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Skinny Mini Jelly Roll Cake for One

Close your eyes:

Imagine you are eating a giant, gooey powdered jelly doughnut…

jelly roll

Welcome to reality.

Looks fancy… but this jelly roll is ridiculously simple to make.

  • It’s single-serving.
  • Takes just 10 minutes
  • It can even be fat-free.

I’ve always been intimidated by jelly roll cakes, but this recipe is one of the easiest things I’ve ever made. So even if you don’t think you can cook, you’ll probably have no trouble making this. And it’ll impress the socks off of everyone you know!

jelly roll 3

 

Skinny Mini Jelly Roll Cake

(Serves 1-2)

  • 1/2 cup ww pastry flour, or white or spelt flour (70g) (For a gf version, use this: gluten-free option.)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 100g water or other liquid (That’s 1/3 cup plus 1 T plus 1 tsp)
  • 2 packets stevia (or omit and use 2 tbsp liquid sweetener–such as agave or honey–and decrease water by that amount)
  • 2 tablespoons applesauce
  • 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

Combine all dry ingredients together. In a separate bowl, combine wet (including applesauce). Mix wet into dry, but don’t overmix. Pour into a greased 8-in circle pan or a rectangular pan. (Be sure to grease it very well, or the cake won’t come out.) Cook for 10 minutes in a NON-preheated oven at 420F. (You might need to cook it longer, depending on your oven.) Let cool ten minutes before removing cake from pan. Then cut off all four edges so it forms a rectangle (if you used the circle pan). Spread on jam, or whatever else you wish, and roll it up. It’s that easy!

View Nutrition Facts

You can fill this single-serving cake with anything you can imagine: Peanut butter, chocolate chips, fresh berries, frosting, coconut butter, etc.

jelly roll 3

Shown above, with jam and Sugar-Free Powdered Sugar.

Question of the Day:

Do you consider yourself a good cook?

Or are you a walking disaster in the kitchen? Do you like to cook elaborate meals? Or are tv dinners and Chinese takeout your specialties?

P.S. I’m shocked so many of you voted for the non-chocolate recipe yesterday. What am I going to do with you guys?? 😉

Published on February 13, 2012

Meet Katie

Chocolate Covered Katie is one of the top 25 food websites in America, and Katie has been 
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ABC's 5 O’Clock News. Her favorite food is chocolate, and she believes in eating dessert every single day.

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183 Comments

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  1. PBnJ Fam says

    What a beautiful creation! I have ALWAYS wanted to try making a jelly roll but NEVER had the courage… Thank you for creating a recipe that I am not afraid of! 🙂 By the way, what is the white filling/frosting shown in your photo??

  2. katie @KatieDid says

    so cute! I don’t think I’m a great cook, at least when I’m making food for myself its really throw together simple meals and I eat similar things day in and day out- but that’s how I like it!

  3. Leslie says

    Katie, I think this is the prettiest photos I’ve ever seen on your blog.
    And that’s saying something, because your photos are ALWAYS so pretty. You amaze me!!!

  4. Victoria says

    Katie, would you mind clarifying something? When you say cook for 10 minutes in a non-preheated oven, then wait 10 minutes, is that a total cooking time of 20 minutes? Also, do you have any advice on how to adjust this recipe for a toaster oven? Thanks! I love your recipes!

    • Carrie says

      Victoria,
      Greetings! I use a toaster oven for almost everything (no microwave). Generally, I do a slightly lower temp when it calls for it to be so high. Also, PREHEAT first. A lot of times I just throw it in and turn it on, but you must account for time. With cakes and such, it’s best to put them into an already hot oven. For this, I’d say just over 400 degrees and check it at 8 minutes, maybe before. Seems (from the pic) it’s going to look a little spongy when you take it out. And don’t worry, if it’s not perfect the first time, it’s just a little one. 🙂

      • Victoria says

        Thanks for the help! I like my toaster oven for cookies, but cakes I bake in it tend to lose their moisture much faster than if they were made a regular oven.

