This beautiful roll cake is hiding a BIG secret. It may look intimidating to make, but the secret is, it’s actually quite easy thanks to a box cake mix! No special ingredients or fancy tools needed. The eggs are simply incorporated differently into the cake mix to create a sponge cake.

I’ll guarantee one thing about it, you WILL be so proud of yourself for making this cake and presenting it to your friends and family, and you can keep the “easiness” of this cake a secret too :0)

The method I’ve outlined below for making roll cake can be applied to any flavor of boxed cake mix. Here, I used the Perfectly Moist Strawberry Supreme from Duncan Hines. But you can get creative! Choose any cake flavor you like, any berry fruit filling you like, and frosting/filling you like. (Just not angel food cake.)

I decided to use whipped cream stabilized with a little cream cheese (instructions for this are included below as well) so I could do some pretty piping on top. But the piping and fancy toppings are totally optional. A lot of folks just make the cake and dust the top with powdered sugar and serve it.

Cake Mix Cake Roll Recipe showing a strawberry cake roll in between other bright fruity treats for Spring or Easter.

Jelly roll cake

If you prefer to fill your roll cake with classic Jelly- go for it! Follow this same recipe method below and swap out the cream/frosting filling with your chosen flavor of jam. Here are two jelly roll recipe ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

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Old-fashioned Jelly Roll cake by Serious Eats

The Perfect Jelly Roll Cake by Big Kitchen Dreams

How to make a cake roll cake (with box cake mix)

Boxed cake mix to the rescue! In the instructions below, I’ll walk you through making a cake roll cake with a box cake mix. Again, this will work with any cake mix, allowing you to get creative with lots of great flavors. It’s all about turning that dense, moist cake mix into a light, airy, and flexible sponge cake. You’ll be shocked at how simple it is!

Separating the eggs and whiping them separately is the key.

Classic sponge cake get’s it’s name from how light and squshy it is- just like a sponge. This comes from whipping air into the eggs, which then go into the batter.

Filling the eggs with air turns boxed cake mix into sponge cake.

Separate eggs and yolks. Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks, then whisk (or beat) the egg yolks until smooth and light. Then whisk water and oil into the yolks.

Note: Measure out 1 and 1/2 cups of cake mix and sift it into the egg yolk mixture to help add even more air into this cake roll batter. I would recommend you do the same. It’s a small step, but every little bit of extra air we can add will help. This is all the cake mix you’ll use, by the way.

Someone sifts dry pink cake mix into a mixing bowl with egg.

Time to add the whipped egg whites.

Whisk in approximately one cup of egg white into the cake batter until fully incorporated to help lighten the batter and prepare it for the rest of the whipped egg whites. Now set your whisk aside.

Folding, not whisking, is key to the batter staying airy and light.

Use a spatula to incorporate the rest of the egg whites into the batter by Folding- a technique used to combine light and heavy mixtures in a way that preserves the air in the light mixture (usually a whipped cream or meringue).

Here is a video on the technique

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Parchment paper is essential for baking a roll cake.

Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit perfectly into the bottom of a 9X13 inch rimmed baking sheet. Empty the batter into the prepared pan.

Smooth the batter out flat

This cake roll batter is so full of air you’ll see it’s not very runny. You’ll need to help push it to the corners and all the sides, then ensure it’s evenly flattened out as much as possible before baking.

Note: This cake will bake very quickly because it is so thin. That’s why it’s essential to level the batter out before it’s baked- this cake won’t have time to self-level as it bakes in the oven.

A freshly baked pink sponge cake just removed from the oven.

Now, generously dust the warm cake with powdered sugar.

Someone is dusting a sponge cake with powdered sugar.

Run a butterknife around the edges of the pan to loosen the cake. Place a clean tea towel over the top.

Someone covers a cake dusted in powdered sugar with a tea towel.

Place another baking sheet or a wire rack over the tea towel. Gripping the whole setup, flip it over.

Someone flips over rimmed baking sheets and cake in between to make a cake roll cake.

Remove the top baking sheet.

A rimmed baking sheet is removed showing a pink sponge cake below.

Remove the parchment paper.

A pink sponge cake has parchment paper being removed from the top.

Now, dust the cake again generously with powdered sugar again (but this is the other side)

A pink sponge cake is dusted with powdered sugar.

Using the towel, tightly roll up the cake.

Someone rolling a pink sponge cake up into a tea towel to make a cake roll cake.

leave it rolled, seam side down, on a wire rack to cool and set, about 2 hours.

A rolled up tea towel rests on a cooling rack with a roll cake inside.

