I was recently asked by The Guardian and IGA to develop some dietary friendly Christmas recipes. I wanted to share one Christmas main and one showstopping dessert. Of course, the aforementioned Christmas showstopper has to be a delicious chocolate berry roulade. Roulade is a simple dessert to make, provided you understand that cracks are inevitable! It is part of the cake style, part of the charm and part of making a flourless chocolate roulade.
Roulades can seem a little daunting because of their inevitable cracking. However, with the right cooking temperature and some courage it really needn’t be stressful. The instructions in the recipe look long but I promise they are not difficult. My sole intention is to give you every instruction needed to feel confident in your roulade making.
Ingredient notes for your chocolate berry roulade
Chocolate percentage matters. 45% dark chocolate contains around 30g fat per 100g (brand dependent) whereas 70% dark chocolate contains around 39-45g fat per 100g. This is a sizeable difference. I have used Cadbury 70% baking chocolate for my tests. It contains 39g fat per 100g. You can use a sweetened 70% chocolate with a little more fat than this, but I wouldn’t recommend one with less fat than this.
The chocolate and the egg yolks are the only source of fat in the cake – there is no oil or butter. This is why the percentage and the fat content matter. I don’t recommend milk chocolate for this – I haven’t tested it and it will throw off the fat and sugar ratios.
Another thing I haven’t tested? Any chocolate style alternatives or chocolate made with coconut milk, etc. We need the fat and sugar ratios of a regular ol’ 70% sweetened chocolate here.
Egg size also matters. I used extra large eggs here in Australia which are generally 40-50g per egg, weighed out of shell. My recipe uses one less egg than many recipes because I found 6 eggs too eggy in flavour. This means that you do need to use extra large eggs here or else it won’t be enough egg to hold everything together and fluff everything up.
I have used light brown sugar for a bit of flavour complexity. Although I daresay you could use caster sugar as well, I love the caramel note of the brown sugar and highly recommend it. I have not tested any other varieties and can’t offer advice on alternative sugars here.
Tips for your chocolate berry roulade
- Personally, I find the hardest part of making roulade to be baking it. An under-baked roulade is harder to roll, but an over-baked roulade is a little too dry and crispy.
- Pull your roulade out the minute it is cooked on top and there are no fudgy bits. Keep an eye on it while it bakes as all ovens are a bit different.
- Roulades break! It happens. In fact, it’s to be expected when making a flourless roulade. Cover it up with berries and you’ll be fine.
- With that said, I have found there are a few key things to consider when minimising a broken roulade. Firstly, cook your sponge sufficiently but not excessively. A hard balance to find sometimes, but important to mention.
- Secondly, refrigerate your cream filling before you use it, particularly in summer. A soft cream is a slippery cream, which makes it harder to roll up your roulade.
- If disaster strikes when rolling your roulade, use the cling film to keep the roulade snug and pop it on a flat surface in the freezer for 12-20 minutes. This should stop any seepage or slippage from progressing too far. The cream filling will harden as it chills and hopefully hold things together a little.
- Budget fridge time for your roulade. I actually recommend making this recipe the night before and then topping it with fruit on the day. The chilling time sets the roulade which makes it easier to slice.
- On the Nutella filling option: mascarpone can be a finnicky ingredient to whip. I always recommend giving it ample chilling time before using it and only whipping briefly. If your mixture looks a little bit grainy, stop the mixer straight away but don’t worry too much. It still tastes delicious and once it is in the roulade nobody will be able to tell.
Dietary notes
- Use the whipped cream option for a nut free dessert. Nutella contains hazelnuts so it isn’t suitable for a nut free guest.
- Use lactose free whipping cream for a lower lactose dessert. You can easily purchase this at the supermarket or make your own if none is available where you live.
- Use all raspberries or raspberries and blueberries for a lower fructose dessert.
- A combination of lactose free whipped cream and low fructose berries makes this a low FODMAP dessert per serve.
- I do plan to test dairy free chocolate and dairy free cream in this recipe. I will update the post when I do!
More gluten free festive desserts
- Gluten free gingerbread (low FODMAP option)
- Lactose free creme caramel
- Gluten free pistachio Tiramisu
- Low FODMAP gluten free Christmas pudding
- Gluten free sticky date pudding (with a vegan version)
Chocolate berry roulade
Gluten free, nut free option, low FODMAP option*Tablespoons are in Australian tablespoons which are 20ml as opposed to the more common 15ml. 4 teaspoons = 1 Australian tablespoon
Equipment
- 33cm x 23cm rectangular Swiss roll tin or cake tin
Ingredients
For the fudgy chocolate sponge:
- 200 g light brown sugar split into 50g and 150g
- 180 g 70% dark chocolate see notes
- 5 extra large eggs 45-55g, weighed out of shell
- 20 g (2 tablespoons)* Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 2.5 g heaped ¼ teaspoon fine salt
For the whipped cream option:
- 250 g whipping cream regular or lactose free
- 25 g icing sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
For the chocolate hazelnut mascarpone option:
- 250 g mascarpone well refrigerated before use
- 75 g Nutella
- Pinch of fine salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste
To finish:
- 2-3 tablespoons* raspberry jam optional
- 250 g raspberries use divided
- Cocoa powder or icing sugar to roll the roulade in (optional)
- 20 g+ extra jam or Nutella to adhere the berries to the roulade
- Other summer berries to decorate (I used cherries)
Instructions
To make the chocolate sponge:
- Preheat the oven to 170C/338F. Very lightly grease a 33cm x 23cm rectangular Swiss roll tin or cake tin then line it with baking paper.
