Black Sesame Cake Roll

I think everyone deserves one good Halloween costume in their lifetime. Unfortunately I was a born procrastinator, so every Halloween eve you’d find me asking my mom what I was going to be and having her help me rustle up a poncho she’d gotten in Mexico and doing my hair in braids to be a Navajo woman, borrowing her Hawaii sweatshirt and lei so I could be Hawaiian, or defaulting to my Korean hanbok. Once in college a group of us got together and made Hello Kitty & friends bonnets out of felt, that was kind of cool. But I think at the age of 30 (!!) my glory year has finally come. I ordered my costume two months early, shelled out a bit of cash, and I’ve got a plan. Any Game of Thrones fans out there? I’m going to be Daenerys, and my sister, brother, and sis-in-law will be my three dragons. To be honest, I’ve never watched GoT but I love them for giving me the chance to wear a cool costume hehe. Anyone else have costume plans??

Since I’m already in that Halloween spirit, today I’m sharing a spooky treat. I got together with a group of Asian bloggers to create black sesame recipes great for Halloween or whenever. I’ve always been a fan of black sesame desserts, and I love how this one turned out: it’s a beautifully moist cake roll filled with sweet cream cheese and black sesame spread. My mama makes the yummiest pumpkin log every year and this is a variation on that. Thanks to her for her master rolling tips.

Check out the easy recipe below, and click each link to find out what delectable black sesame recipes these other awesome bloggers conjured up: (live 10/4 at 8am PST!)

Contemplating Sweets
Scratch Eats
The Missing Lokness
Pups with Chopsticks
Thirsty for Tea
What to Cook Today
Chopstick Chronicles
 

Black Sesame Cake Roll
Makes one 12-inch cake roll

Cake:

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree
• 2-3 tsp black gel food coloring

Black Sesame Spread:

• 3/4 black sesame powder
• 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp honey
• 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp corn syrup

Cream Cheese Filling:

• 1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
• 6 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

For the cake:
Preheat oven to 375F. Line a 12″x15″ rimmed baking pan with a silicon baking mat and spray both the sides of the pan and the silicon mat lightly with oil.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together until thick. Add the pumpkin puree and mix. Then stir in the flour mixture until well combined. Stir in the black gel food coloring until you reach your desired color.

Pour the batter into your pan, use a spatula to smooth and flatten in, and bake for 13-15 minutes. The cake is done if you can touch the middle with your finger and it springs back.

Loosen the cake from the sides of the pan with a small knife if needed. While the cake is still hot, gently roll it along with the silicon mat. The mat acts as a barrier so the cake doesn’t stick to itself. Let the cake cool rolled.

For the Black Sesame Spread: 
Combine the black sesame powder, honey and corn syrup, and set aside.

For the cream cheese filling:
Beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla until combined. Set aside.

To assemble:
Once completely cool, gently unroll the cake. Drizzle the sesame spread over it evenly. Then spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over top of that, leaving about an inch border around the edges. Then gently re-roll the cake and refrigerate until ready to serve. It’s easily sliced when cold, and I think it tasted best that way as well. Bon appetit!