First you’ll notice that this is a roll cake. I’ve never seen a carrot roll cake before, and was a little nervous about how it would work, but it was a dream! Of course I went through a few rounds of testing, some were hilariously bad...haha, but the result is a perfectly fluffy cake that bakes up in about 10 minutes! Then I decided to do a fresh take on the classic pairing of cream cheese frosting, and instead used Woolwich Dairy’s Original Soft Fresh Goat Cheese paired with brown butter. I’m obsessed with this goat cheese as it’s such a unique flavour, is made with Canadian goat milk, and it complemented the warm spices in the carrot cake so well.

Now, it’s important to note that while this cake is quick to whip up, there is a ton of waiting time. Once the cake is baked, you roll it up while it’s still warm, and then let it cool completely. And I do mean completely. If you try and frost it while it’s even a little bit warm…you’ll end up with melty frosting that smooshes out of the roll!

I roll my cake up with the parchment paper that I bake the cake on so it’s nice and easy! (sidenote: I’ve seen some people use towels, or even those “bake and roll” mats, but I find this method to be the easiest for me! And it never sticks....hurray!) This is so that you’re able to unroll it gently, fill it with frosting, and then roll it back up without it cracking! The cake will then need to set in the fridge for at least an hour or two before you can serve it. It’s a great cake to make the day before, and simply keep in the fridge before you’re ready to serve! Then you can place it on a serving plate, dust with powdered sugar, add garnishes if you’d like, and voila!

Also important! The ends are always a bit rough, so I like to trim a thin slice off of each end before plating the cake up, so the swirls really shine! (And then you can have a little sample of it too test too...so that’s a win win!).

Carrot Roll Cake with Goat Cheese Brown Butter Frosting

yields: 1 roll cake - (one 10x15 sheet cake)

recipe by: Kelsey Siemens

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook: 9-11 minutes

Total: 4 hours (or overnight)

Servings: 5-7

ingredients

3 large eggs

198 g (1 cup) brown sugar, packed

50 g (1 cup) grated carrot (about 2 medium carrots)

4 g (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract

96 g (3⁄4 cup) all-purpose flour

5 g (1 teaspoon) baking soda

1 g (1⁄2 teaspoon) ground cinnamon

1 g (1⁄2 teaspoon) ground ginger

.5 g (1⁄4 teaspoon) ground nutmeg

Pinch of salt

Optional toppings:

Marzipan carrots or candy carrots

Meringues

Powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a 10-inch by 15-inch pan (also sometimes called a jelly roll pan) with parchment paper, making sure the parchment goes up each side so that the cake batter won’t go underneath it, and grease with cooking spray. The pan must have a raised edge on it!

Note:The size is very important, as using a larger or smaller pan here will greatly affect the thickness of the cake, and likely won’t turn out well.

In a large bowl, mix together eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla extract on low speed until just combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix together on medium speed until ingredients have just barely incorporated. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure everything is mixed in. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and spread into an even layer.

Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven, and gently slide the cake off of the pan by pulling on the parchment paper. Carefully roll up the cake, with the short side towards you, and place onto a cooling rack. Let the cake cool completely while still rolled up.

Note: If you try to frost the cake before it is 100% cool, the frosting may melt and make the cake soggy.

Assembly:

Once the cake is completely cool, frost with the Goat Cheese Brown Butter Frosting (recipe below). Leave about 1⁄2 inch of cake bare on all of the edges, as the frosting will push out a bit when you roll the cake back up. Gently roll the cake back up, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and place in the fridge to set for at least an hour or two. Letting it sit overnight is great too!

Serving:

Before serving, slice a thin piece off of each end so that you can really see the swirl pattern. Add additional garnishes if desired, and dust with powdered sugar directly before serving.

Storing:

Store in the fridge in an airtight container.

Goat Cheese Brown Butter Frosting

recipe: Kelsey Siemens

Ingredients

113 g (1⁄2 cup) Woolwich Dairy Original Soft Fresh Goat Cheese, room temperature

115 g (1⁄2 cup) butter, browned

125 g (1 cup) powdered sugar

4 g (1 teaspoon) vanilla extract

Directions

First brown the butter. Place butter into a small saucepan, and heat over medium high. Swirl the pan occasionally as the butter melts. The butter will start to foam, and soon you will smell a nutty aroma. Keep swirling, and cook until you see a bit of brown colour under the foam. Remove from the heat, and cool completely until the butter resolidifies. You may want to place it back into the fridge to speed up this process.

In a small bowl, mix together the softened Woolwich Dairy Original Soft Fresh Goat Cheese, brown butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Add a bit more powdered sugar if frosting is too thin. Frosting should be stored in the fridge if not using right away, but will need to be at room temperature in order to spread onto the cake.

Happy cake rolling!

-Kelsey