Easy Chocolate Ganache Cake Roll

Chocolate Ganache Cake Roll recipe looks so pretty and tastes amazing. Everyone will be so impressed when you make this but it is so easy to make! A favorite childhood treat made into a cake.

Chocolate Ganache Cake Roll Recipe:

This is one of those desserts that look really fancy and complicated but is super easy to make. There are a few steps to make Chocolate Ganache Cake Roll Recipe but they are all simple and anyone can make this amazing cake!

Cake roll recipes are so pretty and the layers look gorgeous when you cut them. This is perfect for the holidays, birthdays or any occasion when you need a special dessert.

I like to top each slice with more whipped topping and fresh fruit. Sprinkles or crushed candy is also a good option. My kids love it with a tall glass of milk.

Chocolate Swiss Roll Dessert:

This is one of my favorite chocolate desserts to make. I love that this cake has easy ingredients and actually is very easy to make. Preparing the cake only takes about 30 minutes.

The cake comes out light, fluffy, moist and the perfect amount of sweetness. The made from scratch chocolate cake to the ganache topping, it is a chocolate lovers dream.

You can even add some of your favorite toppings or serve it with some ice cream. This cake brings me back to my childhood when I would snack on the mini size swiss roll cake.

Chocolate Cake Roll Ingredients

Ingredients For the Chocolate Cake:

• Cocoa Powder
• All Purpose Flour
• Baking Powder
• Salt
• Eggs
• Sugar
• Unsalted Butter
• Vanilla Extract
• Powdered Sugar

Ingredients For the Cream Filling:

• Heavy Whipping Cream
• Powdered Sugar

For the Chocolate Ganache Topping:

• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
• Heavy Whipping Cream
• Powdered Sugar
• Milk

How to Make Chocolate Cake Roll:

• Preheat oven and prepare pan – Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 15X10X1 baking sheet with parchment paper and spray the paper with a non-stick spray. 
• Combine Dry Ingredients – In a large bowl, combine the cocoa powder, ½ cup of flour, baking powder and salt.
• Mix Wet Ingredients – In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and sugar.  Then add in the melted butter and vanilla. Whisk until just combined. 
• Combine both wet and dry ingredients – Then stir (by hand) in the dry ingredients (flour mixture) into the wet ingredients (egg mixture).  Stir until just combined and be careful not to over mix.

• Pour into pan and bake – Then using a spatula spread the batter into the baking sheet.  Bake for 11-13 minutes or until the center of the cake springs back when touch. 

How to assemble Swiss Cake Roll:

• Prepare Rolling Area – Lay out a clean kitchen tea towel on the counter and sprinkle well with powdered sugar.
• Begin Rolling Cake – Place cooked cake on top of prepared towel. Starting on the small end, roll up the cake inside the towel. You do this just to get the cake to cool in the final shape. Let cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour.

• Mix together filling – Make filling. Use an electric mixer (hand held or stand up), whip the heavy cream and powdered sugar until stiff peaks began to form (about 3-5 minutes).  
• Add filling to Cake – Unroll cake. Spread the whipped cream all over the top side of the cake.
• Roll Cake again – Gently fold the cake back up. Set aside while you prepare the chocolate ganache topping. 

• Melt the Chocolate Ganache – In a microwave safe bowl, heat the chocolate chips and heavy whipping cream in 30 second intervals until the chocolate is completely melted.  Stir between each interval. 
• Add in Powdered Sugar – Then stir in the powdered sugar and gradually stir in the milk until the ganache is a pouring consistency. 
• Top the Cake with Ganache – Pour the chocolate ganache evenly over the top of the cake.  Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes to let the chocolate set. 
• Serve and Enjoy – Then slice, serve and enjoy.

