A Strawberry Swiss Roll is a classic dessert that offers a delightful combination of sponge cake, fresh strawberries, and cream, perfect for spring and summer when strawberries are at their peak.
Strawberry Swiss Roll
This cake is often served at celebrations and festive occasions in Colombia and throughout Latin America. It’s known as “brazo de reina,” which translates to “queen’s arm,” referring to its distinctive rolled shape that resembles a queen’s arm adorned with a royal bracelet. My aunt knows her Strawberry Swiss Roll recipe by heart since she makes it so often. She shared it with me, which I lightened up slightly by folding some Greek yogurt into the whipped cream – it worked perfectly! More of my favorite strawberry desserts are this Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake, Strawberries Romanoff, and Strawberries and Crème Crepe Cake. And for a fall version, try this Pumpkin Roll.
Why You’ll Love This Strawberry Swiss Roll
- Impressive: This Swiss roll is sure to impress at your next party. It’s pretty, delicious, and looks complicated. No need to tell everyone it’s easier to make than it looks!
- Sweet Strawberries: Fresh strawberries take this dessert up a notch! They’re the sweetest when they’re in season, so the strawberries enhance the flavor.
- Healthier Dessert: This cake feels more indulgent than it really is. The whipped cream filling is still creamy but lighter thanks to the Greek yogurt, which boosts the protein. Plus, there’s no fat added to the cake – just a little butter on the parchment paper, so the cake doesn’t stick. I use monk fruit sweetener to lower the sugar and strawberries add some fiber, lots of vitamin C, and a bunch of other vitamins and minerals.
Strawberry Swiss Roll Ingredients
- Eggs: Separate the whites and yolks from six large eggs.
- Flour: Use six tablespoons of all-purpose flour.
- Sweetener: I used monk fruit sweetener, which has no calories and fewer carbs than sugar, but granulated sugar will also work.
- Vanilla: Vanilla extract gives the sponge cake its flavor.
- Butter: Bring two teaspoons of unsalted butter to room temperature.
- Powdered Sugar (also called confectioners’ sugar) to sprinkle onto a dish towel and the cake
- Strawberry Filling: Thinly sliced fresh strawberries, heavy cream, vanilla, monk fruit sweetener (or sugar), 0% Greek yogurt
How to Make a Strawberry Swiss Roll
- Prep: Place an oven rack in the center of the oven, and preheat it to 400°F. Spray a 15” x 10” sheet pan with nonstick spray and line it with parchment paper. Using your fingers, spread two teaspoons of butter over the parchment and set aside.
- Egg Whites: Beat the six egg whites with a stand or hand mixer until stiff. It should take three to five minutes.
- Remaining Cake Ingredients: Gently fold in the six yolks one at a time with a spatula and then the sugar and flour one tablespoon at a time, followed by the vanilla.
- Bake: Evenly pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 12 to 14 minutes until the cake’s color is lightly golden.
- Powdered Sugar: Sprinkle a clean, damp dish towel with powdered sugar. When the cake is ready, sprinkle a little sugar on top. Then invert the cake onto the towel, remove the paper, and roll up the cake with the towel. Make sure the open end of the roll is down, and place it on a wire rack to cool.
- Swiss Roll Filling: Whisk the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla at medium speed with a hand or stand mixer for two minutes. Next, increase the speed for three to five minutes until the mixture forms stiff peaks. Gently fold in the yogurt with a spatula and then refrigerate.
- Fill the Swiss Roll: When the rolled cake is completely cool, unroll it. Spread the cream on top and cover it with strawberries, leaving one inch at the end with no strawberries. Reroll the sponge cake, transfer it to a serving platter, and chill in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight.
- Serving: Lightly dust the strawberry Swiss roll with powdered sugar before eating.
Variations
Like many traditional recipes, Brazo de Reina has numerous regional and family variations. In some versions, a touch of rum or other spirits are added to the batter for an additional layer of flavor. Some may include cocoa powder in the batter for a chocolate cake or a different fruit in the filling.
- Berries: Swap strawberries for blackberries, raspberries, or blueberries or a mix of all.
- Fruit: I bet fresh peaches or nectarines would be another good summer fruit to try for the filling.
- Jam: Spread your favorite berry jam over the cream filling if strawberries aren’t in season.
- Citrus: For a hint of citrus, zest a lemon or orange into the cream.
- Chocolate Swiss Roll: Add two tablespoons of cocoa to the cake batter when you add the flour.
- Gluten-Free Swiss Roll: Substitute gluten-free flour, like Cup4Cup.
How to Store Strawberry Swiss Roll
Refrigerate cake for up to three days.
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Yield: 12 servings
Serving Size: 1 slice
For the cake:
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Preheat the 400F oven rack in the center. Spray a 15 x 10-inch baking sheet pan with non-stick spray, line with parchment paper, using your fingers add the 2 teaspoons of butter and spread over the parchment paper, set aside.
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Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat the egg whites until they are stiff, about 3 – 5 minutes.
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Using a spatula, GENTLY fold in egg yolk one at a time, then add sugar 1 tbsp at a time, gently folding it in. Add flour 1 tbsp at a time, and the vanilla extract and gently fold.
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Pour the batter into the prepared pan, evenly spreading the cake batter with a spatula.
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Bake about 12 – 14 minutes until the cake is lightly golden in color.
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In the meantime, sprinkle a clean and damp dish towel with confectioners’ sugar.
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When the cake is ready, sprinkle a little confectioners’ sugar on top then invert the cake onto the dish towel, remove the paper, and roll up the cake with the towel, be sure the end of the roll is down, place in a wire rack to cool.
For the Filling:
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Using a hand or stand mixer, whisk at medium speed the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla for 2 minutes, and increase the speed until it reaches stiff peaks about 3 – 5 minutes total. Then with spatula gently fold in the Greek yogurt and refrigerate.
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When the roll is completely cool, unroll the cake. Spread with the cream and cover the cream with strawberries, leaving 1 inch at the end without the strawberries to prevent them from falling out of the end of the roll) and re- roll.
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Transfer to a serving platter, chill in the refrigerator for a few hours or as long as overnight.
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Just before serving, lightly dust with powdered sugar (if using) and enjoy! Makes 12 slices.
Last Step:
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calculated with monk fruit sweetener
Serving: 1 slice, Calories: 153 kcal, Carbohydrates: 32 g, Protein: 5 g, Fat: 10 g, Saturated Fat: 6 g, Cholesterol: 118 mg, Sodium: 49 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 5 g
