BOO! The cute & adorable Japanese deco Swiss Roll Cake recipe was hijacked this month to create a gousligh Beetlejuice movie themed cake for Halloween.
2teasppons matchaplus black, purple and green gel food coloring
For the syrup
1tablespooncaster sugar
2tablespoonsboiling water
1tablespoonliqueur of your choiceoptional
For the filling
8ounceswhite chocolate cups
1cupheavy cream
For the green spun sugar
50gcaster sugar
12gwater
12gcorn syrup
Green gel food coloring
Instructions
For the cake
Sift the flour, the baking powder and salt in a small bowl, reserve. With an electric mixer, beat the eggs. With mixer on, slowly add the sugar a bit at a time, and beat for 1 more minute all together. Slowly mix in the dry ingredients until well combined. Beat in the vanilla and water until incorporated.
If using a stencil, place it on the left side of the baking sheet. Place a piece of parchment paper cut to the size of a half baking sheet.
Separate batter amounts for your design. About 1/4 cup is good for small designs. Mix each amount of batter with gel food coloring to the desired color. In my case I made a batch of purple and a batch of black. I flavored my main batter with 2 teasppons of matcha powder and a few drops of green coloring.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Pour decorative colored batters in piping bags and fill your pattern accordingly.
TIPS: do any outlines first and fillings seconds. FREEZE between each color applications for 15 minutes to prevent your batters from bleeding together.
Once all your design is piped and frozen a bit, remove the stencil from under the parchment paper, then pour and gently spread your main batter evenly over the entire sheet pan.
Bake for about 8 to 12 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Be very careful not to overbake.
Lay a second sheet of parchment paper on a large cutting board. Right away when the cake is out of the oven, invert the cake onto the piece of parchment paper and gently remove the top parchment paper. Cover with another sheet of parchment paper and turn the cake again over with the cutting board for help so that the decorations are facing the counter.
Roll the cake up with the side away from the decoration and leave to cool.
For the filling
Bring the cream to a boil or heat in the microwave. In a bowl, pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips. Set aside for 10 minutes, then stir until smooth and the chocolate is all melted. Cool the mixture in the fridge for a bit, then whisk with an electric mixer on medium until filling is light and fluffy.
For the syrup
In a small bowl, combine the caster sugar and boiling water. Mix until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the liqueur if desired, or equal amount of water. When the cake is completely cool, unroll and brush the simple syrup over the inside of the cake with a pastry brush and let it soak in. Trim edges clean.
Spread the filling over the entire inside of the cake. Roll it up again and leave to set in the fridge for a few hours.
For the green spun sugar
Place a sheet of parchment paper on your counter and a rolling pin on top. Bring all the ingredients to the boil in a saucepan and brush down the sides with water to prevent crystal formations. Keep boiling until you reach 155 degrees C. Let the mixture cool for a couple of minutes.
Dip a fork in the sugar and flick it across the paper. If strings of sugar form you are at the right temperature. Work quickly to spin all the liquid. Gather up with your fingers into your desired shape and place on top of cake.
Notes
For the spun sugar: only prepare your sugar sculpture when close to serving as the humidty in the air will melt it down with time.