Not-Potluck-Worthy Jelly Roll

In honor of Superbowl Friday, my company let folks come in with jeans and sports jerseys, and they encouraged us to have potlucks if we wanted. I always enjoy an opportunity to share my love of cooking with others, so I was ready to volunteer food! My department already had plans to go to lunch, so I offered to make a dessert.

I hadn't made a jelly roll in a while and thought that would be a different and delicious dish for the potluck.

Well, on Thursday night late, I made the jelly roll. The cake came out good from what I could tell and rolled like a champ in the towel. I unrolled it and spread in the raspberry jelly. Then things went awry. First, the jelly made a huge mess. Then, when I rolled it up, the jelly spewed out the open end and it was not rolled up tight enough. I had rolled it on the long end in hopes of having more slices to offer coworkers- bad choice. I cut it in half to see if maybe it looked better once it was sliced- nope.

ARGH! What am I going to do for the potluck in under 12 hours now? I sprinkled it with powdered sugar and decided my poor dessert was not presentable. To me, it looked like a bloody stump. The cake was kind of dry. The roll was poor. And the next morning I saw fingerprints in my powdered sugar.

The taste the next day was in fact good- the jelly soaked in some and moistened it right up. I brought it in and my coworkers thought I was crazy for thinking it was ugly. Oh well- I had already gotten up Friday morning and made a variation on my cream puffs instead!!!

The Good Side


The Bad Side

Jelly Roll
From Paula Deen

• 4 Eggs, separated
  
• 3/4 C. Sugar
  
• 1 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract
  
• 3/4 C. Flour
  
• 3/4 tsp. Baking Powder
  
• 1/4 tsp. Salt
  
• Confectioners Sugar
  
• 1 C. Jelly (any flavor)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
   
2. In a small bowl beat egg whites until stiff but not dry and set aside.
   
3. In a Kitchen Aid mixer bowl, beat the egg yolks until light.
   
4. Gradually add in the sugar and vanilla, and mix well. Add in the dry ingredients and blend.
   
5. Fold in the egg whites into the batter.
   
6. Pour the batter into a 15 by 10 by 1-inch jelly roll pan lined with waxed paper. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. The cake is done when it is golden or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
   
7. Loosen edges of cake, invert cake onto a clean towel dusted with confectioners' sugar.
   
8. Gently peel wax paper off cake. Cut the hard edges off and either throw out or eat quickly before your husband sees you!
   
9. Gently roll the cake and towel up together. I recommend starting at the narrow end so you get more layers of rings. Cool cake on rack, seam side down, for 10 to 15 minutes.
   
10. In a small bowl, whip the jelly with a fork until it is smooth. This makes it easier for spreading.
    
11. Once cake has cooled, gently unroll and spread the jelly in a thin layer and re-roll. You will probably get some oozing out the side. Sprinkle the top with confectioners' sugar. It is tasty right away, but even better the next day!