GF Poppy Seed Cake Roll with Chocolate Ganache

Adapted from Natasha's Kitchen

Ingredients

For the Cake:

• 4 eggs, room temp
• ½ cup white sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla
• ⅔ cup all-purpose flour (I use Pamelas Artisan GF Blend)
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• 2 Tbsp poppy seeds

For the Syrup:

• ½ cup hot water
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 ½ tsp rum extract

For the Frosting:

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened at room temp
• ¾ cups powdered sugar
• ½ cup cold heavy whipping cream

For Ganache: 

• 8 oz (1/2 lb or about 1⅓ cup of ) semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

You will need:

• Parchment paper
• Wire rack – recommended
• 11×17 rimmed baking sheet

Instructions

How to Make the Cake Roll:

1. Preheat Oven to 350˚F. Line the bottom of a large an 11×17 rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Beat 4 eggs with ½ cup white sugar on high speed for 5-7 minutes or until thick and tripled in volume. Fold in ½ tsp vanilla.
3. Whisk together ⅔ cup flour with ¼ tsp baking powder and 2 Tbsp poppy seeds, then fold the flour mixture into the batter. Fold together with a spatula (not with the mixer) scraping from the bottom to make sure no flour pockets are left. Fold just until all of the flour is incorporated. Don’t over-work it since the volume of the eggs helps it rise.
4. Spread batter evenly onto your prepared baking sheet. Bake at 350˚F for 13-15 min or until top is golden.
5. Once the cake comes out of the oven, remove it from the baking pan, place a sheet of parchment or wax paper over it and roll the cake roll loosely (rolling it while it’s still warm helps prevent cracks). Let the rolled cake cool to room temp, then you can remove the backing and lay it flat again keeping the same side up as before so you are rolling in the same direction after it’s frosted.

How to Make the Glaze

1. In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine ½ cup hot water with 1 Tbsp sugar and stir to dissolve. Stir in 1 ½ tsp rum extract then set aside to cool to room temp while you work on the frosting.

How to Make the Cream Filling:

1. Beat 8 oz softened cream cheese with ¾ cup powdered sugar until smooth (1 min).
2. While the mixer is on, beat in ½ cup cold heavy whipping cream. Turn the mixer up to high speed and continue to beat 3 minutes or until cream is thick and spreadable. Refrigerate frosting until ready to spread.

How to Make Chocolate Ganache:

1. Bring heavy cream to a simmer on the stove top, stirring occasionally. Just as soon as you see a simmer, remove from heat and poor over chocolate chips, swirling the bowl to make sure all chips are covered.
2. Place lid on chocolate chips to trap the heat and let sit
3. undisturbed (no mixing) for 5 minutes. Remove lid and swirl the chocolate chips with a whisk starting in the center and working outward until smooth. It will turn into velvety ganache right before your eyes and you’ll get excited.
4. Once it’s velvety, let it sit uncovered at room temperature (70˚F) for about 15 minutes before pouring it over your cake. It was perfect for glazing the entire surface of a cake roll after 15 minutes (it should coat a spoon nicely when ready for cake coverage – set your timer!).
5. Important Note: Keep in mind, the longer ganache sits, the thicker and more of a frosting it becomes

Assembly:

1. Brush the top of your unrolled cake roll (the side that will be the inside once it’s rolled up) evenly with the syrup. Let it soak it up for 5 minutes.
2. Spread your cream filling evenly over the top of the cake and start rolling your cake from the same side as before, keeping a tight(-ish) roll without squeezing out the frosting.

How to Glaze a Cake:

1. Place cake on a wire rack over a rimmed platter or rimmed baking sheet. Pour your ganache evenly over the top of your cake until desired coverage is reached. You can lift up the wire rack and re-use the chocolate ganache that drips onto the platter.
2. Refrigerate the finished roll until ganache is set (at least 1 hr is best).