VEGAN PUMPKIN ROLL

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 15″ x 10″ jelly roll pan with parchment paper leaving an inch or two on the short ends for lifting the cake out later. Lightly oil the sides.

In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, pumpkin spice and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the plant-based milk, pumpkin purée, maple syrup, oil and vanilla. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients, stirring just until combined.

Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan, smoothing out the batter to the edges. Bake in the preheated oven for 11-13 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or with a few cooked crumbs on it.

As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, dust lightly with confectioners’ sugar and cover the entire tray in aluminum foil, sealing the sides. Let come down to room temperature before frosting.

Sift the flour into a medium bowl. Pour in the cold milk, whisking constantly. Pour through a fine mesh sieve into a small pot and place over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Add the brown sugar. Once the mixture thickens and is bubbling, cook another 2 minutes stirring constantly. Do not under-cook or the frosting will taste like flour and will not thicken enough.

Pour into a bowl and place plastic wrap directly over the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool completely to room temperature. You can place it in the fridge, but it needs to be room temperature when it’s time to make the frosting.

In a stand-mixer with whisk attachment, beat the room temperature vegan butter on high for 5 minutes, scraping down the sides as necessary. Beat in the vanilla extract. Reduce the speed to medium, and add the cooled flour mixture a spoonful at a time. Once it’s all added, beat on high for about 5 minutes or until light, fluffy and silky. It will have the consistency of a thick, satiny whipped cream.

Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Set aside.

In a small skillet, whisk together all of the ingredients except for the pecans over medium heat. Once bubbling, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 1 minute. Add in the pecans, stirring well to coat, cooking for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. Spread the pecans out on the prepared baking sheet and let cool completely. Break apart once cool. Roughly chop half of them for sprinkling on the cake.

Carefully spread ¾ of the frosting evenly over the cake within 1 inch of the sides. Starting at the short end of the cake, roll the cake over the frosting firmly but gently. Keep rolling, slowly releasing the parchment paper as you go and using it to help roll the log over and down. When you get to the end, roll the log onto its seam and release the parchment paper. Roll in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 2-3 hours or overnight so that the cake and frosting firm up. If desired, place the rest of the frosting into a piping bag with a star tip to pipe a design on the top of the cake just before serving. Garnish with the candied pecans.