The BEST Pumpkin Roll Recipe with step by step instructions! (2024)

A pumpkin roll is a delicious pumpkin cake filled with a smooth and creamy filling….believe me, one slice is not enough! After giving it a try, you will want to add this pumpkin roll recipe into your regular rotation. The best part is this beautiful dessert is surprisingly easy to make!

If you’re in search of another homemade recipe that serves up a mouth-watering combo of pumpkin and cream cheese flavors, you have to try our pumpkin cheesecake dip!

Thank you for stopping by today. Please check out more delicious recipes, comment and let me know how your family liked this one!

Pumpkin Roll

For an easy show-stopping dessert, you will want to make this Pumpkin Roll recipe. It looks hard to make, but really is doable.

It’s pretty much the perfect fall dessert. At our house we have a weakness for any dessert involving cream cheese frosting, so combine that with rich pumpkin flavor, and it practically disappears before my eyes.

What You Need to Make this Pumpkin Roll
Recipe

For the cake:

• Powdered sugar
• All-purpose flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Ground cinnamon
• Ground cloves
• Salt
• Granulated sugar
• Canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

For the filling:

• 8 oz. package of cream cheese
• powdered sugar
• butter
• vanilla extract

Equipment:

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• 15 x 10-inch jelly roll pan
• Towel (used to roll the cake)
• Cooking spray
• Parchment paper
• Sifter (for powder sugar)
• Large mixing bowl and mixer

How to Make a Pumpkin Roll

Just follow the step-by-step pictures for how to make a pumpkin roll cake, and you will be on your way to pumpkin heaven. Scroll down for the complete, downloadable recipe card!

First, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Then lightly spray a 15 by 10-inch jelly roll pan with cooking spray, and line the jelly roll pan with parchment paper. The cooking spray helps adhere the paper to the pan. Now give the top of the paper a coat of cooking spray.

Step by step pumpkin roll instructions

Let’s get started making this delicious pumpkin roll. First, beat eggs and sugar, add in pumpkin to create your batter. Now spread your pumpkin mixture into the prepared pan.

Sprinkle a thin, cotton kitchen towel with powdered sugar. I think a towel with little texture works best; see my tips below for more about using a cloth! Be sure to put enough powdered sugar on the towel so the cake will not stick when rolling up the cake.

Bakefor 12 to 15 minutes or until the top of cake springs back when touched. Don’t over bake. Immediately loosen and flipcake onto the prepared tea towel. Carefully peel off the paper.

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Next, simply roll the cake up in the towel.

Now refrigerate cake until cool, about an hour. While cake is cooling, prepare the filling.

How to Make The Pumpkin Roll Filling

To make the cream cheese filling, with an electric mixer beat together cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl until smooth.

After the cake has been left to cool completely, gently unroll the cake from your towel.

Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Now re-roll cake. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour.

Finally, sprinkle with powdered sugar just before serving.

My Best Pumpkin Roll Tips!

While this cake roll looks complicated, it really isn’t. Follow these tips and you will be a pro!

• Make sure you use a can of pure pumpkin puree. The ingredient list should simply say “pumpkin.” Do not get pumpkin pie filling – it has spices and other ingredients that we don’t want in this Pumpkin Roll recipe.
• Keep your pumpkin roll in the refrigerator or freezer.To store your pumpkin roll, wrap it up tightly in plastic wrap before sprinkling the powder sugar on top.
• How long does pumpkin roll last? You can refrigerate it for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. If you choose to freeze the pumpkin roll, be sure to let it thaw in the refrigerator for 1 day before serving. Dust with powder sugar (NOT granulated sugar) just before slicing and serving.
• Can you use parchment paper instead of a towel to roll up the pumpkin roll? Yes! In fact, some people think this makes it much easier.
• I prefer using a towel to roll the cake because when you dust with confectioner’s sugar, it seems to stay put better on cloth.
• Why does my pumpkin roll always crack? Don’t worry if the cake cracks a little bit, just be extra careful when you spread the cream cheese mixture. Often when you re-roll the cake, the crack will come back together. It won’t affect the flavor.
• To make the cream cheese mixture softer and easier to spread, make sure the cream cheese is room temperature.
• No need to spread the filling all the way to the edges of the cake! Leave a little room because as you roll the cake back up, it will press the cream cheese filling outward.
• Don’t use wax paper to line the pan for baking. When the wax paper is baked it will melt into the cake.
• Sprinkle cake with powdered sugar just before serving. The cake is moist and quickly absorbs the powdered sugar.
• Pumpkin rolls can be served at room temperature, but be sure to re-refrigerate it before it sits for too long. Keeping it chilled will make it slice more cleanly.
• Cool the cakes in a cool room as cakes may sweat if the kitchen is too humid. To prevent sweating you can apply a few spritzes of unflavored alcohol like vodka. This should prevent condensation/sweat from happening.
• When you cool it in the refrigerator it can chill too quickly, which can lead to the cake sweating once it is pulled out and placed at room temperature. To prevent sweating apply a few spritzes of unflavored alcohol like vodka.
• If you do not have a jelly roll pan, no worries. Substitute a jelly roll pan with an oversized sheet. Prepare the cookie sheet with parchment paper and cooking spray as you would the jelly roll pan. Spread the cake mixture out so there is still a 2-3″ margin and bake as normal.

More Pumpkin Recipes to try

• Pumpkin Sheet Cakeis a healthy low fat cake.
• Three ingredientpumpkin muffinscouldn’t be any easier.
• Pressure cooker pumpkin chocolate chip bundt cake. Yep, you can make desserts in the pressure cooker.
• This Pumpkin bread recipeis the best ever! You will never need another recipe!

If you’ve tried this pumpkin roll or any other recipe on my blog, please let me know what you thought in the comments below! I love hearing from you!

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