Strawberry Swiss Roll Cake

Prep Time:1 hour 15 minutes
Cook Time:15 minutes
Chilling Time:6 hours
Servings:7 - 8 slices

This delightful strawberry swiss roll cake features a light and fluffy chiffon cake that’s lovingly wrapped around airy whipped cream and fresh strawberries. It’s a charming pink treat that feels like you’re indulging in a cloud!

Ingredients:

Chiffon Cake

7 large eggs
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
170 g granulated sugar, divided into 100g + 50g
70 g milk, dairy or non-dairy
60 g light-tasting oil
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 drops red or pink gel food colouring
150 g cake flour
½ teaspoon baking powder

Filling

400 g whipping cream
35 g powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
550 g fresh strawberries, finely diced, plus more for topping

Directions:

Chiffon Cake

Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 12x17" baking tray with parchment paper on the bottom only and set aside.
Separate eggs: Separate the egg whites and egg yolks into two separate large mixing bowls. Set the bowl of egg yolks aside.
Beat egg whites: To the egg whites, add cream of tartar. Use an electric hand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to beat the egg whites until they become frothy like cappuccino foam.
Add sugar: Sprinkle in 100g of sugar, one spoonful at a time, mixing well in between each addition. After all the sugar has been added, add 1-2 drops of pink gel food colouring and continue beating the egg whites until they become stiff peaks. Set aside.
Mix egg yolk mixture: To the egg yolks, add the remaining 50g of sugar and use the same hand mixer to mix until combined. Add milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix again until combined.
Sift in dry ingredients: Use a fine mesh sieve to sift the flour and baking powder into the egg yolk mixture. Mix on low speed until combined and smooth.
Fold meringue into egg yolk mixture: Add ⅓ of the meringue to the egg yolk mixture. Use a silicone spatula to gently fold them together until just combined to create a looser consistency. Add the rest of the meringue and fold until no streaks remain and the batter is fluffy and airy. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl where the egg yolk batter tends to settle.
Fill pan: Pour the batter into your lined baking tray. Use an offset spatula to spread the batter into the corners of the tray and smooth it into a flat, even layer.
Bake: Bake for 12-13 minutes or until the edges of the cake are lightly golden brown.
Release the cake sheet: Let the cake cool for just a few minutes before immediately running an offset spatula around the edges of the cake to release the sides from the pan. Flip the cake out of the pan onto a wire rack and peel the parchment paper off. Place a new sheet of parchment paper on top and flip the cake sheet back onto the parchment so that the side that was originally on top is back on top.
Roll up cake sheet: Use a knife to cut off the brown edges on the two short ends of the cake sheet. Starting at one of the short ends, roll up the cake sheet with the parchment paper and set aside to let it cool completely resting in this rolled-up log shape.
Whip cream: In a large mixing bowl, add whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Use an electric hand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to whip the cream until it becomes firm peaks.
Spread whipped cream: Unroll the cooled cake sheet. Use an offset spatula to spread a generous and even layer of whipped cream on top of the cake sheet, leaving about 2" at one end empty. Reserve a small amount of whipped cream to decorate the top of the swiss roll the next day (optional).
Add strawberries: Evenly distribute the diced strawberries across the whipped cream layer, pressing them down into the cream to help them stick.
Roll up cake: Roll up the cake in the same way it was rolled before. When you get to the end, use an offset spatula to scrape away any filling that squishes out before letting the cake roll rest with the seam of the roll on the bottom. Any filling that squishes out of the two ends of the roll can also be pushed back in.
Chill: Wrap the roll in plastic wrap, reshape the roll with your hands if needed, and let it chill in the fridge for at least 6 hours or preferably overnight to let the filling set.
Cut off ends: Once chilled, unwrap the cake. Slice about ½" off the two ends of the roll to reveal the swirl design.
Decorate: Transfer the whipped cream you saved to a piping bag fitted with a piping tip of your choice. Pipe the cream on top of the cake and garnish with whole or halved strawberries.
Slice: Slice the swiss roll into 6-8 slices before serving.

Tips & Notes:

Whip meringue to stiff peaks. Chiffon cake relies on aerating the meringue to produce lots of tiny bubbles in the batter. When you pull the mixer out of the meringue, it should leave pointy peaks that flop over slightly at the tips and it shouldn't budge when you turn the bowl upside down.
Use gel food colouring. Water-based or oil-based food colouring ruins the consistency of meringue. Only use gel food colouring!
Gently fold the batter together. You want to combine the meringue and egg yolk mixture well enough so that there aren't any streaks of either remaining in the batter but you also don't want to overmix and deflate the batter.
Don't underbake the cake. Underbaked chiffon cake tends to deflate and sink once it's taken out of the oven because it doesn't have enough structure. You should bake it until the edges are lightly golden brown and the top is just barely starting to brown.
Pre-roll the cake. Rolling the cake sheet while it's still warm and letting it cool completely while rolled up helps to "train" the cake to stay in that rolled-up shape and prevent cracking when you roll the cake later on.
Chill the swiss roll. Don't try to slice the swiss roll right away. The whipped cream filling needs time to set and firm up otherwise the cake will just fall apart. I recommend chilling it overnight, which makes it a great cake to make 1-2 days in advance.