I know I am feeling better when I start to get hungry! It happened last night... a craving for sweets, and nothing whatsoever in the house that fit the bill. What would really taste good, I thought, was a jelly roll. I don't know about you, but I grew up on jelly roll. My mother made them often... probably because they were fast, easy, and cheap... important factors in a family of five on a budget! As an adult, I set out a jelly roll alongside more festive, and complicated sweet treats at a party one evening, and my cousin, Ed said, "Jelly roll!!! I LOVE jelly roll!" Who knew?! Now, I take him one often, and it's always filled with grape jelly -- nothing fancy like preserves or marmalade or as exotic as say, strawberry jam... no sir, he wants plain grape jelly! And I think maybe he's on to something!So this morning, I made a jelly roll...from my mother's recipe (which was probably my grandmother's and/or my Aunt Altha's at some point!) and we will enjoy every morsel. In case you want to make your own jelly roll, here's the recipe:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour a jelly roll pan (a cookie sheet will do, as well)
Beat 4 eggs until white and thick.
Add: 3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mix well, and pour into jelly roll pan/cookie sheet and bake until golden brown. Remove from oven and invert onto a dampened kitchen towel. Roll up, starting at the shorter end, and let sit for several minutes. Unroll and spread with jelly (I find it works best if you use about 1/2 - 2/3 cup and whip the jelly until it is smooth and spreadable.) Re-roll and slice into 3/4" slices.
Yum!