Chocolate Ganache Cake Roll Tips:

• Use a Jelly Roll Pan – We recommend using a Jelly Roll Pan instead of a baking pan. The dimensions are designed to making sponge or sheet pan cakes. This specific pan helps with keeping the filling and rolling the can.
• Line Pan with Parchment Paper – When preparing your pan, make sure to line the pan with parchment paper with about an inch left on the side. This allows you to easily transport it from the cake pan to your prepared rolling area.
• Don’t bake cake to long – Make sure you don’t bake the cake to long. At the 11 minute mark of baking the cake, check the cake. The cake is done if you touch it in the middle and it springs back to you.
• Easy Rolling – Only let the cake cool slightly to roll. Warm cakes are easy to roll.
• Refrigerate – To ensure that you cake is set and allowing your cake to firm, you can put in the refrigerator for about an hour before serving. This makes for pretty slices.

How do you roll a cake roll?

Lay out a sheet of parchment paper slightly longer than the cake and sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar. Take off the foil or parchment paper and cut away the crusty edges of the cake.

Roll the cake up in the parchment paper sprinkled with powder sugar. Place in the refrigerator to cool.

Tips for slicing and serving:

• To slice, run hot water over a knife and wipe dry before slicing straight through. Rinse in hot water and dry knife in between cutting each slice. This allows for a cleaner slice.
• Another idea is to sprinkle chocolate chips on each slice when serving. Chocolate fans will love this. Yum!
• You can also top each cake with some fresh fruit or a scoop of ice cream.

Why do Cake Rolls crack?

Usually it is because the cake is too dry or you didn’t immediately roll the cake as soon as you took it from oven. Make sure to not delay this step and the cooling process as well. Both are important.

Cake rolls are easy to make and really delicious. Plus, they look so pretty and fancy.

Once you get the hang of making cake rolls, they are really very simple to do. The trick is making sure to roll them right away in parchment paper as soon as it comes out of oven. You want to let it cool slightly, but not to long.

These steps are a must! This cake seems like it would be hard to prepare, but really isn’t with these easy steps.

Swiss Roll Cake Variations:

• Use Different Fillings – Changing the filling is easy to do. You can make a vanilla frosting, chocolate, marshmallow cream filling, or even a whipped cream frosting.
• Add in flavoring – Sprinkle in some cinnamon or pumpkin spice to change the chocolate cake flavor.
• Filling Flavoring – We love experimenting with the cream cheese filling. You can add in some peppermint or mint for the chocolate, mint flavoring. This is my kids favorite.
• Topping Ideas – If you are making this for the holidays, crush up candy canes and place on top. When I make this for the kids birthdays, we do a Funfetti Sprinkles. The options are endless.

Can I use a Cake Mix Instead?

Yes, can use a cake mix instead of making the cake from scratch. Save time and use a cake mix. All of the other steps are the same and you roll the cake just the same.

Chocolate swiss cake is always a hit too!

This recipe is so versatile and you can easily adapt it for many different occasions. If you have chocolate fans, make a chocolate cake and they will go crazy over this variation.

We are always experimenting with new variations and chocolate is always a hit around here. You really could use any type of cake though- vanilla, lemon, strawberry and more.

Why this is our favorite Chocolate Dessert:

• Flavors are perfectly balanced – The chocolate and the cream cheese frosting makes the perfect dessert. Because the frosting is swirled into the cake, you can a frosting in every bite.
• Perfect Dessert for the Holidays – We love making this cake ahead of time. I always make it for the holidays, so it can be on display when family arrives. This chocolate cake always impresses everyone.
• Crowd Pleaser – This is the perfect cake to feed a crowd. You can slice thin or thick slices so usually I get about 10 to 12 slices.

How do you store:

If you have leftover cake, store in the refrigerate for up to 3 days. We place it on a plate and wrap tightly so that doesn’t dry out.  

You can also freeze this chocolate ganache cake roll. We recommend freezing without ganache topping. Just wrap your rolled cake in saran wrap and freeze. It will stay good up to 3 months.

Thaw cake and top with the chocolate ganache and serve.

Print the Chocolate Ganache cake roll recipe below:

More Chocolate Cake Recipes:

• Easy Chocolate Poke Cake Recipe
• Super Moist Cola Chocolate Cake Recipe
• Crock Pot Chocolate Lava Cake Recipe