Jenna Rae Cakes shared with us this delicious recipe for Birthday Cake Rolls from their second book Jenna Rae Cakes at Home by Ashley Kosowan and Jenna Hutchinson. For these Birthday Cake Rolls, they skip the cinnamon and swap it out for a sprinkle-filled, birthday batter filling. Hot pink birthday cake frosting and rainbow sprinkles of all shapes and sizes make these rolls out of this world!
Birthday Cake Rolls
Makes 12 rolls
Ingredients:
Birthday Cake Rolls
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour, divided
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup whole (3.25%) milk
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter
- 1½ teaspoons JRC Liquid Cake Batter or cake batter flavouring
- ¾ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
Birthday Cake Roll Filling
- ⅓ cup margarine
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon milk powder
- ¾ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 to 3 drops hot pink gel food colouring (see Baker’s Tip)
- 2 tablespoons long rainbow sprinkles
- 1 tablespoon round rainbow sprinkles
Birthday Cake Crumble
- ½ batch
Birthday Cake Icing
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 cups icing sugar
- 3 tablespoons whole (3.25%) milk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 teaspoon JRC Liquid Cake
Batter or cake batter flavouring
- 1 to 2 drops hot pink gel food colouring (see Baker’s Tip)
Garnish
- ½ cup JRC Candy Sprinkles or your favourite sprinkle mix
Directions:
Birthday Cake Rolls
- Spray a 13 × 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine approximately half of the flour, and the sugar, yeast, and salt on low speed, until just combined. Replace the whisk attachment with the dough hook attachment.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat (or in a heat-resistant bowl in the microwave), heat the milk and butter until the butter is completely melted and the temperature is between 90°F and 95°F. Whisk in the cake batter flavouring and vanilla.
- With the mixer on medium-low speed, slowly pour in the warm milk mixture, followed by the eggs. Knead until the dough starts to come together. Increase the speed to medium. Gradually add the remaining flour. The dough should start to pull away from the sides of the bowl. If the dough still seems too wet, add another ¼ to ½ cup flour, ¼ cup at a time. Continue kneading the dough for 6 to 8 minutes or until it is shiny and unified and a gluten window has formed.
- Spray a medium bowl with cooking spray. Transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel. Let rest in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Birthday Cake Roll Filling
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the margarine, granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, milk powder, vanilla, and salt on low speed for 30 seconds to combine. Scrape the bowl. Whip on high speed for 1 minute. Add the food colouring. Whip on high for 1 minute, or until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Birthday Cake Crumble
- Prepare ½ batch of Birthday Cake Crumble.
Birthday Cake Rolls
- Uncover the dough and punch it down. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter. Use a rolling pin to roll out a rectangle about 12 by 21 inches. Use an offset spatula to spread the Birthday Cake Roll Filling evenly across the dough, leaving a ½-inch strip without filling along one of the long edges of the rectangle. Sprinkle the filling with Birthday Cake Crumble, long and round rainbow sprinkles. Starting at the long edge of the dough covered in filling, roll it into a log (see Baker’s Tip). The edge without the filling should run along the length of the log. Use a serrated knife to cut the log into 12 equal cylinders.
- Arrange the rolls in the prepared baking dish with an equal amount of space in between. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel. Let rest in a warm place until the cinnamon buns have doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the rolls for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they are golden brown and spring back when pressed lightly. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Birthday Cake Icing
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the butter on high speed for 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the icing sugar. Whip on low speed for 1 minute. Add the milk, vanilla, and cake batter flavouring. Whip on high speed for 4 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the food colouring. Whip on medium-high speed for an additional 2 minutes.
Assembly
- Use an offset spatula to evenly spread the Birthday Cake Icing over the rolls. Sprinkle with JRC Candy Sprinkles or your favourite sprinkle mix and serve immediately.
- These rolls are best enjoyed fresh. Store leftover rolls in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Baker’s Tip: Swap the hot pink gel food colouring for blue, purple, or any other colour you’d like! 2. Be careful not to roll the buns too tight. If you do, the middle will start to pop out the top of the bun while rising and baking. Gently roll the dough, without stretching it or leaving gaps between the rolls.