  5. deidra says

    Is there a reason to make it in a circle pan and then cut off the edges? or could I just make it in a rect. pan to begin with? Sry if i’m missing something obvious. Thanks!

  6. Erin says

    I am about to make this and have already made three other recipes of yours this morning. Your recipes are making for a much healthier Valentine’s Day than usual. Thank you!!

  7. Annie says

    Oh what my goody gosh, is this the perfect post to start my week or what!

    And to think … I have ALL the ingredients in my kitchen RIGHT NOW!

    Next big decision: make it now *or* after work (which feels like days away at this moment) … ?

  8. Samantha says

    Although I didn’t vote for this one I totally admit I am excited to try it.

    I do not consider myself a good cook, but I AM a passionate cook at times. 🙂 I enjoy trying stuff and generally it is just for me so it if looks terrible or if it is just a little off I don’t have to worry in the least.

    Frankly I am inspired by your job and your blog. Hopefully for the most part you have a great time.

  9. Renee says

    Mmm, I haven’t had a doughnut in years! Like Samantha above, I don’t consider myself a good cook, but as long as I’m having fun and things are edible, I’m happy. I’d love to be able to be operate mostly sans recipes one day…

  10. Carrie says

    I’m so glad you picked this one! I didn’t vote (too embarrassed that it was the sans-chocolate option).
    This does looks so easy. It will be made today.

    And as for myself, I’m pretty awesome in the kitchen 🙂 I find that it’s because I love baking/cooking, but mostly because of the joy I get when feeding others… especially healthier things.

    Thanks for keeping your blog going…. my husband thanks you. 🙂

  11. Marilyn says

    This looks so good! Any thoughts on making cake pops/truffles from the leftover cake? Do you think the creamy, dreamy frosting would have right consistency?

  12. Emily @ Glitz Glam Granola says

    Wow, this looks delicious and is so versatile! It’s technically a breakfast recipe too, right?! 😉 Or at least that’s when I’d like to eat this! I’m sure this would be such a hit- especially with nutella and strawberries rolled in? Gotta factor in some chocolate somehow!

  13. Karen says

    Very good!! I admit I didn’t pay enough attention to the recipe. I halved it and put it in a mini loaf pan. It was a little too tall, so I just cut off the top horizontally. I *might* have enjoyed the scraps. I made a cheesecake filling. My 2-yr-old and I enjoyed it after lunch. I want to try subbing the applesauce for pb and doing a chocolate filling.

  14. Heidi Lynn says

    Do you think it would work to use agave for the sweetener and reduce the water?

    I think I’m improving as a cook. My Mom tends to really like things I make, but others don’t tend to. I just tell myself there to used to all the unhealthy stuff. I did get a surprise on Christmas when one of my brothers asked me for the recipe for the lunch I made.

  15. Samantha says

    OK, I am so jealous of everyone that has already dived in and tried making this! 🙂

    In my defense, the three Rescue Chocolate Peanut Butter Pit Bull bars went into your Chocolate Bar Pie recipe today and it turned out wonderful.

    Thank you for what you do!

  16. Mrs.Price says

    Very yummy. DS and DH both loved it! I am a pretty good cook. I have been practicing for a few years. 😉 I am not good at inventing recipes. If it is written out I am a champ.

  17. Bonnie says

    That looks really tasty & pretty!
    And by the way, I just saw your television feature about the cookied dough pie (I thought I wouldn’t be able to view it over here, but found an online version through facebook) and you were awesome! loved it 🙂

  18. Patty Blake says

    Ohmygoodness….I can NOT WAIT until I’m living back in the states again so that I can try your recipes out on my (very) non-vegan family (I haven’t had an oven in 3 years)!!

    I don’t consider myself a great cook, but I’m hoping that through your recipes (and practice…) I can turn into a good one!

