Pumpkin Roll Recipe

Several years ago, at my dad's company Christmas party, his boss' wife made something called a pumpkin roll. It was so delicious that my mom asked for the recipe and tucked it away in a cabinet. I don't remember when it was dug out, but it was and I was the one to bake it. I had no idea what I had just gotten myself into.

Everyone loved it. (Because it is FREAKING DELICIOUS.) My dad and I baked at least 3 or 4 every holiday season for 3 or 4 years straight. I had people asking for them at Easter. (WTH, family? Eat your Peeps and be quiet.) I had a cousin hijack my aunt's cell phone last Thanksgiving to ask me where his pumpkin roll was. Someone else had made it and it wasn't as good as mine. I don't do anything special to them so I think their issues are psychological.

Anyway, on with the recipe! We're gonna do this Alton Brown style, but without all the scientific info.

The dry team

• 1 cup sugar (I think I normally do 3/4 of a cup, though.)
• 3/4 cup all-all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
  
  

The wet team

• 3 eggs
• 2/3 cup of pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  
  

For the filling

You don't need this stuff right now but I'd go ahead and take the cream cheese out to soften.

• 8oz. softened cream cheese
• 4 tablespoons butter or margarine
  
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Other things you need because this thing is involved

• A mixer
  
• A 10 x 15in. jelly roll pan (I used our cookie sheet and it worked fine.)
• A clean kitchen towel
• Wax paper
• Crisco or another nonstick spray

Let's get cooking!

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees.

Start by mixing the sugar and eggs. Once you have that, add in the pumpkin and lemon juice. Yum.

In a separate bowl, combine all of your dry ingredients.

Mix it up by gradually adding the dry to the wet. Adding it gradually is more to avoid having a flour mess all over yourself. Now it's yum for real.

Spray your pan with Crisco (I'm sure you don't have to but I do out of paranoia) and line it with wax paper. Spray the wax paper with Crisco, spread your mixture evenly in the pan, and bake for about 15 minutes.

Once it's done, take it out and let it cool for another 10-15min. While that's cooling, roll out your kitchen towel and sprinkle it with powdered sugar.

Lay the pumpkin roll on the towel, wax paper side up. Start peeling the wax paper away. If you used enough Crisco and the cake is cool enough, it should come right off. If it's a little difficult to get off, let it cool a little more. If it's still difficult to get off, I have no idea what you did and I don't want credit for this recipe. (But really, I don't know what to tell you.)

Sprinkle a little powdered sugar on top of it and roll it up with the towel inside. I know, it's crazypants. The first time my dad told me to do that I was like, "Um, no." But do it. And then let it cool in the fridge while you make the filling.

Start by mixing the butter and cream cheese together. Once that's mixed, add in the powdered sugar (gradually to avoid a mess!) and vanilla. Mix it until it's smooth and creamy, like the picture. I almost feel like you could make a little less filling and be ok, like maybe take out 1/4 of all the ingredients.

Once the cake part is cooled, take it out and unroll it. Spread the filling inside. This part can be really messy and I don't like it. (On the upside, you get to lick this yummy filling off of your fingers!)

Roll it up, sans towel, and you have a pumpkin roll! I like to freeze mine before cutting because it helps them stay together a little better. (These freeze so well. You can make multiples at Thanksgiving and freeze the remainders until Christmas and they're just as good as the day you made them.)

Cut into 1/4-1/2in. slices and enjoy!