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The best and easiest Pumpkin Roll recipe with a moist and tender crumb, filled with smooth cream cheese frosting. I have the best trick to make this simple and completely mess-free!
Do you love pumpkin recipes? Try Pumpkin Spice Eggnog, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies, Pumpkin Snickerdoodles, or Pumpkin Cake!
Our Pumpkin Roll is No-Fuss, No-Mess, All Flavor
Our Pumpkin Roll is No-Fuss, No-Mess, All FlavorDon't be intimidated to make pumpkin roll! It's the most basic sheet cake, rolled up to look fancier than it is. And we don't mess with your Grandma's old-fashioned method of dumping the cake on a towel covered in powdered sugar –what a mess! My method is the easiest and works great every single time! If you want to take this dessert to the next level, try using homemade pumpkin purée.
How to make a Pumpkin Roll:
Prep Pan: Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a 10×15” pan with cooking spray, then line with parchment paper and leaving an extra inch of parchment paper hanging over the long sides so you can easily lift it up after it bakes. Lightly spray the parchment paper with non-stick spray.
Make Batter: Combine flour, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice in a bowl. Mix eggs, vanilla, sugar, and pumpkin in a separate bowl, until smooth. Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients, just stirring until combined.
Bake: Pour batter in prepared pan, spreading into an even layer. Bake for 13-16 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Watch it closely since every oven is different. Remove from oven. Lift the parchment paper up and place on a heat-safe flat surface. While cake is hot, start at a short end and slowly roll the cake inside the parchment paper all the way. Let cool completely on a wire cooling rack.
- Tip: It's very important to roll up the cake when it's hot from the oven, so it doesn't crack. The hot cake is soft, pliable, and will roll and set in this shape, so it doesn't crack.
Add Filling: Mix cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar together with an electric mixer until it's fluffy and smooth. Carefully unroll cooled pumpkin cake then gently smooth the filling in an even layer. Roll up the pumpkin swiss roll back up, without the parchment paper and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.
Serve: Dust the top of the pumpkin roll cake with powdered sugar, if desired. Cut into slices and serve. Keep leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Make Ahead and Freezing Instructions:
To Make Ahead: The assembled pumpkin roll with cream cheese filling can be made and refrigerated, covered, for 1-2 days. Or if you just want to make the cake part ahead of time, you can bake it, roll it in parchment paper to cool, then refrigerate it while it's rolled in the parchment paper for one day before spreading the frosting. Keep leftovers covered and in the refrigerator.
To Freeze: Wrap in plastic wrap and aluminum foil then freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw completely overnight in the refrigerator before slicing and serving.
More Fall Cake Recipes:
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Fresh Apple Cake
- Carrot Cake Loaf
- Pumpkin Cupcakes
- Pumpkin Mug Cake
- Apple Coffee Cake
- Flourless Chocolate Cake
- Gingerbread Cake
- Sticky Toffee Pudding
- Homemade Rum Cake
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Recipe
Pumpkin Roll
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 2/3 cup canned pumpkin (or homemade pumpkin puree)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Filling:
- 8 ounces cream cheese , softened
- 2 Tablespoons butter , softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup powdered sugar , plus more for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Prep Pan: Lightly grease a jelly roll pan (10 x 15'') with non stick cooking spray. Place parchment paper on top so it sticks, leaving an extra inch of parchment sticking up on both long sides of the pan so that you can easily lift the cake out after baking. Lightly grease the parchment paper.
- Dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice.
- Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, vanilla and pumpkin until smooth.
- Combine: Add dry ingredients to the bowl and stir just until combined and no dry streaks remain. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Every oven is different, so watch it closely.
- Roll: Immediately lift the payment paper and hot cake out of the pan and onto a flat (heat-safe) surface. While the cake is hot, starting at a short end, gently and slowly roll the cake (and parchment paper!) all the way up. Allow it to cool completely, on top of a wire cooling rack. (This allows it to cool underneath the roll, and keeps the cake from sweating).
- Frosting: While the cake roll is cooling, mix the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar together with an electric mixer until it is fluffy and smooth. Once the cake roll is cooled completely, unroll it very carefully. Gently smooth the filling in an even layer over the cake, leaving a 1-inch border.
- Roll up the frosted cake without the parchment paper. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, before serving.
- Serve: Dust the top with powdered sugar, if desired. Cut into slices and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
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I originally shared this recipe October 2014. Updated September 2017, October 2019 and October 2024.
Original recipe adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe. I've added more spices.
This recipe is amazing, but omg!! If you are going to make it, put a clean towel under your roll as soon as it gets out of the oven to roll it. I burnt my hands 🥹. All worth it though because it tastes AMAZING
Wear heat proof gloves like for grilling, no burns
I use parchment paper to bake and roll it up in the same after lifting it out of the pan
Thats kinda common sense something that just came out of the oven would be hot lol
Burned?
In other countries, like Australia or UK, they use ‘burnt’
I had enough parchment paper on the edges that, once I began the roll, I could actually just roll the paper from the outside
I let it cool for ten minutes then rolled up
Love this recipe! I have friends/family ask for these pumpkin rolls on repeat!