    AND… I’m moving to AUSTIN in MAY!!! Do you think you would ever offer a baking class?? If in the future, I found a group of 5-10 people….would you put one on?? 🙂

  19. Karla says

    I consider myself a pretty good cook. I never follow a recipe, always tweaking it to make it healthier or include ingredients I have on hand. That being said, I don’t know all the French cooking terms, which knife or pan would work best for which recipes, etc. And I’ve made mistakes by not realizing what different substitutions would do to the final result.

    In my defense… I said either the jelly roll OR the chocolate chunk cookies! Besides, you DID say we could put chocolate chips in the jelly roll. 🙂

  20. Jade C says

    OK Katie, you’ve done it this time!!
    I can see you and others ((and me!!))making hundreds of variations with this, and I already have ideas!! Like….:
    PB-filled Chocolate Roll
    Mint-Creme-filled Chocolate Roll
    Strawberry Cheezecake-filled Roll
    Banana Custard-filled Roll
    Blueberry-Vanilla-filled Roll
    Banana-Butter-filled Roll
    Nutella-filled Roll
    Almond Butter-filled Chocolate-Chip Roll ((oohh, I want this one now!! 😉 ))
    Cream-Cheese-Frosting-and-Raisin-filled Cinnamon Roll??
    Chocolate-Chip-filled PB-flavoured Roll

  21. Ashley says

    Hm…I’m not huge on jelly but I would love to try your homemade Nutella recipe and using that as the filling!

    I’m a pretty decent cook. I’m much more homestyle and definitely feel like a novice a lot when I look at cooking blogs and don’t recognize half the terms. At any rate, I’m growing and experimenting and think I do a lot more than most people I know.

    • Kathie says

      You may like a product called “All Fruit”. It’s in the same area as jams & jellies but has much more fruit in it than other brands I’ve tried. BTW, I only use jam in my jelly rolls (if using a preserve), never jelly. But that’s a matter of taste, although jelly would have a tendency to slip around whereas jam stays put better. Apple butter would make a good filling, too.

  22. Cheeze says

    Bow down to queen Katie, she is a never ending resource of yummy goodness!! Based on the reviews for this one I’ll be trying my hand at it soon.

    Queen Katie, do you have any recipe’s for breakfast bars, or treats that uses Quiona? I would love to have a sweet treat for breakfast incorporated that magical ingredient, but I am nowhere near as good a cook as you. When are you opening a bakery?!!!!!!!! jk (but really u should)

  23. sandy says

    You are amazing!
    you should totally write a book! 🙂
    I want a hard copy of all your recipes so i can find them at my fingertips!!!!

    • Kathie says

      Yes! Definitely! With all of us baby boomers out there, most outliving our husbands/partners thereby living alone, and most of the boomers watching their weight or something about their diet, there is a definite need. You could fill a niche that is unfilled (as far as I know of). We end up making a “normal” sized batch of something and giving most of it to neighbors, etc. if we don’t have freezer space for it. Of course, the giftees are pleased to have some treats or just something they don’t usually cook/bake. I’ve never had anyone turn down my “leftovers” yet! LOL

  24. Denise B says

    Katie, this looks delicious, not to mention down right fun!! I have made one jelly roll in my 30 years of cooking, and although it turned out well, and I did get some rave reviews, I was so worried the entire time that making it wasn’t very fun! 5 stars!! =)

    • Lisa C says

      Hahaha me too! Everyone raved about it, but it was such a trying experience, including the fact that my poor cake snapped in two! Luckily, a bunch of frosting fixed it :).

      • Amy says

        I have also only made one jelly roll and it was YUMMY!, but I was so terrified the whole time that I haven’t done it since. My husband and bbf love swiss cake rolls so I think I’ll use coconut butter for the filling and drizzle in chocolate!

  25. Olivia says

    I love reading your posts, but could you maybe include more pictures of the actual process of preparing the dish in addition to the final product? When I make your recipes, it’s nice to see a more step-by-step sequence to know that I’m doing it right.

  26. Paula @ lipstick and lunges says

    This would be great with some chocolate nut butter inside! I consider myself a pretty good cook, but baking really is my thing.

