Take a dark turn by creating this spooky yet cute Halloween spider web roll cake. This super moist and soft roll cake, filled with mascarpone cream and homemade plum jam, wrapped in black and green colours is a true and fun treat to serve on October 31st.
This year I decided on a spooky roll cake. The combination of softness, creaminess, tenderness and light sweetness will amaze you. Dark black and bright, almost neon, green just lift the whole thing to another level and really bring the right atmosphere to the table.
Moreover, creating the black colour and getting the real deep black tone takes a bit. Therefore, don’t get scared when you first see the non-appealing grey colour at the beginning. Simply continue adding black and maybe dark purple, too, a little at a time. On the other hand, obtaining the neon green colour is pretty easy and fast.
Drawing the spider web
As you’ve seen on the photos, I used the green colour not only for the cake but also to create the spider web “drawing” on the cake. How to draw it on the cake? Basically, you make the drawing on the parchment paper and pour the batter on top. As a result, the drawing will become one with the cake. Beautiful. Wink.
The spider web drawing will be, as already said, on top of your roll cake. Therefore, you should work with your imagination a bit. Wink. The part on which the drawing will be should be rolled the last. You can choose to draw either one large spider web or a couple of small ones. When drawing, I suggest using a white baking paper. As a result, you’ll easily see the drawing through it. The reason you flip the paper is that you don’t want the pencil to end on the cake, right? Wink.
Another thing that you shouldn’t skip is to whisk the egg whites in order to form stiff peaks. In a lot of recipes, you’ll notice they use the cream of Tatar as help. However, I always use either lemon juice or vinegar and it works perfectly. Also, it is very important to use a clean bowl, free from fat such as butter, oil or egg yolk.
Additionally, here I share some more links of Halloween recipes for your next party: the cutest mummies, a refreshing cranberry punch, spooky zombie guts, fun filled peppers and finger cookies. Also, make sure to check one of my most clicked Halloween recipes; I am talking about the sweet cigarette snacks.
Ingredients for a Halloween spider web roll cake:
- 4 egg yolks (room temperature)
- 20 g sugar
- 40 ml of milk (room temperature)
- 40 ml of vegetable oil
- half a tsp vanilla paste
- 30 g flour
- 30 g vanilla pudding powder or corn starch
- 4 egg whites (room temperature)
- a pinch of salt
- 50 g sugar
- half a tsp of lemon juice or vinegar
- 200 g mascarpone
- 5 tsp of plum jam
- black food colour gel
- green food colour gel
Ingredients for the green spider net:
- 10 g softened butter
- 10 g powder sugar
- green food colour gel
- 10 g egg whites
- 10 g flour
To begin, prepare the green icing for the spider web. In a small bowl, mix softened butter, powder sugar, slightly beaten egg whites, flour and some drops (or according to your desired colour) of green food colour gel. Mix well to combine. Put it in a piping bag (no nozzles are needed) and keep aside.
Moreover, on a parchment paper (ideally white) draw your spider web (using a pencil or a pen, which doesn’t go completely through the paper yet you should still be able to see it through). I suggest drawing it over one-third of the paper, preferably the left or right side rather than the middle, yet still about 5 cm from the edge.
Then, flip the paper and slightly grease it. Cut the tip of the piping bag and start drawing by following the lines of your drawing on the other side of the paper. After you are satisfied with it, carefully place the paper in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Prepare the batter
In the meantime, preheat the oven to 170º C (if you use an oven with a fan, reduce the temperature for 10-15ºC) and separate the egg yolks and egg whites. In a larger bowl, mix the egg yolks and sugar until pale and fluffy. Then, stir in the vanilla paste, milk and oil. Combine flour and vanilla pudding powder and sift them into the batter (a little bit at a time) and mix well until smooth.
Last but not least, in another bowl, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt. Halfway, slowly add the sugar and a couple of lemon juice drops. Mix until glossy and stiff. When you pull the whisk up the peak should hold. Then, gently fold the whipped egg whites into the yolk batter until smooth, airy, fluffy, not too runny and not too stiff.
To continue, divide the batter in half. Using food colour, make one half black and the other one bright green (or any other colour you prefer). Then, take the baking paper that you’ve put in the fridge earlier on and place it on a baking sheet (spider web side up) and pour the black batter on top of it.
Carefully spread it evenly around the baking sheet and then add the green batter on top of it (it shouldn’t be spread evenly). Simply make some green spots, using a ladle or a spoon.
At this point, put the baking dish in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 20-25 minutes. Since we can’t see the lovely golden brown colour, simply lightly press a finger on the cake. And if it springs back in shape it means the cake is ready.
Rolling the cake
Take the baking sheet out of the oven, carefully slide the parchment paper on the counter, place another piece of parchment paper on top, flip it over and carefully remove the parchment paper on which you baked the cake. If it sticks, lay a slightly wet kitchen towel on top for a minute and then give it another try. You should see the lovely spider net appear. Take another clean paper, place it on top and flip it over one more time. Let cool down.
Meanwhile, prepare the filling. In a small bowl combine mascarpone and the plum jam and put in the fridge until ready to use. Once the cake is completely cooled down, place the short side facing you (and make sure the spider net is facing down and on the far end from you).
Spread the filling on the cake, leaving half a centimetre left and right and 2 cm on the top edge. With the help of the parchment paper, start rolling the cake from the part near you going away from you. Try to do it decisively without hesitating and to roll it as tight as you can (without exaggerating and pushing all the filling out). Roll the cake till the end, wrap the parchment paper around it and then wrap some cling film tightly around it. Place the roll cake in the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours.
Finally, cut the Halloween spider web roll cake into 2 cm thick slices and serve it with some spooky drinks, such as this cranberry punch. Put on a costume and give one to your cake, too. Wink.
Happy Halloween!
