This berries and cream roulade is the product of a frustrating week of recipe testing — and thankfully it’s worth the effort. If you’re thinking, no way am I attempting that, keep reading. It’s not as difficult as it might seem, there’s an easier option if you prefer, and even an imperfect roll will still taste fantastic.
A berries and cream roulade is like summer, all rolled up.
The idea started when I bought more berries than I needed at the farmers market, planning to make a berry dessert — a trifle or a custard tart maybe. Instead, indecision and a few failed experiments stretched the week into a series of attempts that used up too many eggs and almond flour. After several tries I realized the cake I’d baked for a trifle would also make a lovely roulade, but I’d already chilled it. Note: for best results, roll the cake while it’s still warm so it “remembers” the spiral.
I kept changing direction — trifle, tart, roulade — and made plenty of mistakes along the way. One early version tasted good but didn’t form a neat spiral. After a long week of bake-fail-repeat I was ready to give up, until someone came home, tried a slice, and declared it delicious. That reminded me I wasn’t on The Great British Bake Off; perfection wasn’t required.
This roulade hit the key zenbelly boxes:
- Gluten-free? Yes.
- Dairy-free? Easily adaptable.
- Seasonal fruit? Absolutely.
- Relatively simple? Yes — and there’s an even easier assembly option below.
If rolling feels intimidating, you can simply slice the cake in half and layer the filling between the two slabs. Either way, the base cake is an olive oil sponge: dairy-free, lightly sweet, and with a tender crumb. It’s become one of my favorite go-to cake bases for other desserts, too.
The results are delicious whether the roll looks perfect or a little rustic. Below is the recipe and clear instructions so you can reproduce it at home.
Berries and Cream Roulade
An approachable summer dessert — roll it if you like, or simply split and layer the cake for an even easier assembly.
- Author: zenbelly
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes, plus time to cool
- Yield: 8-10 servings
- Category: dessert
- Method: bake
Ingredients
for the cake:
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca starch or arrowroot starch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon finely ground sea salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing the pan
for the filling:
- 1 cup heavy cream or full-fat coconut milk*
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, plus more for dusting
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups fresh berries (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, or a mix; if using strawberries, chop or slice to match the other berries)
Instructions
For the cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 15×10-inch jelly roll pan with olive oil, line it with parchment paper, and lightly grease the parchment.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, tapioca starch, baking powder, and sea salt.
- In a stand mixer bowl or a large bowl with hand beaters, beat the eggs and sugar until lighter in color, fluffy, and thick, about 3–5 minutes. Add the vanilla and, with the beaters running, drizzle in the olive oil. Fold in the dry mixture until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the center springs back when touched lightly.
- Five minutes after removing the cake from the oven, turn it out onto a tea towel generously dusted with powdered sugar. Starting at one of the shorter ends, roll the cake up in the towel into a shorter, thicker spiral rather than a long, thin roll. Let it cool wrapped like this to set the shape.
- Once cooled, whip the cream until stiff peaks form. Whip just past the stage you would normally stop for whipped cream, taking care not to overwork it into butter. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla right before finishing.
- Carefully unroll the cake, keeping it on the towel. Spread the whipped cream over the surface, leaving about an inch free at the opposite end from where you started the roll. Scatter the berries over the cream and gently press them in.
- Use the towel to help roll the cake back up, placing the seam on the bottom. Dust with powdered sugar if desired, then slice and serve.
Notes
*If using canned coconut milk, refrigerate the can overnight, then open it without shaking. Pour off the liquid (save for smoothies or soups) and use only the thickened fat for the whipped filling.
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