  27. Boo says

    I just made this!
    My toddler and husband are munching it up right now…and me. I used half coconut oil and half applesauce as I ran out of applesauce. We used jam in the middle.
    I could eat this all night. And might. The rest of the family are full. Mwa ha ha! It is all MINE now!
    (actually, I feel a little full too 🙁 – but I did double the recipe, so there was lots….. Hmm, how do I store the rest til breakfast?)

      • Boo says

        Yup. That worked. Made a second one today for a friend and her toddler. Was lovely, made with coconut oil and rapeseed oil (I think you call that something nicer sounding in the U.S.A.). Preferred the one made with applesauce, to be honest, it was somehow gooier and tastier – maybe I umdercooked it though. Either way, this one is a winner! 🙂

  28. Kaila@healthyhelper says

    Looks yummy! I could go for a strawberry jam jelly roll right now! Maybe with a little pb spread in there too! YUM!

  29. nutritiondoc-in-training says

    Hi Katie,
    I recently discovered your blog and have been reading through all your recipes non-stop for the last week. In fact, I’ve been taking frequent study breaks, because I can’t wait to try one of your recipes-which caters to my lifestyle and dietary sensitivities so well. This latest one is like icing on the cake-are you reading my mind? I’ve been craving something like this for so long. I want to try putting nutella and strawberries in this.
    thanks for feeding this graduate students sweet tooth 🙂

  30. LizAshlee says

    I consider myself a pretty good cook..for my tasting at least!! hehe 🙂 We all have our good days and better days in the kitchen! 🙂 Happy Monday!

  31. Kat says

    Ooh, I want to try this! I consider myself a natural cook. And my family agrees because they can’t stop eating my food. lol I’m not a great baker though, I hate following recipes and measuring and you have to follow recipes and measure ingredients in order to bake. But your recipes inspire me to bake more, so I have been. I’m still working on it, but in time I know I’ll be a good baker as well as a great cook.

  32. Jen says

    Tried this tonight. I cooked mine for about 13 minutes, since it was still completely raw in the middle at 10. It ended up too thick to roll, so I spread it thinly with Nutella, and sliced it into six wedges, then piled three together for each serving. No waste, and though it didn’t look as cute as yours, it tasted divine. Thanks for a quick & tasty treat!

  33. Susan W. says

    I love jelly rolls but my husband doesn’t. So that means when I make a jelly roll I eat the whole thing! Not a good idea! LOL!! Now I can make one when I want and not feel guilty for eating the whole thing! Thanks Katie!

  34. Andrea says

    Wow! If this really is easy, you’ll be my hero. I’ve had two attempts at making the traditional, eggy and light roll cake, and both were epic, icky disasters. Next time I want to make one, I’ll try out this recipe. What’d you do with the extra on the side?? Ate it, I’d guess… 😉

  35. Katie @ Nutrition in a peanut shell says

    Mmm, it looks delicious! Just a question:
    You say this is a single-serving, but the Nutritional Info is for 1/2 of the cake, but you say it’s a single serving recipe! 140 calories is nothing, but it just seems weird…you know?

    • anonymous says

      It specifically says right in the nutrition page post that she calculated it for 1/2 the recipe in case you want to share. How is that “weird”?

  36. Christine says

    This is so beautiful! Unfortunately mine came out completely uncooked in the middle. Did anyone else have this problem? My guess for possible cause is that perhaps my oven warms up slowly, and since this required a non-preheated oven it made a difference in cooking temp. Otherwise perhaps it was because I subbed buckwheat flour. Wonderful recipe though, I’ll just cook it a bit longer next time.

