Gingerbread Cake Roll with Eggnog Whipped Cream

This Gingerbread Cake Roll is a blend of gingerbread and eggnog in one divine dessert for the holidays.

‘Tis the season for all things gingerbread and eggnog. I’ve killed three birds with one stone in this post: I’ve got both flavors covered in a holiday cake roll. This Gingerbread Cake Roll with Eggnog Whipped Cream was a hit with my family, and it will be with yours too!

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So you know how I blather on and on about how my husband never eats anything I make? Well, don’t hold your breath, he didn’t eat this one. No, I bring that up because today we’re talking about my mom.

My mom eats everything I make. Well, she eats everything that I give her that I make. Since she lives 2 hours away, she doesn’t get everything…but she’s always hopefully that there is something in the freezer waiting for her. Sometimes, when I think about it, I put a couple cookies or a slice of pie in a baggie in the freezer, just for her. And then I usually eat it when I’m raiding the freezer during an I-Need-Sugar binge.

But it’s the thought that counts, right?

Okay, back to my mom. So, normally she’ll eat anything I make. But the two things she doesn’t like are gingerbread and eggnog. She’d help me make gingerbread men when I was a kid…but she’d never eat them. And she’d just make disgusting faces when my dad and I guzzled the eggnog.

My parents were both big time “your tastes will change” and “you’ll like it when you’re older” people. And I have to give it to them…they were sort of right. I eat pork chops now. And I like spinach – but only raw. But I’ll never, ever eat mustard or white bratwurst, thankyouverymuch.  My point? Tastes change as you get older. I’m going somewhere, I promise.

The point is that my mom put aside her dislike of gingerbread and eggnog to try this cake roll at Thanksgiving. She’s doesn’t suffer from food neophobia (it’s a thing) like I do. And guess what?

She LIKED this Gingerbread Cake Roll. And she even liked the Eggnog Whipped Cream!

Pretty much my point is that even if you don’t like these essential Christmas ingredients, there is still a very good chance you’ll like this cake roll.

Unless you’re afraid of trying new things. Then I don’t have anything for you today. {Sorry.}

Let’s break down this cake roll recipe, shall we? We’re old pros at cake rolls around here, right? Oh, you’re not? Okay then, go read my step-by-step photo tutorial of how to make a carrot cake roll and my tips and tricks for cake roll success in my zucchini cake roll recipe.

{Or maybe you could go drool over the lemon cake roll. Or the ice cream cake roll. I’m Crazy for Cake Rolls around here!}

The cake part of this roll is a gingerbread cake. It’s a similar recipe to the Spiced Apple Cake Roll, but with more spice and molasses. You bake the cake in a jelly roll pan (a 10×15 pan with 1″ sides). I always like to line my pan with foil and spray with the floured cooking spray for easy removal. I’ve been told you can also use parchment, but I’ve never tried it.

I always bake my cakes at 350°F for about 10-11 minutes. A toothpick will come out clean. Err on the side of more done to less done but not so much it’s totally dried out.

You roll the hot and just out of the oven cake up in a clean kitchen towel that’s been coated with powdered sugar. Then you let it cool completely.

Note: because of all the molasses and the applesauce in this cake, it’s a moist one. The exterior of the cake is one that will transfer to your fingers. That’s okay, mine still rolled and unrolled just fine.

When the cake is cool (about 2 hours or you can wait until the next day), you make your whipped cream. I infused my whipped cream with some low-fat eggnog. I added only a few tablespoons so it’s not too strong, but the eggnog flavor is there. If you really don’t like eggnog, you could fill this cake with plain whipped cream or lemon whipped cream, or even ice cream.

Once it’s filled you can wrap it in plastic wrap and chill it for up to 2 days. Before I served it I piped on some whipped cream. Note that the whipped cream won’t  be perfect two days later, but if you stir it up a little, there should be enough  that’s okay to pipe onto the top of the cake. (I made this on a Tuesday, and served it on a Thursday.)

This Gingerbread Cake Roll has lots of Christmas flavor in a very subtle way. In other words, it’s the perfect cake roll! And my mom gave it two thumbs up.

And when it comes to gingerbread and eggnog, two thumbs up from my mom is like a gold star from Mel.

So, basically, you need to make this Gingerbread Cake Roll.

Gingerbread Cake Roll with Eggnog Whipped Cream

4.65 from 14 votes

A soft gingerbread cake is filled with an eggnog whipped cream! I can guarantee that even non-gingerbread and non-eggnog lovers will LOVE this cake roll.

Yield 8 -10 servings

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Ingredients

 

For the cake:

• ▢ 3 eggs
• ▢ 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1/4 cup no sugar added applesauce
• ▢ 1/2 cup molasses
• ▢ 1 cup flour
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the filling:

• ▢ 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• ▢ 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 5 tablespoons eggnog I used light

Instructions

• Line a 10x15 inch jelly roll pan with foil (for easy removal).Grease and flour the pan (I use the cooking spray that has flour in it for this step.) You can also line your pan with parchment paper instead of foil. Grease it just in case!
• Beat eggs at high speed for 5 minutes.  Gradually beat in sugar, applesauce, and molasses.
• Stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and salt. Add to other mixture. Spread into pan.
• Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes. Note: you want to make sure you cake is done. A toothpick should come out completely clean. Err on the side of overdone for cake rolls, that makes them roll easier. Turn out immediately onto a kitchen towel sprinkled liberally with powdered sugar. Starting at the narrow end, roll towel and cake together. Cool completely. Note: the cake is sticky, soft, and spongey. It might come off a little on your fingers, but that’s okay. Cooling will take at least 2 hours. You can make the cake a day ahead. Just wrap the cooled cake with plastic wrap overnight.
• Make the filling: Beat cold heavy whipping cream in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer) until soft peaks form. (This takes about 2 minutes with my stand mixer on medium speed.) Add powdered sugar, and vanilla. Add eggnog 1 tablespoon at a time, slowly. Continue beating until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to overwhip.
• Once cake is cool, carefully unroll it. It might leave a little mess on the towel, but that’s okay, as long as you can peel it off. Spread about half the whipped cream over the top of the cake, leaving an edge at the end. Starting at the narrow end, re-roll the cake. As you roll it the filling will shift a little and you may need to remove some if you’ve put too much on the cake. That’s okay, just have a knife handy to scrape off any excess as you roll. At this point you can wrap the cake in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. When ready, place cake on serving plate and top with some of the remaining whipped cream and dust with cinnamon.

Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate

Author Dorothy Kern

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Check out ALL of my CAKE ROLL recipes here!

Sweets from friends:
Christmas Vanilla Cake Roll by Roxana’s Home Baking
Candy Cane Cake Roll by Wine & Glue
Banana Cake Roll by The Baker Chick

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Last Updated on February 2, 2023