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This melt-in-your-mouth fluffy and moist Blackberry Lemon Cake Roll (a.k.a. Swiss Roll) is easier than you think! The cake batter has just 4 ingredients and the whipped blackberry frosting is ridiculously simple to make.
This cake only looks like it took forever but really it has simple ingredients, comes together quickly and is definitely a show-stopping cake! Take a bite of this Blackberry Lemon Cake Roll and you’ll have no words, only sound effects…. mmm…
Watch the Blackberry Lemon Cake Roll Video:
The combination of blackberries and lemon just makes my mouth water. P.S. You can make this cake roll a day in advance, cover and refrigerate and it will be just as good the next day. Hooray for make-ahead desserts!
That topping looks so lovely but it’s the easiest part of the cake!!
Tools You Will Need (affiliate):
Flour Sifter or fine mesh sieve
18×13 (half sheet) rimmed baking sheet
parchment paper to line baking sheet
clean tea towel or linen towel
flexible spatula
High powered stand mixer*
Piping Bag and Large Open Star Wilton 1M Tip
*If using a good electric hand mixer instead of a stand mixer, add 2 min to eggs/sugar mixing time.
The Ingredients are surprisingly really simple but the results are awesome!
⬇️Print-Friendly Blackberry Lemon Cake Roll Recipe:
Blackberry Lemon Cake Roll (VIDEO)
Ingredients
Sponge Cake Ingredients:
- 5 large eggs, room temp
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
For the Lemon Syrup:
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 4 Tbsp fresh lemon juice, from 1 med/large lemon
For the Blackberry Frosting:
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 8 Tbsp 113 grams unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 6 oz blackberries, chopped (reserving 6 whole berries to garnish)
Optional Garnish:
- 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream, chilled
- 1 Tbsp powdered sugar
- 2 lemon slices, cut into triangles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line the bottom of an 18x13 baking sheet with parchment paper (do not grease).
- Add 5 eggs to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment and beat on high speed 1 min, or until foamy. Gradually add sugar and beat on high 7 min. It will be thick, fluffy and tripled in volume**
- Whisk together flour and baking powder and sift into egg batter one third at a time, folding to incorporate between each addition and scraping from the bottom to catch hidden flour pockets. Stop mixing when you no longer see streaks of flour.
- Transfer to lined baking sheet and bake right away at 350˚F for 13-15 min (mine took 15 min) or until top is golden. Remove from oven and right away run a thin edged spatula or knife around edges of your cake to loosen from the pan. While cake is hot***, invert cake face down onto a clean, dry linen towel, remove parchment paper then roll cake into the towel. Let cool to room temp (30 min - 1hr) in a draft free room.
- Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for lemon syrup (water, sugar, lemon juice), stir to dissolve sugar and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine 8 oz softened cream cheese, 8 Tbsp softened butter and 1 cup powdered sugar. Beat together starting on low speed to incorporate sugar, then turn the mixer up to high speed for 2-3 min or until whipped, white and fluffy, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add coarsely chopped blackberries and stir into cream with mixer on low, just until incorporated.
- Carefully Unroll cake and loosen from the towel. Brush the top evenly with your lemon syrup. Put dollops of blackberry frosting over the surface and spread evenly. Roll the cake tightly in the same direction you rolled it the first time. Slice off the edges if desired and dust generously with powdered sugar.
- For the topping, beat together 3/4 cup heavy cream with 1 Tbsp powdered sugar for 2 min on high speed until fluffy and spreadable. Transfer to a large piping bag with a large open star tip and pipe 6 flowers over the top, placing a fresh blackberry and lemon triangle into the center of each one.
Notes
***To prevent cracks in cake roll, it should be rolled in the linen towel right after it comes out of the oven.
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
This sponge cake base in this blackberry lemon cake roll is amazing! It takes on moisture really well and won’t get soggy for several days. Hungry for More? Check out all of my many cake recipes using this easy European sponge cake base.
Ready, Set,… Bake!! Enjoy this my friends! 🙂
Can the blackberry lemon roll be made ahead and frozen?
Hi Janet, I usually freeze just the sponge portion for up to 3 months (I actually have one in the freezer right now, rolled into a log into a sheet of parchment paper). I haven’t tried freezing this assembled but I do think it would work well. I would wait to add the powdered sugar, whipped cream topping and fresh blackberries/lemon until the day you are serving. I hope that helps
It’s 🌠🌠🌠🌠🌠 and so yam
I’m so happy you enjoyed that Tamara!
Where is the link to the weighted measures for the recipe…I can’t find it! Want to make this for my hubby who loves blackberries!
Hi Donna, We are currently working on adding metric measurements to all of our recipes but it is taking some time as we have to add them one at a time. Thank you so much for being patient! In the meantime, check out our post on measuring which should help
Hi Natasha
I always enjoyed your cake recipes and most of them have come out so perfect.terrific!! Your explanation is spot on.👍👍keep it up!
Summer
You’re so nice! Thank you Summer! I’m so happy you are enjoying our recipes!
First time making this kind of dough. Used 5 large eggs, 3/4 cup of sugar, 3/4 cup of King Arthur flour, plus baking powder. Followed the recipe very thoroughly. Baked for 15 minutes and added 2 more. Have an omelet smell :-/. What could be the problem? What flour do you use? At this point I am hesitating if I should go ahead and finish making it or start over. Will let my roll cool and then decide.
