Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe (with Pecan Nuts) Easy

Perfect for fall and the holiday season this Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe is going to leave your family and guests begging for more….. maybe that should read fighting for more because it’s that good! ❤️ Thanksgiving may never be the same again!

When the temperature starts to drop and we start to think of snuggling inside with the fire our Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe is the perfect way end a meal. Scented with spices and filled with a homemade cream cheese frosting the moist pumpkin sponge is then finished by rolling in toasted pecans. This is not only an impressive cake to look at but ridiculously easy to make.

At a Glance This Is What You Need To Make Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe

What is the Difference Between a Roulade and a Swiss Roll also Known as a Jelly Roll?

Roulade comes from the French term Rouler – meaning to roll. Roulades can be either sweet or savoury made up of various meats, breads, pastries or cake that are spread with a soft filling and rolled into a cylinder

Swiss Roll is always a sponge cake with a soft filling eg. cream and jam rolled inside of it and a Jelly Roll could be any form of cake with a filling that has been rolled inside

How do you Roll a Cake Without Cracking It?

Why do cakes crack while being rolled? As with most things in life once we understand why, then the doing is easy! There are just a couple of easy steps involved in successfully rolling a cake.

Firstly let’s talk about what causes a cake to crack and then we can move onto becoming a pro cake roller!

1/. Ensure that the cake is not undercooked as this will result in a cake that is both sticky and will flatten with rolling.

2/. Overcooked cakes are highly likely to crack as they have lost both moisture and elasticity.

Now we’re sure that you wouldn’t make a cake that wasn’t cooked properly but thought it was worth mentioning both scenarios just in case. 😜

The real secret to successfully rolling a cake without cracking is to roll it fresh from the oven…… yep while it’s still hot.

Begin by dusting the cake with either icing sugar, cocoa, coconut etc or in this case with nuts, by doing this the cake wont stick and can easily be unrolled for filling. Now that the cake has it’s none stick coating it can be rolled with the aid of a thin teatowel and left to cool completely. We prefer a teatowel to parchment paper as it breaths, which helps to prevent the cake from becoming soggy while it cools.

Difference Between Pumpkin Puree and Canned Pumpkin

Preparing pumpkin puree from scratch is easily achieved by simply cutting large wedges of pumpkin, no need to even peel it and dry roasting it for 30 minutes or so. Once the pumpkin has softened remove from the oven and allow to cool. Scoop the flesh away from the skin and briefly mash, now you have pumpkin puree!

Canned pumpkin is a great stand by but can’t compete against freshly prepared puree with it’s wonderful bright colour and deep concentration of the sweet pumpkin flavour.

Roulades are so Versatile

Making a roulade is such a wonderfully easy way to make a dessert on the hop, that presents beautifully and yet requires so little work on your part. No need to fiddle with icing etc just a dusting with icing sugar is usually enough. Checkout some of our other roulades like our Luxurious Lemon Roulade or Lemon Curd and Almond Rolled Pavlova

Don’t Skip the Baking (Parchment) Paper

There is nothing worse than baking a cake only to have it stick to the pan. Using baking, or parchment paper as our friends in the U.S call it completely alleviates any problems with the cooked cake sticking. 

Baking paper is a greaseproof paper that is used in baking and cooking as it provides a heat resistant, and non stick surface. 

Using baking (parchment) paper eliminates the need to butter and flour the pan which would create a thin crust on the cake, and once cooked allows you to simply peel the paper away leaving a soft, non crusty base.

Another great reason for using this paper is the ease of cleaning up…..no scrubbing away crusty stuck on cake bits. Got to love that!

Watch How To Make Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe (with Pecan Nuts)

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Can I Freeze Pumpkin Spice Roulade?

This roulade freezes like a dream. Just make sure that you wrap it snugly in cling film and then wrap it in foil and pop it in the freezer. You can freeze it for up to one month before serving.

When you’re ready to serve remove it from the freezer the day before and allow it to thaw in the main part of your refrigerator. Too darned easy you clever host!

Making ahead and freezing allows you to stay ahead of the game come Thanksgiving or any excuse you can think of to make when entertaining, and it’s a perfect dessert for busy holiday entertaining.

We would love to hear from you in the comments below when you make this delicious Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe

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Yield: 12 slices

Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe (with Pecan Nuts)

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Additional Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 2 hours 35 minutes

Perfect for fall and the holiday season this Pumpkin Spice Roulade Cake Recipe is going to leave your family and guest begging for more..... maybe that should read fighting for more, because it's that good!

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Ingredients

Dry ingredients

• 90 gms plain flour (all purpose) 3 1/4 oz
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda (baking soda)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice or cloves
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 150g toasted pecan nuts roughly chopped (5 ounces) - see notes below

Wet ingredients

• 3 ex large eggs
• 200 gm sugar (7 oz)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla 
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree not canned pumpkin pie filling - see notes below

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 350 gms cream cheese (12 1/2 oz's)
• 135 gms soft butter (4 3/4 oz's)
• 3 teaspoons of vanilla
• 200 gms sifted icing sugar / powdered sugar (7 oz's)

Instructions

1. preheat your oven to 190c / 375f using the bake setting without the fan.
2. grease a 25 x 38cm / 10" x 15" tray then line with baking paper / parchment to cover the base and the sides. - see notes below
3. sift the dry ingredients into a bowl and put to one side
4. using a large bowl beat the eggs, vanilla and sugar for several minutes (this helps the sugar to start to dissolve) this step is only to combine the ingredients and is not about adding air.
5. add the pumpkin puree and mix only until it is well combined - no lumps
6. add all of the dry ingredients at once and fold until no dry ingredients appear.
7. pour the batter into the prepared tin and ensure the batter is evenly spread across the tin and into the corners - see video
8. sprinkle 3/4's of the nuts evenly over the batter and bake for around 15 minutes (start checking at the 12 minute mark) the cake should be golden brown and spring back when lightly pressed in the centre.
9. working quickly once the cake is cooked, sprinkle with the remaining pecan nuts and lay a thin teatowel over the cake followed by a flat tray (use the underside of a baking tray so it can be removed easily)

See video

1. holding the tin and tray firmly together turn them over
2. remove the tin from the cake and leaving the teatowel in position slide the baking sheet out
3. roll the cake as shown in the video finishing by resting the cake so the outside edge is on the bottom and leave until completely cold on a cake rack
4. gently unroll the cake and evenly spread with the frosting, then roll finishing with the seam on the bottom
5. Enjoy!

Make the cream cheese frosting

1. beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla until smooth and pale
2. add the icing sugar and beat until well combined - see notes
   

Notes

Wet ingredients

Step 4. we dry roasted our pumpkin by cutting large wedges and dry roasted them on a parchment lined tray until tender. Pumpkin pie filling has spices added so avoid anything with spices as this will compete with the spices in the cake.

Instructions

Step 2. greasing the tray helps to hold the parchment paper in place and prevent it from sliding around while preparing the lining and then filling with the cake batter. 😀

Cream Cheese Frosting

don't refrigerate the frosting before spreading onto the cake, as it will be thick and extremely hard to spread

Toasted Pecan Nuts

Preheat the oven to 180c / 360f, spread the pecans in a single layer on a baking sheet, and cook whilst occasionally turning until lightly toasted. Approximately 10 minutes

Nutrition Information

Yield

12

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 404Total Fat 20gSaturated Fat 12gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 100mgSodium 295mgCarbohydrates 53gFiber 2gSugar 45gProtein 4g

Nutritional information provided here is only intended as a guide.