  37. Kathy says

    I think I’m a pretty good cook. Well, a better baker than a cook!
    I’m not a fan of cooking because I’m so use to baking, with all the exact measurements and only certain things can be substituted, that when I cook, I forget that (and constantly have to remind myself) that it’s OK to sub ingredients!

    http://daily-iphoneography.posterous.com

  38. Rachel says

    This looks sooo good. I think I will try it tomorrow for breakfast. But just one question. I have never seen a recipe say “non preheated oven”. What does that mean exactly? Put it in the oven then turn it on? Does the ten min. bake time begin once it reaches 420? Sorry if that’s a dumb question. It just really confused me. Oh and I guess I have one more question, what size pan if using a rectangular pan? I’m sure the thickness will affect how well it rolls up.

    Thanks Katie for having such an awesome blog with delicious, healthy recipes! It is my favorite place to drool and daydream about what to try next!!

    • Chocolate-Covered Katie says

      Yes, put it in the oven and THEN turn the oven to 420 (as opposed to waiting until the oven says 420 to put it in). It’s not a dumb question at all!!

      I would guess an 8×8? I used a circular pan, so I can’t say for sure.

    • Kathie says

      Allrecipes.com has a cake pan size conversion article so perhaps the 8 x 4 loaf pan. I haven’t tried this yet so I’m hoping that the loaf pan won’t make it tooooo thick to roll easily. They convert by volume so perhaps it would. I’ll just have to try it and keep my fingers crossed. 🙂

  39. Emilia says

    I’ve always been intimidated by the idea of jelly rolls, but you make it sound quite simple! I’ll have to try this soon. After all, I do consider myself quite a good cook; a cook who is always eager to jump at a challenge 😉

  40. Bethany Hubbard says

    I made this IMMEDIATELY when I got home last night with my aunt’s homemade Strawberry-Apple preserves. Talk about decadent! My favorite recipes are the “Single Girl” recipes. You don’t end up with a bunch of dessert just sitting around and you can easily double it for two people. Keep ’em coming, Katie!

  41. Eleanor@Eatinglikeahorse says

    I love Swiss rolls! My mum used to make them like this, fill the middle with jam and ice them with chocolate buttercream for a Yule log at Christmas and it was amazing – think I’m going to have to try that with one of these 🙂

  42. Nathalie says

    I vowed to try this recipe the minute I saw it. Unfortunately I was at work at the time so I had to suffer through the entire work day before I could escape to my kitchen to test it out.

    But mine cracked like crazy when I rolled it XP. I think a couple things could have caused it. 1.) I may have over-baked it, 2.) I let it rest for way more than 10 minutes, which I think might have let it get hard? And 3.), I used mostly (regular) whole wheat flour, and caramelized banana/coconut milk instead of oil. Do you think one of those is more likely to be the culprit than the others? I have rice flour I could sub in that might make a softer product if it’s the wheat that’s at fault.

    • Nathalie says

      Forgive me for replying to myself, but I found a cake-rolling tip that I thought someone else might find useful.

      Apparently it helps a LOT in preventing cracks if you roll the cake straight out of the oven. Not necessarily filling the cake, but just rolling it a bit to “set” the shape. After that, letting it cool, filling and rolling it for real is much easier. I haven’t tried this yet, but I found it in reference to making a buche de noel without breaking the cake. (^.^)

  43. Kurtis R. says

    Love this recipe, so simple and so versatile.

    You are also the reason I bought a food processor! Time to try out a couple more of your recipes this weekend

  44. sheila @ Elements says

    I just made it, Katie, and it came out of my pan easily without breaking; however, I didn’t even attempt to try to roll it up because it was crumbling at the edges and I was afraid I’d end up with a crumbled mess. I wonder what I did wrong? No one else had that problem. I followed the recipe exactly although I did strategically place some chocolate chips on top of the batter before baking and add a couple of drops of pink food coloring. I can’t imagine that would have made it crumbly, but what else could it be?