- Weigh your light brown sugar into two bowls – 50g in one bowl and 150g in the other bowl.
- Place the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl over a small pot 1/3 filled with water. Ensure the water doesn’t touch the bowl. Turn the heat to a low-medium and stir intermittently until the chocolate has melted. Take the bowl off the pot and set aside to cool a little.
- Separate your first egg into two clean, dry bowls. If the first egg white comes out cleanly (with no traces of broken egg yolk) transfer it into your clean, dry stand mixer bowl. Egg whites can’t whip when fat is present, so it’s important to ensure there is no fat in the egg whites. Repeat with the remaining eggs.
- Use the whisk attachment to whisk your egg whites on a medium speed until they are light and frothy. The whisk should leave tracks in the top of the foam. Take your 50g bowl of sugar and add it to the egg whites in tablespoon increments. Allow the sugar to briefly dissolve in between additions. Scrape down the bowl once to ensure the sugar is not sitting on the bottom. When the egg whites are ready, you should be able to invert the bowl without them slipping.
- Use a silicon spatula to scrape all the egg whites into a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- Add the egg yolks and 150g sugar to your stand mixer. Beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved and the egg yolks are much paler and airy in consistency. Scrape the bowl down to ensure no sugar is on the bottom of the bowl.
- Once the egg yolks are whipped, remove the bowl from the mixer and add the cooled chocolate. Use a spatula to start folding the chocolate into the egg yolk mixture. Once it is about halfway combined, add the cocoa and salt. Fold just to combine until you have a uniformly chocolate coloured paste about the consistency of a thick nut butter.
- Take about ½ a cup of whipped egg whites and begin folding them into the chocolate mixture. You will encounter some resistance at first, but it should loosen up once these egg whites are folded in. Try not to roughly stir and knock all the air out of the egg white, but take comfort in the fact that this first half cup is sacrificial.
- Add the remaining egg whites and carefully fold them into the mixture. The air is what makes the sponge light, so fold with intention to avoid flattening the egg white. Continue until the batter is a smooth, fluffy consistency and uniform chocolate brown in colour.
To bake and assemble:
- Pour the mixture into the prepared baking tin. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the sponge is cooked through. The sponge should spring back a little if you press on it but shouldn’t feel too crispy. Cooked through in the least amount of time possible is the aim of the game for a sponge that is easy enough to roll but still moist and fudgy.
- Once you're happy, remove the tray from the oven. Cover the tray with a lightly dampened clean tea towel then allow to cool completely in the baking tin. I like to leave it for 1 hour.
- To make the whipped cream filling, whip the cream until medium peaks form and then add the sugar and vanilla. Continue to whip until combined and stiff peaks form.
- To make the Nutella mascarpone filling, ensure your mascarpone is thoroughly chilled (it splits easily when warmer). Whip the mascarpone just until it starts to look a bit fluffy (maybe a minute or so) then add the remaining ingredients. Beat on a lower speed until just combined, then return to the fridge until you are ready to use. Mascarpone is a bit finnicky so if in doubt, under-whip it.
- Place a clean piece of cling film on a flat surface. You can sprinkle it with cocoa, icing sugar or leave it plain. Carefully invert the cooled sponge onto the cling film, so that the bottom of the sponge faces upwards. Gently peel off the bottom piece of baking paper.
- If you are using the jam, spread a thin layer across the sponge leaving a small border around the edges. Carefully top the jam with your cream filling of choice and use an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to gently spread it without pulling at the sponge.
- Top the cream evenly with 125g of fresh raspberries. The roulade can be easier to roll if you slice the raspberries in half or gently press them into the cream.
- Use a knife to gently score the sponge about 1cm in from a short edge of the sponge. This will help you create a tight first roll, which is important to get a good swirly roulade. Flick or break this small scored sponge up over the rest of the roulade to start the first swirl. Use the cling film to help you as you continue rolling the roulade up over itself, maintaining a bit of pressure to keep a tighter swirl. Continue rolling all the way up and allow the roulade to rest on the bottom seam to keep everything together. Cracks are 100% expected here, so don’t be discouraged!
- You can serve the roulade straight away, but I prefer to refrigerate it for at least a few hours, if not overnight. To refrigerate overnight, wrap the roulade up firmly in the cling film and gently twist in the open edges of clingfilm to form a sausage shape. Carefully lift it onto a flat board and then place in the fridge until you are ready to decorate. I like to slice and remove the end pieces of the roulade before serving to expose some of the berries and remove the slightly drier edge pieces, but you don’t have to.
- To decorate, dip each piece of fruit in a bit of jam or Nutella and use it adhere the fruit to the top of the roulade. You might need to press down a little bit to secure. Sprinkle with some extra icing sugar or serve as is.
- Leftovers keep well in an airtight container in the fridge. They can also be frozen in an airtight container and defrosted.
Notes
- See the tips and tricks in the body of the post.
- See the dietary notes in the body of the post.
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