Hi Natalia, Did you use the right size eggs? Any other changes made that we can try to trouble shoot with?
Natasha, never mind! After it cooled down, the egg smell was gone. Everything turned out perfect. Thank you for the wonderful recipe! 5 stars!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review!
Hi Natasha. Do you think a 17×11 pan would work?
Hi Edith, Hmmmm, I think that could still work but it will definitely fill up your pan. Hopefully it won’t overflow. It might be safer to scale down to 4 eggs. If you experiment, let me know how it goes.
Hi Natasha,
Should this roll be refrigerated before serving for the better taste?
BTW, I love your recipes
Hi Julia, I have refrigerated it overnight and served the following day. It’s best enjoyed within a day but it will stay good in the fridge up to 3 days or depending on how fresh your berries are.
I made this last night yummyyyyyy.
Perfect like always. All your recipe are amazing
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review Marimar!
Made this tonight for my husband’s birthday. Didnt roll as pretty, but a little decorating and it was stunning. It tasted fantastic, even the kids enjoyed it (4,3,&2!) definitely a keeper!
That is the best when kids love what we moms make. That’s so great Maria!
Making tonight again for the grandparents, now that I know what to expect I can’t wait to dive into it tonight!!
That’s so great!
Is this cake freezable?
Hi Laura, I usually freeze just the sponge portion for up to 3 months (I actually have one in the freezer right now, rolled into a log into a sheet of parchment paper). I haven’t tried freezing this assembled but I do think it would work well. I would wait to add the powdered sugar, whipped cream topping and fresh blackberries/lemon until the day you are serving. I hope that helps
Would blueberries work as well? They’re about to be farm picked fresh down here in Florida. Thank you for the video as well – I’m confident I can do this!
Hi Holly! I think blackberries or raspberries are best since they break up easily and still look good in the frosting. The third best option would be diced strawberries and you can garnish with strawberry quarters over the cream puffs on top and it would be lovely
This looks like the perfect antidote to cabin fever. However, I saw that you do not grease the parchment paper. When I make my chocolate Yule log for Christmas, I always grease the parchment paper then put the baked cake on a linen towel dusted with confectioners sugar. The one time I forgot to grease the paper, the cake stuck to it. I was wondering why you say not to grease the paper.
Thank you for sharing that with us!
I’m eleven years old and I absolutely LOVE making food and desserts! I made this fanamnable recipe for my mom’s birthday and It turned out great! I felt like I couldn’t stop eating it and every bite tasted HEAVENLY!!!!
Thanks soooo much for this terrific recipe Mrs. Natasha!!
Wow Elissa! Thank you! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe! Sounds like you found a few new favorites on our blog!
Love this recipe it is wonderful
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
What do you think about covering this with a white chocolate ganache?
Hi Jane, that sounds lovely, I think it will be beautiful however have not tried it for flavor. If you experiment, I would love to know how you like that!
Instead of all purpose flour, would gluten free flour be a good alternative?
Hi Lisa, I haven’t tested that to advise. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
How would you adjust recipe for standard jellyroll pan that’s 15×10? Hoping to make this for a coworkers birthday tomorrow ❤
Hi Krystal, a 12×15 may be a little small for this cake especially if it doesn’t have tall walls. I would be worried it might overwhelm that pan size.
Hi Natasha!
Love your recipes! You’re super cute and fun to watch; especially when you’re doing the taste test! Lol! 😉
Do you use up all the glaze liquid for this and your other Swiss roll recipes? In other words do you brush the cake with the glaze to coat and then have some left over or do you use all the liquid?
I always have about 1/2 of the liquid glaze left, just bc I worry if I use it all on the cake it would get soggy!
Thanx👍
Hi and thank you for the wonderful feedback! 🙂 I do usually use the syrup up but you can use it to taste – it will still work without using the full amount 🙂
Hi, Natasha!! I love this recipe!!!! I made it 3 or 4 times, and it was really tasty, fluffy, really good. I do the dusting the towel with powdered sugar tip and it was perfect! I love all your recipes. Chicken fritters are a family favorite now!!
lI love that you found some favorites on the blog!! Thank you for the great review, Alejandra!
Hi . I failed epically with this . It smelled and tasted like cooked eggs when I took it out of the oven and tried it. I am not sure what happened . Used the correct ingredients and timed the beating as well . I always love your recipes so I was surprised!
Hi Heidi. Did you use the right size eggs? Any other changes made that we can try to trouble shoot with?
I used large eggs . Not sure what the issue was . I kept the yummy filling to improvise with .
Perhaps you made the same mistake I did. I whipped up the eggs and sugar and threw it in the oven to bake. I left out the flour mixture 🤦🏻♀️. Late night
Did you whip your eggs for 1 min before adding the sugar for 7 min longer? I made a similar mistake with other recipes. So simple yet so important.
The BlackBerry lemon roll w as s a big hit! I was wondering what do you think of s pineapple mango roll? Any suggestions would be appreciated
Hi Melissa, I have a mango cake but haven’t tried that combination in a cake roll, but it sure sounds good!