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    Home » Recipes » Dessert

    Pumpkin Roll

    Published: September 29, 2019 · Updated: December 5, 2020 · By: Krissy · 42 Comments
    This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    how to make the best Pumpkin Roll
    how to make the best Pumpkin Roll

    This delicious Pumpkin Roll recipe combines moist pumpkin spice cake and a secret ingredient cream cheese filling. You'll love my easy no-mess rolling tips!

    entire Pumpkin Roll where you can see the end

    Most everyone is familiar with Libby's pumpkin roll. It's the gold standard of pumpkin roll cake recipes.

    You know I love to take the best classic recipes and make them my own. I made a few little tweaks to the recipe to really make this pumpkin cream cheese roll beyond amazing, including a secret ingredient in the filling that makes all the difference.

    Also, I really hate to use a kitchen towel to make Swiss roll cakes, so read on to find out how to simplify the rolling process, leave out the towel, and make for really easy clean up!

    How to make the cake:

    1. First step is to bake the cake. The batter for this pumpkin spice roll is very wet. You'll need to spread it across the base of your jelly roll pan and it will be a very thin layer.
    2. I love to top the cake with a layer of nuts. The crunch is the best part! If you have nut allergy concerns, you can omit the nuts or replace with pumpkin seeds.
    3. The cake should only take about 15 minutes or less to bake. While it's in the oven, make the cream cheese filling.
    4. As soon as that cake comes out of the oven, you'll need to roll it up so that it cools in the rolled shape.
    5. Once the cake is cool, you can spread the filling on top, then roll it back up. You will need to then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour. This will make slicing a breeze and it will hold it's shape fabulously!
    how to bake a Pumpkin Roll process photos

    How to roll a pumpkin roll:

    If you're looking for an easy pumpkin roll recipe, you've found it.

    I've never liked swiss roll recipes that tell me to roll the cake up in a towel. Call me crazy, but even if a towel is straight out of the washing machine, I never consider it 100% clean. At least, not enough to press against my food.

    Also, if you use a clean, crisp white kitchen towel, prepare to never have it look that good again if you wrap it around a moist pumpkin cake.

    The trick is to use parchment paper!

    You bake the cake right on the parchment, roll it up in the parchment, and then peel it right off the parchment for the final roll. No mess. No fuss.

    The trick to rolling this pumpkin Swiss roll to to just move slowly and carefully. It may split a little as you can see in my photos, but it will all work out in the end!

    Pumpkin Roll process photos with filling

    Freezing directions:

    This cake makes a great make ahead fall dessert.

    To freeze, just wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze whole.

    Be sure to allow it to thaw fully before slicing and then you can easily slice and serve the chilled cake.

    one slice of Pumpkin Roll with cream cheese filling

    If you love pumpkin cake recipes as much as I do, you might also want to try my Pumpkin Cupcakes, Layered Pumpkin Cake, or my Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bundt Cake!

    entire Pumpkin Roll where you can see the end

    Pumpkin Roll

    This delicious Pumpkin Roll recipe combines moist pumpkin spice cake and a secret ingredient cream cheese filling. You'll love my easy no-mess rolling tips!
    4.97 from 27 votes
    Print Pin Rate SaveSaved!
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 20 minutes
    Cook Time: 13 minutes
    Total Time: 33 minutes
    Scale: 12 servings
    Recipe Created By: Krissy Allori

    Ingredients

    CAKE:

    • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
    • ½ teaspoon baking powder
    • ½ teaspoon baking soda
    • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 3 large eggs (room temperature)
    • 1 cup granulated sugar
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • ⅔ cup pumpkin puree
    • 1 cup walnuts (chopped)

    FILLING:

    • 8 ounces cream cheese (softened)
    • ½ cup butter (softened)
    • 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
    • 1 tablespoon orange zest
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • Powdered sugar (optional for decoration)

    Instructions

    To make the cake:

    • Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a 15x10-inch jelly-roll pan with parchment paper.
    • In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Set aside.
      sprinkling nuts on Pumpkin spice Roll batter
    • In a separate large bowl, beat together eggs, granulated sugar, and vanilla until combined. Mix in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.
    • Bake for 13 to 15 minutes in preheated oven, or until top of cake springs back when touched. While the cake is cooking, start making the filling.
      freshly baked Pumpkin Roll cake
    • When the cake is done cooking, with cake still on parchment paper, immediately roll up the cake and parchment together while the cake is hot, starting with the narrow end. Cool on a wire rack.
      rolling a hot Pumpkin spice Roll with parchment

    To make the filling:

    • In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add powdered sugar, orange zest, and vanilla extract and mix until smooth, scraping as needed.

    To assemble cake:

    • Carefully unroll cake. Gently spread filling over cake.
      spreading cream cheese filling on a Pumpkin nut Roll
    • Reroll cake while peeling away the parchment paper as you roll.
      rolling a Pumpkin Roll with cream cheese filling
    • Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour.
      Pumpkin Roll that has been wrapped in plastic wrap
    • To serve, slice with a serrated edge knife. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

    Notes

    • If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes. If using a stone or ceramic pan, bake time will take longer.
    • You may also use a kitchen towel lined with powdered sugar to roll the cake, but I just think parchment paper is the easiest and cleanest method.
    • Try your best to prevent cake from splitting as your roll, but if it does, it will still turn out!
    • If you have nut allergy concerns, you can omit the nuts or replace with pumpkin seeds.

    NUTRITION INFORMATION

    Calories: 376kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 94mg | Sodium: 244mg | Potassium: 142mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 33g | Vitamin A: 2685IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 1mg
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    pumpkin spice roll on platter with two pieces on plate

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Judy

      November 23, 2022 at 3:15 pm

      Well the parchment paper rolling didn’t work for me. It tore badly and I was very careful. ☹️ I had high hopes.
      Didn’t rate it because I haven’t tasted it yet.

      Reply
    2. Rae

      October 27, 2022 at 8:44 pm

      This is such a wonderful recipe and it works great for gluten free substitutions. I’ve made 8 batches of this recipe in different variations and each time was a huge success people didn’t even realize it was gluten free!

      Reply
    3. Laurie Burgoyne

      October 21, 2022 at 5:09 pm

      5 stars
      I made this last week, everyone loved it. I made another one tonight, no orange rind so I added some honey whiskey and both times I used mascarpone instead of cream cheese. Awesome, thank you

      Reply
    4. Cindy

      October 13, 2022 at 7:31 pm

      Could you make some of your yummy dessert more diabetic friendly, as we all should watch our diets, plus husband is diabetic, but loves to eat!

      Reply
      • Krissy

        October 21, 2022 at 4:24 am

        I haven't experimented cooking with sugar substitutes and baking is more of a science than an art. I know there are a ton of keto dessert recipes that are diabetic friendly.

        Reply
    5. Doesn't matter

      October 03, 2022 at 11:12 am

      4 stars
      I thought I messed up because it said Mix in eggs after you made the flour mixture, so, if you could be a little clearer with your words that would be great. Overall, really yummy!

      Reply
      • Krissy

        October 05, 2022 at 5:49 am

        You're right! I'm sorry that was confusing. I polished up the recipe to make it more clear. Thanks for letting me know!

        Reply
      • Britta

        October 18, 2022 at 6:52 am

        5 stars
        Super yummy! I added a tiny splash of maple extract in the filling just to give it a little more flare. Turned out wonderful.

        Reply
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