    Anyway, I ended up just adding frosting to the cake and it looks beautiful even though it’s not rolled up. The frosting I made? I made your coconut butter. Then I added frozen strawberries and just a touch of coconut cream and a tiny bit (2 tbsp) of sugar. The strawberry coconut cream topping is amazing!! After I frosted the cake, I added more chocolate chips too the top. My sweetie is gonna love it!! (It’s his Valentine’s Day cake)

    Thanks so much for sharing your recipes and pretty pictures! I always end up loving all the recipes I make that you share with us! 🙂

  45. Sondra says

    Just made this, filled it with a banana cheesecake filling I created just for it (banana+mor-inu+lemon juice+stevia+xanthan gum+vanilla) was a little impatient and tried rolling it up after only 7 minutes, needless to say it broke, though maybe its because I used ww flour instead of pastry? Oh well it was delicious! Going to make it again in the morning for my baby girls, using pineapple orange juice for the liquid, and filling it with coconut butter. Tropical shortcake rolls! Thanks for another amazing recipe Katie!

    (oh my other plan is to add chocolate, use olive oil for the oil and use some left over filling from

  46. Sondra says

    Just made this, filled it with a banana cheesecake filling I created just for it (banana+mor-inu+lemon juice+stevia+xanthan gum+vanilla) was a little impatient and tried rolling it up after only 7 minutes, needless to say it broke, though maybe its because I used ww flour instead of pastry? Oh well it was delicious! Going to make it again in the morning for my baby girls, using pineapple orange juice for the liquid, and filling it with coconut butter. Tropical shortcake rolls! Thanks for another amazing recipe Katie!

    (oh my other plan is to add baking coco, use olive oil for the oil and use some left over filling from Isa’s berry tarts from ppk.com…. YUM!)

  47. Ashley says

    I made two last nigh using white whole wheat flour and it broke but still tasted fabulous so I didn’t really care. On one of them (my husband’s favorite), I put peanut butter, chocolate chips, chopped strawberries, and walnuts. On another (my favorite), I just put Nutella and puhcahns. 🙂 They were both amazing and SO easy and I have the feeling I will probably be making them quite a bit!

    Thanks so much for this one! It’s so open to change based on my mood and I love it!

  48. Brit says

    I made this tonight and it was delicious! It didn’t exactly roll though, it broke instantly and was more of a jelly sandwich. But I used stevia, applesauce, and fruit-only jelly for a wonderful, healthy dessert! Thank you, as always!!

  49. Shade @ One Vegan Fatty says

    Well done Katie, for providing me with a recipe that only TASTES and LOOKS decadent and sinful! This was definitely gooey deliciousness and soooo easy! I used spelt flour, and while it was probably a bit denser than your pastry flour, it was still delicious. I used the “scraps” to sample the roll with fig preserves, strawberry jam, strawberry jam & peanut butter (my fav), and ultimately went with the strawberry jam and your cheesecake frosting (leftover from making your carrot cupcake!)

    I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a simple, quick, healthy recipe!

  50. Emma says

    This was delicious! And it actually rolled which I wasn’t expecting. I halved the recipe and baked it in a loaf pan, which was perfect. I put strawberry preserves and powdered sugar in it.

  51. Kt says

    Made this recipe today, and even before I added sugar, instead of stevia, this recipe was 114 calories :s what kind of flour do you use, because no half cup of flour is less then 100 calories.

  52. Lisa says

    I have made this recipe THREE times in TWO days….it is so good. I have to admit though, that I used a square pan, cut them in equal squares and made a layered dessert with all natural preserves in between the layers…it was very pretty and okay, I admit, I haven’t mastered the art of the “pretty roll” yet, but I will diligently work on that and eat through all my mistakes……

  53. Mandy says

    I made this after my workout this morning and all I want to say is DELICIOUS!!! It was the perfect all in one breakfast and sweet to reward myself with. Thanks for all of the great recipes!

  54. Clara says

    Hey, just wondering whether the nutrition info is for the applesauce or oil version of the cake. Planning on making this for my mom tomorrow! Looks awesome 🙂

  55. Steph says

    This is in the oven right now 🙂 I’m worried that it will either be over or undercooked though, because after the first 10 minutes the top was still shiny. I did double the recipe, though, so maybe that’s why! I think I’ll take it out when it’s ALMOST done and then wait. Don’t want to to be crumbly! I also added matcha to both the cake and the cream cheese frosting that I made. Can’t wait!

