Roulade with Chocolate Ganache and Candied Orange

While simple recipes are fantastic for day-to-day meals, there are occasions when it’s nice to take the time to prepare a special meal or dessert. This delicious recipe has several components, but if you plan the preparation, you can focus on assembling a masterpiece. 

Roulade with Chocolate Ganache and Candied Orange

The sponge cake for the roulade is quick to assemble, and it bakes in 10 minutes, and you can prepare it a day in advance. When ready to assemble the roulade, you must have the following components: the orange syrup and candied orange peel, the whipped cream, chopped toasted nuts, and, of course, the ganache. In this recipe, we used agar-agar to stabilize the whipped cream. Using a stabilizer prevents the cream from weeping liquid into the cake.

INGREDIENTS

For the sponge cake

4 large eggs (room temperature)

3 tbsp granulated sugar

3 tbsp all-purpose flour, sifted 

1 tsp of honey

¼ tsp salt

Sponge ingredients

Sponge ready for baking

Baked sponge

For the filling

1 pint of cream

2 tbsp caster sugar

2 tsp of Agar-Agar or 

2 tsp unflavored gelatin to stabilize the cream (you can do without it, but you should consume the roulade the same day)

½ cup of chopped toasted almonds or walnuts

For the candied orange peel and orange syrup

2 oranges

3 individual cups of water (you will use one at a time)

For the ganache and decoration

1 cup of semisweet chocolate (not chips) chopped into small pieces

½ cream

¼ cup of apricot chocolate candy or any other you prefer

Candied orange peel

PREPARATION

Prepare the sponge cake

Line a buttered jelly roll pan (10x14”) with parchment and heat the oven in the Convection or Convection Bake mode to 400 F.

In a stand or handheld mixer, combine the eggs for a minute. Add the sugar, honey, and salt and beat for about 10 minutes until the mixture is pale and holds its shape.

Reduce the speed of the machine to the lowest setting and gradually fold in the sifted flour. 

Spread the mixture into the prepared baking pan, place in the oven, and bake for 10 minutes. 

When the sponge comes out of the oven, remove it from the sheet pan and cool it on a cooling rack for 5 minutes.

Invert the sponge onto a sheet of parchment and peel off the layer from the bottom of the cake. Starting at the narrow end, slowly roll the cake in the parchment, then set it aside to cool.

At this point, you can continue with the recipe or refrigerate the cake until it is ready to use. If refrigerated, it must be brought to room temperature before unrolling.

Prepare the candied orange peel and orange syrup

With a peeler, cut strips of orange skin from 2 oranges. Then, cut these strips lengthwise in half. Ensure you only cut the skin and not the white part of the orange.

Place the orange peels in an 8-inch pan and cover with 1 cup of water. Bring the water to a boil. Cook for about 30 seconds or until the water starts changing color. Discard the water. Add 1 cup of water to the pan with the orange peels and boil again for about 30 seconds, then discard the water. 

Now add 1 cup of water to the pan, for the third time, and ¼ of sugar. Reduce the liquid until the orange peels become translucent. Remove the peels from the pan and spread them over sugar, making sure they are completely covered in sugar. 

Once they cool, remove the excess sugar from the candied orange peels and place them on a wire rack until they completely dry out. 

To prepare the orange syrup, add the juice of two oranges to the pan where you prepared the candied orange peel. Cook the syrup until it thickens a bit. You will need 1 cup of syrup for the sponge.

Prepare the whipped cream filling and toasted nuts

Toast the nuts in a small skillet over medium heat or in the oven until fragrant; remove and set aside to cool.

Dissolve the agar-agar in a ¼ cup of water in the steam oven at 212°F for about 10 minutes. Remove it from the steam oven and whisk it rapidly with a fork until smooth. When you completely dissolve it, put it back in the steam oven while still warm to prevent the agar-agar from solidifying. You can also use the microwave for intervals of 30 seconds.

Whip the cream with the caster sugar until firm. Before the cream forms stiff peaks, remove ¼ cup and mix the cream with the dissolved agar-agar or gelatin. When well combined, fold this mixture back into the whipped cream and continue beating until stiff peaks form. 

Prepare the ganache

Heat the cream in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat until it simmers, but do not let it boil. Place the chocolate in a small heat-proof bowl, and pour the cream over the chocolate when it has reached a simmer. Let it rest for a few minutes, then slowly stir the mixture until thoroughly combined. Set the ganache aside to rest for an hour until it has cooled and thickened.

Assemble the roulade

Gently unroll the cake and pour the orange syrup evenly over the surface. Now spread the whipped cream evenly over the cake, leaving a ½” border around the edges so the cream doesn’t squish when rolled. Sprinkle the nuts over the cream and gently roll the cake up again.

Invert the sponge when cooled

Work on bottom side of sponge

Add the cream and almonds

Place the filled, rolled cake on a cooling rack set over a sheet pan or cutting board to apply the ganache. Gently spread the ganache over the cake and use a fork to create a pattern. Decorate with the orange peel and your preferred candies.

Serves 10