Festive Chocolate Roulade With Cherries and Brandy

This sumptuous festive chocolate roulade is rich and tasty.. with just a hint of naughtiness!


You will need:
225g caster sugar
225g plain chocolate
6 eggs, separated
Jar Morello cherry jam
300g double cream
2 tbs brandy


Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line a shallow baking tin or Swiss roll tin with greaseproof paper. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water until soft and runny. Put the egg yolks into a bowl with the sugar and whisk until light and creamy. Add the chocolate and stir until evenly blended.
In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites until stiff and fluffy, but not dry. Fold in the chocolate mixture gently.. the idea being to keep lots of lovely bubbles in the egg white mixture. Bake in the pre-heated oven for about 25 minutes or until firm to the touch. Once done, remove from the oven. Place a damp tea towel over the tin and leave for a couple of hours until completely cool. The tea towel helps keep in the moisture - essential for a neat roll.
Whip the cream until it just holds its shape, add the brandy and mix. Dust a large piece of greaseproof paper with icing sugar. Turn the roulade out onto the dusted paper and peel off the paper on top. Spread t layer of the jam over the top of the sponge followed by a layer of the cream. Now comes the fun part! Starting with the long edge, carefully roll up the cake like a Swiss roll. Roll quite firmly and use the greaseproof paper to help keep even pressure. To complete, dust with a little icing sugar.


A yummy addition to any festive table. You can always leave out the brandy and kids will love it too!