While the roll cake is cooling, prepare your filling.

Here I’m whipping some cream cheese to incorporate into my chosen filling, whipped cream. This will add a touch of flavor, along with stabilizing it ( to keep its shape for several days, even in warm weather).

whopped cream cheese sits in teh bottom of a stand mixer bowl with a whisk.

Next, I slowly added the heavy cream and sugar while mixing. I had to scrape the bowl to ensure all the cream cheese was fully incorporated. Then I whipped it up just like regular whipped cream, to a stiff peak stage.

Cream and sugar are slowly added to the bowl of a stand mixer.

After the cake has cooled completely, you should be able to unroll it without cracking! It’s so amazing.

A baker unrolls a cake roll cake from a tea towel.

Your cake should look something like this.

Now spread your desired filling (here its my sweetened whipped cream) as close to the edges as possible.

Whipped cream is spread over a pink cake roll cake.

Add any other filling options you like! Here I’m adding chopped strawberries.

A person sprinkles chopped strawberries over whipped cream spread onto a pink cake roll cake.

Carefully but tightly, roll the cake back up. I didn’t roll mine as tightly as I could have, so it slumped a little. No big deal.

A baker rolls up freshly chopped strawberreis and cream into a strawberry cake roll cake.

I used the excess sweetened whipped cream filling and piped some simple decorations on the top. I like to use cookies and fresh fruit to decorate/garnish the finished cake.

Looking down on a strawberry cream cake roll wile someone pipes mroe fancy cream decoratoins on top.

So pretty! Perfect for spring (or this happened to be for Easter dinner)

Looking down on a strawberry cream cake roll showing strawberries and pink macarons as garnishes on top.

Here is the finished cake with some other pretty snacks for a springtime luncheon.

A strawberry cake roll is nestled with mellon ball skewers and fruity drinks.

Strawberry Cream Cake Roll (from box cake mix)

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Author: Emily
Total Time: 2 hours 26 minutes
Yield: 8 servings 1x

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Description

The secret to an EASY cake roll cake is to simply alter how the eggs are incorporated into a regular store-bought box cake mix, turning it into a sponge cake. Smoothing out the batter in the rimmed baking sheet before baking will ensure the cake bakes evenly, making for a beautiful and easy cake roll. Simply bake, roll, cool, fill, and roll again.

Instructions

Bake the Cake

Set your oven to bake at 350 degrees F. Prepare a rimmed baking sheet by lining the bottom with parchment paper.
In a medium-size mixing bowl, whip egg whites to stiff peaks and set aside.
In a separate mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks until smooth and lightened in color. Whisk in the vegetable oil and water until smooth.
Measure out 1 and 1/2 cups of cake mix. Sift the cake mix into the egg yolk mixture and whisk to combine.
Whisk in approximately 1 cup of whipped egg whites to the cake batter mixture. Set the whisk aside. Using a spatula, gently fold in the rest of the egg white to the batter until fully incorporated and no white streaks remain.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared baking sheet. Smooth out evenly. Bake for 10-11 minutes (or just until the cake springs back when gently pressed with a finger) and remove.

Roll the cake

While the cake is still warm, generously dust the entire surface with powdered sugar.
Gently run a butter knife along the edges of the cake to loosen it from the sides. Lay a clean kitchen towel over the top of the cake. Place another baking sheet or large cutting board over the top and invert, removing the parchment paper from the cake.
Generously dust the cake again with powdered sugar. Tightly roll up the cake from the short side to the short side with the towel. Set the towel-wrapped cake aside on a cooling rack to cool completely, for about 2 hours.

Fill the cake (Here I am using Stabilized Whipped Cream)

Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add the cream and sugar to the cream cheese and continue to beat until fully incorporated. (You may need to scrape the bowl with a spatula.) Beat in the vanilla, then beat the mixture on high until whipped and light, about 3-5 minutes.
Spread evenly onto the unrolled cake, all the way to the edges. (Optional: set aside some whipped cream to pipe decorations on the cake later.) Sprinkle chopped strawberries evenly over the filling. Tightly roll the cake back up and set it on a serving dish. Dust the top with powdered sugar. Slice and serve.

Notes

You can use any type of filling or frosting for this roll cake- for example, you can use strawberry jam and make it a jelly roll cake. Or fill it with store-bought whipped topping if it’s more convenient than the stabilized whipped cream I used in the recipe above.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooling time: 2 hours
Cook Time: 11 minutes
Category: Dessert
Method: Bake
Cuisine: American

Cake Roll Cake Recipe (with easy cake mix)