    • Steph says

      Ok so it was awesome except I made modifications that probably should have been kept out :/ put too much matcha powder (entirely my fault lol), subbed agave for sugar, milk for water, and didn’t use oil. The texture was ALMOST right except it started falling apart when I tried to roll it. Does the oil/applesauce act as a binding agent?

      Anyways I feel like if I left out the matcha powder in the cake it would have been amazing. After all, I already had matcha in the filling 🙂 THanks for the recipe!

  56. Sandra says

    Katie, THANK YOU SO MUCH for writing this Blog and sharing all of your amazing recipies!
    I love them all so damn much! xD xD
    But…I have one Problem, the Problem with “Cups”^^. Do you have a number of grams you always use for one cup?
    For example in this recipe 1/2 cup of flour is 70g- so 1 cup would be 140g, right?
    But in the Lemon Squares- recipie (https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2012/05/07/healthy-lemon-squares/) 1/2 cup is 180g…hm, I´m confused…& I would be very very happy if you could help me 🙂

  57. Cat W. says

    I made this tonight–my husband asked if I had made a big pancake when he saw the cake cooling. However, once I cut off the sides, put my nutella on top, and started rolling, it just…broke. I ended up with a small layer cake, basically. Still good, but had to eat it with a fork. I used “traditional” ingredients–white flour, oil, sugar, water. Baked it for about 11.5 mins. It was pretty fluffy, like a nice pancake. Did I over or under mix? Or was something else at fault? Maybe I baked it too long?

  58. Hannah says

    Kaite, your blog is awesome!
    What are your tips for veganizing and healthifying a recipe?
    I only ask because my Dad’s favorite cake before we became vegan is the all occasion yellow cake from the big yellow Gourmet cookbook. I’d like to make it for him again, but this time only vegan and healthier!
    But if you have a recipe for a yellow cake that’s great too!

    • Chocolate-Covered Katie says

      I guess it depends on the recipe. Now that I know more about baking and proportions of ingredients that work well together, I don’t often use other recipes at all. I just make up my own.

      But if I were to start with a non-vegan recipe, I would first change the eggs for something like ground flax or energ egg replacer. (It’s usually 3 tbsp water with 1 tbsp flax or 1 tsp energ for one egg.) Milk and butter are easy, since there are vegan versions readily available. Then I play around with the oil and sugar amounts… don’t take too much out, or the texture will change, but you can also add some other things in for part of the oil, such as vegan yogurt.

  59. Rinn says

    I made a gluten free version of this just now, and ate it off the cutting board, it was so good! Definitely one of the best gluten free desserts I’ve ever had, and I didn’t even have to shell out big bucks for it!
    Thank you so much for all your amazing recipes!
    I made a post on my personal blog noting the changes I made and linking back to your original post. ( http://cornflakesareglutenfree.tumblr.com/post/30510761464 )
    Love your blog!

  60. Christy says

    i just made this! so pretty, easy and most importantly…DELICIOUS! im especially impressed because i used applesauce and it wasnt gummy at all and usually fat free stuff is. im gonna make this into a mini breakfest cake soon! and im a chocoholic too so um of course i filled mine with no other than chocolate. hahaha

  61. Kate says

    I know this may be a stupid question but what did you use to grease the pan? I’m thinking it was butter but I imagine it could be oil instead. Thanks 🙂

  62. Erin says

    Hi Katie, this looks awesome. I think the nutrional calorie count may be off though. Flour is 110 per 1/4 cup minimum so the total on the recipe without other ingredients would be 220+ and 1/2 of it would not be 70. Unless you have some super cool low cal flour I should know about… 😉

  63. amy says

    just made this with my 3 year old. We live in CT and are COMPLETELY snowed in. We’ll be enjoying this treat while we watch some form of Disney movie 🙂

  64. amy says

    in addition: when i rolled it up, it broke apart… what did i do wrong? the cake seems thicker than yours in the pic. i used all suggested ingredients and followed instructions as written. (sidebar, it’s still delicious, even though it’s falling apart!)

