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This Truffle Cake Roll is a death by chocolate cake with a ganache filling! It’s the perfect cake roll recipe for chocolate lovers.
Don’t be afraid of the cake roll! This Chocolate Truffle Cake Roll is one of my favorites yet – a rich chocolate truffle filling inside a from-scratch chocolate cake roll!
Cake rolls are amazing. There are so many flavor combinations! It’s my goal in life to turn everything into a cake roll at some point…because I can. So far I’ve made Carrot Cake, Turtle, Zucchini, Caramel Apple, and Vanilla. Now? Now I’m doing chocolate!
Okay, so let’s just address your cake roll fears. They’re not scary, I promise. I used to be scared of them, until I made one. Then I realized it’s more about practice and technique. And you know what they say: practice makes perfect. So I plan to keep on practicing! If you are still afraid, make sure you’ve read my cake roll tutorial. There are pictures of each rolling step. And I also have rules for the perfect cake roll. Be sure to follow them. And watch me make them in a tutorial video.
You can fill this cake roll with whatever flavors you want, but may I suggest truffles? Yes, I said truffle. This cake is filled with ganache! It’s so, so good. And rich. And chocolatey. You make a simple ganache with chocolate chips and heavy cream, and then once it chills, you beat it into a creamy chocolate ganache frosting. Then you spread it over the unrolled cake. Re-roll the cake and chill until the ganache sets a bit and you have a truffle filled cake!
A Chocolate Truffle Cake Roll is perfect for chocolate lovers – I also call this a death by chocolate cake roll!
Let’s answer some common cake roll questions:
Can you make a chocolate cake roll with cake mix?
Yes you can, but it’s not as easy as just making a cake. Use my Turtle Cake Roll recipe as a guide – one cake mix will make TWO cake rolls.
What happens if my cake roll cracks?
Even for a seasoned cake roll maker cracks will happen. Unless it completely falls apart, it’s definitely salvageable.
- If it cracks along the sides, just use more filling to glue it together.
- If it cracks along the top or somewhere where it really shows, whip up some extra filling or whipped cream and frost the cake like this one.
Why does a cake roll crack?
That’s a loaded question, because I’ve made this same cake recipe hundreds of times with success and then one time…it cracks. I often joke that it’ll crack if it’s over cooked or under cooked or if it’s Tuesday…because you never really know.
- Under baking a cake roll will cause it to crack for sure. You know it’s done when it springs back when you poke it. Err on the side of over done…
- But not too over done. An overdone cake roll will also crack because it’s too dry. Also, ew.
- Texture – I talk a lot in all my cake roll posts that beating the eggs is essential. You cannot skimp on beating the eggs. Do a full 5 minutes if you’re using a hand mixer, 3 if you’re using an electric stand mixer. The volume of the eggs directly affects the moistness and sponginess of the cake, which will also affect how much it cracks.
Can you use parchment paper for rolling your cake roll?
I’ve always used a powdered sugar towel, but I did use parchment paper for my pumpkin cake roll, just to try it out. I’d gotten a suggestion from a reader and wanted to see. It does work but I find that the old fashioned way (a powdered sugar towel) works best.
Tips and tricks for making cake rolls:
- Be sure to watch the video in the recipe card.
- Check out this tutorial video on making cake rolls.
- See a step-by-step photo tutorial for making cake rolls.
- Check out all my rules for cake roll making.
Other cake roll recipes you’ll want to see:
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Chocolate Truffle Cake Roll
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup usweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons water or cooled coffee
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- Powdered sugar to aid in rolling
For the Filling:
- 3/4 cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a jelly roll (10x15”) pan with foil and spray with cooking spray (I like to use the spray with flour).
- Beat eggs at high speed for 5 minutes, until frothy and dark yellow. Beat in sugar, water or coffee and vanilla extract.
- Whisk together salt, baking powder, cocoa and flour. Stir into wet ingredients just until blended.
- Spread in prepared pan. Batter will be in a very thin layer and you will need to use a wooden spoon or spatula to spread it to all the corners of the pan. Bake for 9-15 minutes or until it springs back when poked.
- While the cake is baking, set a clean kitchen towel out on a large work surface. Sprinkle liberally with powdered sugar (about 1/4 cup). As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, turn it over on the kitchen towel sprinkled with powdered sugar. Remove foil carefully.
- Working at the short end, fold the edge of the towel over the cake. Roll tightly, rolling up the cake into the towel. Let cool completely while rolled, at least one hour.
- While the cake is cooling, place heavy cream and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl or measuring cup. Heat for about 45 seconds, then whisk until smooth. If the chocolate doesn’t want to melt, you can heat in additional 15 second increments until it will. Chill until the mixture is thick about 15-30 minutes. Once it's thick and chilled, beat it with a hand mixer until lighter in color and fluffier.
- When you want to assemble the cake, unroll the roll carefully. Spread the frosting evenly over the top.Re-roll your cake, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and chill for about an hour before serving. Dust with powdered sugar and cocoa before slicing and serving.
Recipe Video
Recipe Nutrition
**Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!**
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This post was originally written in 2014. Photos, content, and video updated/added 2018.
Last Updated on January 19, 2023
can this cake be frozen?
Yes
I am making this for company in a couple of days, for an engagement party. I made the cake today because this is when I have time. I made the ganache and it’s in the refrigerator in a bowl. The cake is rolled in a towel. Can I put the cake in the fridge tonight, and finish it tomorrow night?
Yes!
Can you make this a day ahead snd store in refrigerator?
this was very dry and I watched it carefully. I think the eggs are whipped too long, better to beat whites until stiff, add sugar and then beat yolks and gently fold together.
If you need to oil and flour a pan, try mixing your flour and oil in a small dish and paint your pan with it. You will be amazed! Learned that from Pinterest.
The ganache was amazing. I added a little peppermint flavoring which worked perfectly. The cake was a bit dry. I beat the eggs for a full five minutes and made sure not to cook it too long. Any suggestions?
I haven’t made a cake roll in a long time, but decided to try this recipe since I was craving chocolate. I made it for company and it was a huge hit. Everyone raved about it!
I’ve tried the Chocoate Truffle Cake roll twice – and the first was OK – the cake was a bit overbaked and dry – and the second it is a disaster – it stuck to the tinfoil. Why not line the cake pan with parchment paper – won’t this prevent the cake sticking? The powdered sugar encrusted tea towel works – it’s just so messy – powdered sugar everywhere! I actually double the recipe for the ganache filling – we’re chocoholics.
You can use parchment if you prefer. I have always used a towel because that’s how my MIL taught me to do it. But as long as you spray your foil with nonstick spray (the kind with flour) it should come off fine.
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