This is such a beautiful dessert, perfect for an impressive holiday or entertaining menu but also simple enough to prepare on a weeknight for your family dinner. The sweet and slightly tart jam tastes absolutely perfect with the tender and fluffy frosting. The cake itself is so delicate. I found this recipe in a Martha Stewart Holiday magazine and made a few minor adjustments. My family absolutely loves it.
Yields: one cake roll
Ingredients:
Cake roll:
3 whole eggs plus 2 egg yolks
½ cup sugar
½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons cake flour
⅛ teaspoon salt
¼ cup (½ a stick) butter, melted
Jam:
4 oz cranberries, fresh or frozen
4 oz raspberries, fresh or frozen
½ cup sugar
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a 15x17 in baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with baking spray.
In a small sauce pan, combine the berries with the sugar. (You can also make the jam from one of the berries, just use 8 oz of either of them). Cover and allow to cook on medium heat until the sugar melts. Bring to a boil. This will take longer if the berries are frozen. Turn down the heat and keep the berries simmering.
Here's a jam that I made with strawberries and raspberries.
Cook for 10-15 min. Mash with a potato masher or combine in a food processor/blender.
Strain the cooked berries through a fine mesh sieve to get a smooth jam. 
I really would prefer to keep these out of my teeth! Set aside to cool.
Combine the eggs and sugar in a heatproof bowl. Place over a pot with about 1-2 inches of boiling water. Whisk until the sugar dissolves and the eggs are slightly warm. 
Place in a large bowl and mix with a whisk attachment for about 6 min, or until the eggs are light yellow and fluffy. 
Sift in the flour and salt and gently fold in with a rubber spatula.
When you have about half the flour incorporated, pour the melted butter into the batter by pouring it slowly using the side of the bowl and continue gently folding.
Pour into prepared baking sheet and spread out evenly. 
Bake for 5-7 min. 
Place the cake upside down on a clean kitchen towel. Carefully remove the parchment paper and roll the cake right up into the towel while it's still hot. 
If you want the cake roll to be thicker, start rolling with the width side first. If you want the cake roll to be thinner, start with the length side. Allow to cool.
Meanwhile, prepare the frosting.
Ingredients:
1 cup heavy cream, chilled
5 oz cream cheese, softened
¼ cup confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Whip the cream in a chilled bowl and chilled whisk attachment. Set aside. 
With a paddle attachment, mix the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. 
With a rubber spatula, gently fold in the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. 
When the cake roll is cool, unroll it, and spread the jam evenly over the surface. Put dollops of cream cheese frosting on top of the jam and then carefully spread it our over the jam. 
This really helps to spread the frosting neatly on top of the jam without turning it into pink smears.
Roll up the cake roll.
Dust with powdered sugar and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
Here's a trick to keep the jam and cream cheese frosting from streaking and smearing all over each other. When cutting the cake roll, clean the knife every time you make a cut. Wipe it on a paper towel, or something of the sort. It works like a charm:).
Cranberry-Raspberry Cake Roll
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 mins
- Cook Time: 22 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour 37 mins
- Yield: 4
- Category: Sweets
Ingredients
Yields: one cake roll
Cake roll:
- 3 whole eggs plus 2 egg yolks
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons cake flour
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup (½ a stick) butter, melted
Jam:
- 4 oz cranberries, fresh or frozen
- 4 oz raspberries, fresh or frozen
- ½ cup sugar
Filling:
- 1 cup heavy cream, chilled
- 5 oz cream cheese, softened
- ¼ cup confectioner's sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a 15x17 in baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with baking spray.
Jam:
- In a small sauce pan, combine the berries with the sugar.
- Cover and allow to cook on medium heat until the sugar melts. Bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and keep the berries simmering.
- Cook for 10-15 min.
- Mash with a potato masher or combine in a food processor/blender.
- Strain the cooked berries through a fine mesh sieve to get a smooth jam.
Cake:
- Combine the eggs and sugar in a heatproof bowl.
- Place over a pot with about 1-2 inches of boiling water. Whisk until the sugar dissolves and the eggs are slightly warm.
- Place in a large bowl and mix with a whisk attachment for about 6 min, or until the eggs are light yellow and fluffy.
- Sift in the flour and salt and gently fold in with a rubber spatula.
- When you have about half the flour incorporated,slowly pour the melted butter into the batter and continue gently folding.
- Pour into prepared baking sheet and spread out evenly.
- Bake for 5-7 min.
- Place the cake upside down on a clean kitchen towel. Carefully remove the parchment paper and roll the cake into the towel while it's still hot.
- Allow to cool.
Frosting:
- Whip the cream in a chilled bowl and chilled whisk attachment. Set aside.