Oh my goodness, this recipe is fantastic!!!!!! I made 1 on Thursday to freeze for Thanksgiving, but the hubby liked it so much that he ate half of it. It was easier than I expected and I have since made 2 more that are hidden in the freezer!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Tried this recipe this week, my first time ever making a pumpkin roll cake. It was so easy and so good! I got lots of compliments on it!
I just started making these this week and WOW!! They are a HUGE HIT AROUND THIS HOUSE. THANK YOU.. AN SO EASY TO PUT TOGETHER. . this is a HUGE mood lifter cause I feel like I’m baking like a PRO.. 😁❤
This is the BEST pumpkin roll recipe ever! Made it three times so far, and each time, turned out perfect. So delicious and MUCH easier than the old tea-towel method. Wish I would have had this recipe 30 years ago! Thank you so much, Lauren! 🤗
I’ve tried to make this roll a couple of times but the cake keeps splitting and doesn’t look like the picture at all. What am i doing wrong?
Sounds like you’re either rolling it too late or overbaking it. The cake HAS to be rolled while it’s still hot from the oven that’s when it’s flexible. If it cools first, it’ll crack every time. Also make sure you’re not overbaking check at 12 minutes, it should be just barely done. And roll it slowly and gently, don’t force it!
This is a crowd favorite every time. In this website is my go to for almost anything dessert. I’m sure there’s plenty of non-dessert things on here as well, but I’m a cook and not a baker,
Terrible. I knew i should have stopped before cooking when I realized how off the ratios are. 1 cup sugar, 3 eggs and only 3/4 cup flour. This came out like sticky sugary egg mix. Certainly couldn’t roll it and tasted awful. Wasn’t undercooked as the edges turned brittle like you would expect something too with so much sugar. I don’t normally leave reviews but I am shocked at how many glowing reviews this has.
You obviously did something wrong then or just cant cook. This is the best pumpkin roll I’ve ever had.
I made it today and got the same results
Same!!!!! I wanted to try a different pumpkin roll recipe, but this was a big waste of time and money. Zero stars.
Wouldn’t recommend this to anyone. It was so salty and bitter that I felt like I was eating a shoe. I used half the salt and it was just horrifying how salty it came out. Not the frosting/filling but the actual cake part was horrible.
I click on the metric and do salt by weight, as different types of salt have different volumes. I’ve made this several times and it is never too salty.
Quite possibly one of the best desserts I’ve ever made.
Then you’re not a very good cook everyone else who followed it correctly including me says its amazing
Just made my first of this recipe and took a few notes. I make my own pumpkin spice and this is where I think some may have had problems with the flavour. Fresh spices are SO WORTH IT. Mine took approx 16min in my gas oven to have the toothpick come out clean.
It tastes amazing, but I found the cracking of mine (only in a 3” section) was due to the cake still being warm in the middle as I unrolled it. It felt cool after sitting for 1hr30, but some residual heat was remaining and I didn’t know until too late. The tackiness I got was likely due to my slightly over greasing my parchment. It was easily remedied with the sifted sugar on top.
In addition, mine looks exactly like the photo with the thick frosting. No doubling needed. I used a jelly roll pan so the batter and cheese mixture was perfect. Any other pan would have caused problems.
Absolutely making this again!
Tried this today – while it smelled nice baking, I thought the overall taste was just kind of blah and lacking, like it needed more spices? Also, mine came out thin even though I used the same size baking pan and it wasn’t substantial like the one in the photo. It was sticky coming off the parchment paper too.
i have made two of these. Both were pretty wet feeling after unrolling. I put the filling in, and one of them cracked open a bit (maybe 3 inches). I still am able to use it and cut nice pieces.
But i am wondering if maybe i didnt cook it enough. I was worried that i would over bake and it would be dry. I’ll definitely be making this again but will cook longer and see how it goes.
It does sound like it might’ve needed just a couple more minutes in the oven. If it feels really wet after unrolling, that’s usually a sign it wasn’t quite set in the center. You’re smart to watch for dryness though! A quick tip: press lightly on the center with your finger it should spring back and feel set, not sticky.
Mine too. I have tried twice now. 12 minutes the first time. 15 the second. Toothpick has been clean both times and sponge seems spring. I don’t get it
I just made one this morning and mine was wet too after unrolling.
Did you elevate it on a cooling rack that allows air flow underneath? That could be why.
It was definitely easy to make, but mine cracked. Hopefully it will taste better than it looks.
made this today for the first time in my long (lol) life. I think it came out pretty good. The flavor of the pumpkin cake part and the cream cheese mixture is fantastic. The rolling part is tricky but i followed the instructions exactly and it was pretty easy. I am going to make another in a little while. Hoping it comes out good. Thank you for the recipe
The filling needs to be doubled to look like the photograph with the recipe. Also, we don’t love super sugary flavor, so I use half the amount of confectioner sugar for the tang of the cream cheese to shine and not be overpowered by the sugar. With that change, it’s 5 stars 🌟 from me…