Ube Rolls

By: Ernie Babaran of ISCAHM


This one's for more experienced bakers.


Serves 10  Prep Time 30 minutes  Bake Time 10 to 12 minutes

For the ube sponge
2 1/2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup corn oil
8 egg yolks
2/3 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons ube oil
2 teaspoons ube flavor
1/2 cup sugar
8 egg whites
1 1/3 cup sugar

For the Swiss buttercream
4 egg whites
1 cup refined sugar
1 3/4 cup unsalted butter

For the filling and topping
1 small bottle macapuno
ube sponge crumbs
cherries

To make the ube sponge
1  Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Grease and line a 21- by 13-inch jellyroll pan.

2  Sift cake flour and baking powder together. Combine all liquid ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir to incorporate.

3  Add the sifted dry ingredients and 1/2 cup sugar, then whip at low speed for 1 minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl.

4  Whip for 5 more minutes on medium speed of the mixer or with a whisk until the batter is very smooth and fluffy. Set aside.

5  Whip the egg whites to soft peak and gradually add 1 1/3 cups of sugar. Whip to stiff peaks. This is called a meringue.

6  Gently fold in the meringue into the reserved batter until well incorporated. Divide batter into prepared pans approximately 3/4 full.

7  Bake for approximately 30 minutes, depending on the size of the molds. The cake should spring back when pressed slightly in the center.

To make the Swiss buttercream
1  Prepare large pan with water and heat it to barely simmering point.

2  Combine sugar and egg whites in a bowl stirring until the sugar is dissolved.

3  Place on the barely simmering hot water bath, whipping constantly until the temperature reaches 60ºC. Use a candy thermometer to check temperature. If you don’t have one, water should be kept at a steady simmer.

4  Transfer onto a mixing bowl and whip with a whisk or using a mixer until stiff peaks. Use a wooden spoon to beat until cold, gradually adding butter and beating in medium speed until smooth and creamy.

5  To assemble, spread buttercream and macapuno on ube rolls and roll tight. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Coat with ube crumbs and buttercream. Decorate by piping with more buttercream and topping with cherries.

Tip: You can substitute other flavors for the sponge to make another kind of cake. The buttercream recipe is the meringue-based kind, which has more stability compared to other buttercream varieties. Ube oil is available in baking supply stores; simply omit if
not in stock.