Ginny's Special Request - Pumpkin Roll

Many, many moons ago, when I was just a teenager, I attended an event at a friend's home and fell in love with one of her mother's desserts. It was creamy, rich, and the epitome of autumn baking. Pumpkin Roll. I had never had such a thing roll across my tongue before, and I begged for the recipe. This may actually be the first recipe I had in my own personal collection.

I made batch after batch throughout the next decade (ok, more than a decade) and it became the most requested recipe in my rapidly growing repertoire. I can't say for sure what the reason behind it was, but I haven't made this in quite a long time. Pumpkin roll burnout? Maybe.... In any case, while we were planning the onslaught of recipes that we planned to make while Ginny was here, this came out as a special request from the lady, herself.

"Can we please make pumpkin roll?"

Wow. Well, YEAH! Of course we can!

Did you know there is a pumpkin shortage this year? That's what my local grocers tell me. It was actually fairly difficult to come by a can of pumpkin pie filling for a little while there, but I got it together and sure enough, we had pumpkin roll. For breakfast.

This is not a difficult recipe, by any means. I think that I must have some particular ways in which I coax and soothe the ingredients after rolling these out in such quantity over the years, that it always just sees to come out better from my kitchen. I even have one tea towel and one jelly roll pan that are reserved strictly for this purpose. When those two items finally see their last days, I don't know what I'll do.

So, if you are looking for a fantastically seasonal dessert (or breakfast) that is bound to satisfy anyone's palate, give this one a shot. It is a tried and true favorite in our house and many others.

Beth’s Pumpkin Roll
Cake:

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2/3 – 1 cup pumpkin pie filling
1 tsp baking soda
2 TB cinnamon
¾ cup flour

Beat eggs; gradually add sugar. Blend in remaining ingredients. Spread onto a greased, wax-paper lined cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 12 – 14 minutes. Turn out onto a tea towel covered in powdered sugar.

Roll lengthwise and let cool. (Yes, roll it up on the towel and put the whole thing in the fridge for a few hours.)

Filling:
1 – 8 ounce package cream cheese
1-2 teaspoons vanilla
2 TB oleo
1 cup powdered sugar

Cream all ingredients together. Carefully unroll the chilled log. Spread the filling generously on the inside of the log. Re-roll and chill again.Slice and serve.

If you chill it for a few hours after filling it, you will have a nice, consistent roll with a firmly set cream layer. We weren't that patient, and we ate the gorgeous thing immediately after filling it, so the picture above makes it look a little gooey. It still tasted great, you can take my word for that. Enjoy!