  65. amanda says

    HI Katie,

    I just made this (and I apologize if this question has been asked 10 times already – though I didn’t see it), but I was unable to roll after it had cooled. The cake just crumbled and split immediately. It’s not too dry just to eat on it’s on – pretty moist actually. Do you think it was maybe too thick? Or cooked too long?

    Thanks!

  66. Jessica says

    I just made this recipe this morning! OMG it is so good! I put my homemade chocolate hazelnut spread on with strawberry jelly! I’m in heaven!! Recipe came out just great! Thanks Katie!

  67. Kathie says

    Allrecipes.com cake pan size conversions article says to use an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan for an 8″ pan. The loaf pan is deeper than the round pan but I think it would work for this. Did you use a rectangular pan or a round one? (Excuse this question if you’ve already answered it a gazzilion times. I haven’t read any comments on this recipe yet. My bad!)

  68. Kathie says

    In the past when I’ve made the “normal” sized jelly roll, I used parchment paper to line the bottom of the pan so that the cake would come out easily. My mother used waxed paper but I don’t know if that was because that is all she had or what. I do remember, though, that the cake and waxed paper came out of the pan easily and she just gently rolled up the cake with the waxed paper in the roll until it cooled. It was easier to roll when warm. We wouldn’t want to have parts of the cake sticking in the pan for a jelly roll! It would be difficult, if not impossible, to fix those holes.

  69. Laura says

    Have you tried some arrowroot powder for leavening instead of extra baking soda? I don’t know if my baking soda has an unusually strong flavor, but your recipes seem to turn out with too much baking soda flavor.

    • laura says

      Ok, I realized that this recipe calls for baking powder, not soda. So, that probably makes a difference in taste. But I also thought the best healthy chocolate chip cookies tasted of baking soda. Have you experimented with arrowroot powder?

  70. Emily says

    I added some cocoa powder to the roll batter along with a dash of cinnamon and substituted mashed banana for the applesauce. As for the filling I used mashed up banana with a bit of cinnamon/nutmeg in it, and boy was it good! 🙂

  71. Lisa says

    I love your website, and this is one of my favorite recipes. I just tried it today. The batter tasted like pancake mix which I l-o-v-e!!! I also LOVE that I didn’t have to use sugar or artificial ingredients. I used honey for the sugar (I’m going to try agave nectar next time too). The edges ended up burning in the oven, but I cut it off to form the square. The roll started to tear as I put more sweets into the cake, but didn’t break at all. I warmed it up in the microwave to melt my white chocolate and semi sweet chocolate chips. I also put in reduced fat cream cheese, reduced fat peanut butter, and a little sliver of nutella. Honestly I didn’t need to put in so much because it was great pretty bare by itself. Use gluten free flour/almond flour to make it better for celiacs (like me) and it still tastes delicious!

  72. Francoise Levi says

    Well this was neither skinny nor mini (70g of ww pastry flour is 245 calories, by the way! And you got to count what you use to grease the pan) but it was delicious. I used 31g of honey, which is less than 2 tbsp, and it was a little two sweet, so I’d stick to 1 tsbp next time… It didn’t quite fill my 9 inch pan and stuck to the sides but it was easy to roll, and I filled it with jam. Arguably I could have made it two servings. Now I’m hopefully full for a while.

  73. Justine says

    I made a vegan Yule log out of this doing the following changes:
    Doubled the recipe for a 9 by 13″ pan
    Added around 1/4 cup cocoa powder
    Used the “coffee fudge frosting” (cashew) frosting
    Drizzled sone melted enjoy life chocolate chips mixed with a splash of non-dairy milk as a DELICIOUS ganache
    …and my whole family (including my picky grandma, pop-pop, and dad) loved it!
    Next time I make this, I would try using coffee as the liquid.

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