Recently I discovered the Budapest roll. A roll from Budapest, you would think. Well, think again. I read a little about it and guess what? It comes from Sweden. Yes, this sweet meringue roll filled with cream and fruits is a Swedish pastry. Originally hazelnuts are used in the meringue and mandarins in the filling.
It was my first attempt ever to make the Budapest roll. I like to bake (check out the delicious matcha hearts, air-light Pavlova, the giggly Japanese cheesecake or the cute “carrot” croissants) and experiment, especially when it comes to new baking goods. And so it was with the Budapest roll.
Everyone would think it originates from Budapest, because of its name. I also thought that. Then, I did a small research and now I am a little smarter. Wink.
The Budapest roll comes from Sweden! That was a surprise. However, I picked this recipe, not because of the name but because of the looks and its ingredients. It looks so fluffy, light and crispy at the same time.
Furthermore, I made some changes (like usual) to the recipe. I used almonds instead of hazelnuts and I substituted mandarins with raspberries and blueberries. I am so proud of the result. It was a baking success! Absolutely delicious!
One last thing, before you start, you’ll need a piping bag, a large round nozzle, parchment paper and a lightly wet kitchen towel.
Ingredients for 8-10 servings of Budapest roll:
- 125 g egg whites
- 225 g sugar
- 100 g ground almonds (plus some for decoration)
- 40 g vanilla pudding powder
Ingredients for the roll filling:
- 200 ml whipping cream (cold)
- 150 g mascarpone cheese (cold)
- 50 g icing sugar (plus some for topping)
- 125 g raspberries
- 50 g blueberries
- 60-70 g dark chocolate (1/3 for filling, 2/3 for topping)
Before anything else, prepare the right amounts of sugar, pudding powder, ground almonds and egg whites. Like this, the whole procedure of mixing the base ingredients will be quicker and easier.
Remember to always use cold eggs to get better results with meringue; the egg whites stiff quicker and without any problem. Put the egg whites in a bowl and mix them (with a hand mixer) until you get stiff peaks. Then, reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly, little by little, add the sugar. Mix until all the sugar is incorporated and the meringue gets its silky look.
In a small cup mix together the ground almonds and the pudding powder. Gently fold it in the meringue using a spatula. Try to do a circular motion going from bottom up, in order to keep the airy mixture.
Prepare a piping bag and a large round nozzle (that’s the piping bag attachment with the biggest hole). In case you don’t have a piping bag, simply use a plastic food bag. I also used it, since I ruined my piping bag. Hehehe.
Creating the Budapest roll base:
Preheat the oven to 160ºC. Place a baking paper on a baking tray and fill the piping bag with meringue. Start drawing the lines along the long side of the baking paper. Make sure that the lines are close together. They should be touching. The area that you should fill with the meringue mixture is about 40×30 cm big.
Place the Budapest roll base in the oven on the middle rack for 20 minutes. Once the base is baked, take it out of the oven and let it completely cool down. Moreover, place a new parchment paper sheet on the working surface and carefully but quickly flip the meringue base on it. Cover it with a slightly wet kitchen towel for a couple of minutes and then remove the old baking paper. The wet towel will make the paper go off easily, without destroying the base.
Making the cream:
In a bowl prepare the filling. Using a mixer combine mascarpone, whipping cream and icing sugar. Mix until you get a nice thick and smooth consistency. Spread the filling cream over the meringue base. Be generous with the filling and use all of it. If you ever made the Pavlova cake, then you know how to be generous with cream. Wink.
As I said before, I made a variation of the Budapest roll, using raspberries and blueberries. Place the fruits on top of the cream. Chop the chocolate and sprinkle it over the cream and fruits.
Then, turn the meringue base with the long side in front of you and roll it up, keeping it intact. You can use the help of the parchment paper sheet or a silicone mat to roll it without the chance of smashing the meringue. Do it slowly, gently and with patience. You are almost done.
The Budapest roll will look nicer if you place the end of the roll at the bottom. Finally, melt the rest of the chocolate and drizzle it over the meringue roll. Dust it with icing sugar and you are ready to serve. Either serve the complete roll or as single pieces.
Enjoy!
PS
If you like the recipe, if you make the recipe or if you have any new ideas how to improve or change it, let me know in the comments section below or alternatively share your photos and reactions with me on Instagram (@Passionspoon), Facebook or Twitter (@PassionSpoon1). Simply use the hashtag #passionspoonrecipes in your posts. I would love to see them! (wink)
