Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll

This chocolate peppermint Swiss roll recipe is so pretty and festive! The cake is filled with peppermint whipped cream. Topped with chocolate ganache and candy canes.

Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
Elizabeth Stark

Chocolate Swiss rolls are such an eye-catching holiday treat, aren't they?

I've made this one with a peppermint whipped cream filling, rich chocolate ganache on the outside, and a crushed peppermint candy sprinkled on top, giving it a particularly festive, wintry air.

The light, springy cake practically melts in your mouth. If you're looking for a show-stopper dessert for your holiday table, this is it.

Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
Elizabeth Stark

I based the sponge cake part of this recipe on a classic chocolate genoise. This style of cake doesn't contain any leaveners, like baking soda or baking powder. Instead, it relies on eggs to get its lift.

To make sure the eggs whisk into a strong, stable foam (which in turn helps make a reliable and delicious cake), you warm them briefly with the sugar over a double-boiler.

Using a Double Boiler

A double boiler just involves warming a few inches of water in a medium-sized saucepan and setting a bowl over top. The bowl should rest on the lip of the saucepan above the water, like an egg in an eggcup. It's ok if the bowl touches the water, but it shouldn't touch the bottom of the pan.

Whisking the eggs in a double boiler warms them gently without risk that they will overcook or curdle. You'll also use a double boiler later in the recipe to melt the chocolate for the ganache; in that instance, the double boiler helps melt the chocolate evenly and without scorching.

2016-12-06-swissroll-28
Elizabeth Stark

How to Roll Up a Swiss Roll

There's really only one other daunting moment in this recipe—rolling up the cake! The trick for this is to roll the cake around a clean kitchen towel while it's still warm from the oven, then letting it cool in this position before frosting.

Rolling and cooling the cake like this gives it the ability to hold the rolled shape without cracking. To add the frosting, you'll just gently unroll it, remove the towel, then frost it and roll it back up. The process requires a bit of confidence, but if you work swiftly, you'll be amazed at how simply the roll comes together.

Once the cake has been filled, all that's left to do is drizzle it with chocolate ganache and sprinkle some crushed peppermint over top. You're ready to slice and serve!

Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll

Prep Time 30 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Cool and Chill 2 hrs
Total Time 2 hrs 50 mins
Servings 10 to 12 servings

For this recipe, you'll need a clean kitchen towel on hand. Cocoa powder and cake crumbs can stain, so make sure it's one you won't mind getting dirty.

Once the ganache is added, the cake is best served the day it is made (the ganache won't look as pretty the second day). Leftover cake that doesn't get devoured can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Ingredients

For the chocolate sponge cake

  • Nonstick cooking spray, for greasing the pan

  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, plus extra for rolling the cake

  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 6 large eggs

  • 2/3 cup sugar

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled (but still liquid)

For the peppermint whipped cream

  • 1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream

  • 2 tablespoons sugar

  • 1 teaspoon peppermint extract

For the ganache and peppermint topping

  • 1/2 cup heavy cream

  • 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped, divided

  • 1 teaspoon light corn syrup

  • 1/4 cup crushed peppermint candies or candy canes

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 450°F.

    Position a baking rack in the center of the oven and preheat.

  2. Prepare the baking sheet:

    Spray a 13x17-inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray, line the bottom with parchment paper, then spray again and dust with cocoa powder, tapping out any excess. Set aside.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  3. Sift together the dry ingredients:

    Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and salt together. Set aside.

  4. Warm the eggs and sugar:

    Make a double boiler by filling a medium saucepan with 2 inches of water and brining the water to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Combine the eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer or another large heatproof bowl, and set this bowl over the simmering water. The bowl should be larger than the pan and sit above the surface of the simmering water.

    Begin whisking the eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract with a sturdy whisk. Continue whisking until the sugar has dissolved and the egg mixture is pale and warm to the touch. Remove from heat.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  5. Beat the egg mixture:

    Using a stand mixer with a whisk attachment or a hand mixer, beat the warm egg mixture on high speed until the mixture is very pale, has a shiny gloss, and has nearly tripled in volume. This will take 5 to 10 minutes depending on your mixer.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  6. Fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture:

    Sprinkle half of the flour and cocoa mixture over the surface of the eggs, and gently fold until just barely combined. Sprinkle the remaining flour and cocoa mixture over the top and fold until you see no more dry streaks and the mixture looks uniform.

    Drizzle the melted, cooled butter into the mixture and gently mix to combine.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  7. Spoon mixture onto the baking sheet:

    Working quickly, use an offset spatula to spread the batter out evenly.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  8. Bake:

    Bake for 6 or 7 minutes or until cake has pulled away from sides and is springy to the touch. Cool cake 2 for 3 minutes in the pan, but no longer.

    While the cake is baking, prepare a kitchen towel for rolling. Find a clean kitchen towel that is larger than your baking sheet (or use two, overlapping). Dust it all over with cocoa powder.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  9. Roll the cake:

    With swift, confident motions, run a knife along the outside edge of the cake pan. Set the pan on its side, and then flip face down onto the dusted towel. Carefully lift the pan up and away, and peel away the parchment.

    Fold the edge of the towel over one of the shorter sides of the cake and gently roll the cake up. Set the rolled cake log on a wire rack and cool completely, an hour or longer.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  10. Make the whipped cream:

    Whip the heavy cream until is fluffy, then add the sugar and peppermint extract. Continue whipping until the cream just barely holds firm peaks; be careful not to overwhip.

  11. Fill the cake with whipped cream:

    Gently unroll the cooled cake on a clean surface. Spread the whipped cream filling evenly over the cake, leaving a 1-inch border on all sides. Roll the cake back up again (this time without the towel!). If any whipped cream squeezes out as you roll, spoon it up and add it back in.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  12. Chill the cake:

    Wrap cake roll in parchment, then plastic wrap, and set in fridge to chill at least 30 minutes to set, or as long as overnight.

  13. When ready to finish the cake, make the ganache:

    Make a double boiler by filling a medium saucepan with 2 inches of water, and bringing the water to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Set a larger bowl on top of the saucepan, over the water.

    Add the heavy cream, 2/3 of the chopped chocolate, and a pinch salt to the bowl. Stir until melted. Remove the bowl from heat, and stir in remaining chocolate and corn syrup.

  14. Drizzle the cake with the ganache:

    Unwrap the chilled cake and set it on a platter, seam-side down. Slip 2 pieces of parchment on either side of the "log" to catch the drips. Drizzle the prepared ganache over the roll until it is completely covered. Remove the parchment paper "drip catchers." Scatter the peppermint candy bits on the top.

    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
    Chocolate Peppermint Swiss Roll
    Elizabeth Stark
  15. Chill and serve:

    Set the cake in the fridge and chill 20 minutes. Slice and serve!

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
341 Calories
24g Fat
26g Carbs
6g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 10 to 12
Amount per serving
Calories 341
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 24g 31%
Saturated Fat 14g 71%
Cholesterol 143mg 48%
Sodium 63mg 3%
Total Carbohydrate 26g 9%
Dietary Fiber 2g 7%
Total Sugars 18g
Protein 6g
Vitamin C 0mg 1%
Calcium 49mg 4%
Iron 3mg 16%
Potassium 152mg 3%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.