastic wrap. With a sharp chef’s knife, cut into nine slices, or as desired.
To store: Store leftover peppermint cake roll in the refrigerator for up to three days.
To freeze: Wrap cake roll in clingfilm/plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil. Freeze for up to one month.
Other Christmas Recipes You Might Enjoy
Gingerbread Wreath
Peppermint Meringues
Christmas Tree Brownies
Candy Cane Cookies
Miniature Christmas Puddings
Mince Pie Hand Pies
Nutella-Stuffed Christmas Wreaths
Peppermint Lollipops
Festive Cranberry Jelly Candies
And if you do make these, or any of my recipes, don’t forget to tag me @bastecutfold or use the hashtag #bastecutfold on Instagram. I always love to see what you’re making!
- Piping Bags – You’ll need a pair of disposable piping bags, one for the red batter and one for the white.
- Clean Tea Towel – For rolling the cake. I suggest using a lightweight cotton or linen towel rather than terrycloth; the terrycloth fibers can embed themselves in the cake.
