Almond Sponge Roll Recipe

Almond Sponge Roll: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). Place almonds on a baking sheet and bake about 5-7 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Remove from oven and let cool. Then place the nuts in a small food processor, along with 1 tablespoon of the flour, and process until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons of cake flour. Increase the oven temperature to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Butter, or spray with a non-stick spray, a 17 x 12 inch (43 x 30 cm) baking pan, line with parchment, and then butter and flour the paper (or spray with a vegetable/flour spray).

Meanwhile, while the eggs are cold, separate two of the eggs, placing the yolks in one bowl and the whites in another. To the two yolks, add the additional yolk, and the two remaining eggs. Cover with plastic wrap and bring the eggs to room temperature (about 30 minutes). Then place the yolks and whole eggs in your mixing bowl, fitted with the paddle attachment (can use a hand mixer). Add 1/2 cup (100 grams) white sugar and beat on high speed for about 5 minutes, or until pale, thick and fluffy. (When you slowly raise the beaters the batter will fall back into the bowl in slow ribbons.) Beat in the vanilla extract. Sift half the almond/flour mixture over the egg mixture and gently fold in with a rubber spatula. Sift the remaining almond/flour mixture over the batter and fold in.

In a clean mixing bowl, with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and continue beating until soft peaks form. Beat in the remaining one tablespoon white sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.  Gently fold a little of the whites into the batter to lighten it, and then fold in the rest. Evenly pour the batter into the pan, smoothing the top. Bake for 7 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted will come out clean. Immediately upon removing from the oven invert the cake onto a clean dish towel sprinkled with confectioners sugar. Carefully remove the parchment paper, sprinkle the cake lightly with powdered sugar, and roll up the sponge, with the towel, while it is still hot and pliable. Place on a wire rack to cool. 

Raspberry Cream Filling: Cover and chill the bowl and whisk in the freezer for about 15 minutes.Then beat the  cream until soft peaks form. Add the jam and sugar and beat just until stiff peaks form. Unroll the sponge, spread with the filling, and reroll. Transfer to a serving platter, cover, and chill in the fridge for a few hours. Just before serving, dust with confectioners sugar. Makes about 6 servings.