Pandan Swiss Roll with Shredded Coconut Filling

This is the recipe you should be familiar with if you have ever read or tried my pandan crepe recipe (kueh Dadar or kueh ketayap). The green exterior of crepe which is made of batter colored with natural pandan juice extracted from pandan leaves.

I'm going to turn this dessert—pandan crepes—into a Swiss roll cake today. Instead of making crepe batter, I'm going to make a coconut milk pandan chiffon cake and wrap it with coconut that has been sautéed with Gula Melaka, or Malaysian palm sugar. There is no artificial flavoring or coloring used to this pandan Swiss roll cake; it is created with pure pandan leaves juice. The pandan Swiss roll has a spongy, moist, and soft texture.  It rolls up neatly and effortlessly. Every bite is so moist.

The blending flavour of coconut, Gula Melaka and Pandan is refreshing with rich texture. With my technique of making the egg white meringue in cake batter, with the right oven temperature and timing, the cake can be baked in a pretty towel like cake combined with fluffy pastel green frosting and gula Melaka shredded coconut. It is incredibly appetizing and irresistible.

I am using a square pan (30cm x 30cm x 3cm) to make this chiffon cake. Line it with silicon paper. There are a few notes on ingredients. The eggs need to be at room temperature so they will reach their full volume when beaten. Whisk egg whites over low speed until large bubbles are formed. Add sugar gradually, whisk until stiff peak. At stiff peak, the peaks will point straight up and hold. Unlike making classic chiffon cake, I do not use cream of tartar or vinegar for the egg white.

For the Shredded coconut with Gula Melaka and methods, you may refer to my pandan crepe cake recipe.

To give this Swiss roll a fancier look, I topped it with pandan whipped cream frosting and added some delectable Pandan Ondeh-Ondeh for decoration. They are optional in some way; you don’t have to do it.

To make the pandan frosting, I am using Daily whipped cream, make sure that your cup or metal mixer bowl, beater, and whipped cream must be cold. 

 

INGREDIENTS

Pandan chiffon cake

4 egg yolks

1 egg

20g caster sugar

1/8 tsp salt

50g corn oil

40ml thick coconut milk

50ml pandan juice (25g Pandan Leaves + 90ml Water)

100g plain flour

10g corn flour

4 egg whites

80g caster sugar

Pandan Whipped Cream Frosting

200g Dairy Whipping Cream (Cold)

20g Caster Sugar

6g Concentrated Pandan Juice

Filling

Gula Melaka shredded coconut

Decoration

Some pandan ondeh-ondeh

 

METHOD

1. Put the cut pandan leaves into a blender together with water and blend away. Strain it with a fine strainer and squeeze it out.

2. Place the egg yolks (along with the additional whole egg) in one bowl and the egg whites in another.

3. In a mixing bowl, add in the cooking oil and coconut cream, sugar, and salt whisk until well combined. Add the pandan juice, whisk well again. Sift in the flour to the pandan mixture and gently fold in until there is no more dry flour. Avoid overmixing.

4. Add in the egg yolks and the additional whole egg to the pandan batter, whisk until well combined.

5. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites at medium speed until they are big bubbles. Gradually beat in the sugar in 3 additions and beat until almost stiff peaks form. Once the egg white or meringue is thick and glossy you can turn the mixer off and check it by turning the bowl upside down. As soon as you see no droop, stop.

6. With a spatula or wire whisk, gently fold the egg whites (in three additions) into the pandan batter just until blended (being careful not to deflate the batter).

7. Pour into the baking tray lining with silicon paper evenly. Flatten and smooth it evenly with spatula or scraper. Then lightly tap it a few times. Bake it at preheated170°C for 20 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

8. Immediately removed the cake from the tray while hot. Place it on a wire rack.

9. Cover with another silicon paper on top and place a cutting board or baking tray on top, flip it over. Remove the silicon paper and place another clean silicon paper. Put the cutting board or tray on top, flip it again. Let it cool for 10 to 15 minutes until it is slightly warm.

10. Peel off another side of the silicon paper with cake skin, cut off the surrounding edges.

11. Now ready the Gula Melaka shredded coconut. Make into a log shape on a baking paper , roll tight to shape. Keep it in the fridge. (You can do it ahead of time for this step).

12. To prepare the pandan frosting. Combine the COLD daily whipped cream with sugar and pandan juice extract in a mixing bowl. Beat at low speed until small stiff peak when lifted. Check it by turning the bowl upside down, stable without drooping. Keep it in the fridge while waiting for the cake to be baked.

13. Pour and spread the pandan frosting on the cake (reserve some for later use) with a spatula. Spread thick at the roll upside and thinner spread at the other end. Leave a border of about 1 cm on each side of the cake.

14.Place the shredded coconut log, spread pandan frosting covering the coconut filling.

15. Roll the cake up using the end part of the silicon paper to help you push the cake over. Pull the silicon paper underneath while pressing with the dough cutter, help to make the cake round. Cover well and keep in the fridge for 1 to 2 hours or overnight.

16. Placed the reserve pandan frosting in a piping bag and pipe on to the top of the Swiss roll and decorate with some pandan ondeh-ondeh.