Prevent Sticking

• The thin sponge cake for a jelly roll must be flipped upside down and onto a work surface when removing it from the pan. If the pan isn't greased properly, the cake can break apart while you try to get it out of the pan. Nonstick baking spray works well for greasing a pan, but you can also use the classic method of rubbing the pan with vegetable shortening and dusting it with flour. As an extra measure to prevent sticking, lay a piece of parchment paper over the greased or sprayed pan. Cut the paper large enough to cover the bottom and extend up the sides. Spray or grease the parchment paper before pouring the batter in the pan.

Keep the Cake Moist

• Common advice says to remove a cake from the oven when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, but this is actually a good indicator that the cake is too dry to roll without cracking. While you don't want the toothpick to be covered in wet cake batter, a few crumbs should stick to the toothpick if the cake is moist. The sponge cake for the jelly roll might also be too dry if you fail to measure the ingredients correctly. An improper ratio of dry ingredients to wet ingredients inevitably results in a dry cake.

Roll It While It's Hot

• A hot cake loses elasticity as it cools. This means that you can roll the cake fairly easily when it is fresh out of the oven, but it is likely to crack if you wait much longer. Unfortunately, you can't simply add the jelly to the hot cake and roll it immediately after it comes out of the oven because the hot cake will melt the sugars in the jelly. Instead, you must roll the cake while it is still hot, leave it rolled until it cools, and roll it a second time with the jelly filling. The cake cools and sets in the curled shape so it is easy to roll up the cool cake.

Rolling Technique

• A simple kitchen towel is all you need to roll up the hot sponge cake, but a lint-free towel is needed to keep fabric from sticking to the cake. Select a towel that is slightly larger than the jelly roll pan so the cake doesn't touch itself. The towel acts as a barrier so the cake doesn't touch as you roll it. If the cake touches itself, it sticks together and is nearly impossible to unroll and add filling. Lay the towel on a flat work surface and dust it with a generous coating of powdered sugar to prevent the cake from sticking to the towel. Roll the cake tightly, working from one short side to the opposite short side. Leave the cake rolled in the towel at room temperature or place it in the refrigerator until completely cooled.