- With a paddle attachment, mix the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.
Assembly:
- When the cake roll is cool, unroll it, and spread the jam evenly over the surface. Put dollops of cream cheese frosting on top of the jam and then carefully spread it our over the jam.
- Roll up the cake roll.
- Dust with powdered sugar and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
This looks wonderful. Can it be made ahead and frozen?
Should I bake at 400F or 350F?
400 F. I'm not sure where you saw the 350F? Sometimes I can't find my own typos.
This looks very delicious! Can I make it with store bought jam? You think it will good?
Sure, Natasha. Use any jam that you like.
Hi, I would like to make this for Easter and was wondering if I used a hand mixer instead of a attachment ones would it come out the same?
You can use a hand mixer, you just might need to mix it a little bit longer, that's all.
The idea of it and the photos look good, but... Just a little bit more than 1/2 cup flour for an entire cake?? How can this be correct?
Just a little bit more than 1/2 cup flour for an entire cake?? How can this be correct?
It's a cake roll, which is very thin, in this case, Shirley. It has a very fluffy and tender texture. I've made this cake roll many, many times and it always turned out perfectly:). I hope you enjoy it.
Hi Olga!
My boyfriend hates cranberries and I was wondering if you think it would be alright to substitute the cranberries for strawberries. Thanks for all your delicious recipes!
Hi Joeli,
Yes, you can use strawberries instead of raspberries. If you read carefully, I wrote in the recipe that you can use other berries and there's also a picture of a jam that I made with strawberries and raspberries. Cranberries are very seasonal, so when they aren't available, I use many other kinds of fruit instead.
Is there anything else I can use instead of cranberry?
Hi Olga,
As I mentioned in the recipe, you can use any berries. I make mine with strawberries and raspberries all the time.
Olga, you are using unsalted butter, correct? i dont bake at all but i really want to try this for my sons birthday. Im hoping it will turn out good. Also, any suggestions as to where i can find a 15x17 baking sheet?
Hi Nadia,
Yes, I always use unsalted butter, but using salted butter won't spoil it.
Most stores have different sizes of baking sheets. I buy most of my supplies online.
olga, do i have to strain the jam? it seems like it would take forever? and im on a time limit-wasnt sure if it would be ok to avoid this step
Margarita, if you don't strain the jam, you will have LOTS of seeds in it. If that's ok with you, skip this step.
Hi Olga,
I made the cake roll yesterday evening (used your strawberry jam recipe instead of the cranberry jam) and it turned out sooo good! The taste reminded me a bit of a strawberry cheesecake.
Just a small question, the cake wasn't as thick as yours on the picture. Do you have any tips for me to get a thick, fluffy cake roll next time?
Usually, I am a silent visitor on your blog but I just had to stop by and say thank you ❤️
Your blog is such a great resource for me!
Hi Sarah!
Thank you for taking the time to write:). I'm happy to hear you enjoyed the cake roll. (I like the strawberry jam for this recipe too.)
To make the cake roll thicker and fluffier, maybe you can whip the eggs even longer next time so they get even more volume and be even more careful when mixing with the flour, so you don't deflate it as much as possible.
Also, what size baking sheet did you use. If you use a slightly smaller one next time, it will be thicker, is that is what you would like.
MMM this is heavenly! So light and delicious! We pretty much gulped it down 😛 making another one 🙂 Thank you Olga!
Hi Olga! Does the biskvit part of the cake get wet from the jam?
No need to worry, Nadia; the cake part doesn't get wet:).
Sorry I mean moisty:) we like when the cake is has some moisture in it.
Nadia,
First of all, the actual cake is very tender and with the jam and cream filling, it is a very moist, light and delicate dessert.
Is it 2 extra yolks to the three eggs or 2 extra egg whites? bc my eggs looked nothing close to white when I mixed them in the mixer...
Olya,
It's 2 extra yolks, not whites. The beaten eggs will be pale YELLOW, not white. You should be mixing it for at least 5 minutes, longer if you're using a hand mixer. Some egg yolks are brighter than others, so if it's more yellow than mine, that's fine, as long as the eggs have enough volume.
Made this today, i hope mine turned out as good as this one looks!!! hopefully hubby will like it as well:)
keep up the good work im always looking forward to new postings
🙂
Thanks Inna! I'm glad you're enjoying the recipes.
Olga, I shared this on my skinny scoop list 🙂
Oh oops, here's the link: http://www.skinnyscoop.com/list/natashaskitchen/favorite-russian-cakes-please-wipe-the-drool-off-your-keyboard
Wow! Thank you, Natasha! I am very honored:) All those cakes look delicious.
Olga, this was so delicious when you made it!!!!! I could eat the whole thing myself.