Arctic Roll*
*why do so many things from the sixties, seventies, and eighties sound like euphemisms for something rude?
Today, I was inspired. How delightful it felt! It was warm, huggable, and sprinkled with delicious fuzzy feels. I realised that, as a sensation, inspiration is right up there in the aspirational emotionally sumptuous rankings, nestled alongside nostalgia and dreams.
How wonderful that today I could write a recipe that whips all of the above into cream, freezes it until soft, rolls it, and wraps it in a light, fluffy sponge before drizzling it affectionately, some may say seductively, with licks of raspberry coulis.
Crikey. I think I have gone all Nigella Lawson... well, either Nigella or Benny Hill, hard to say!
Or, maybe, and more realistically, it is the 1960-70-80 vibrations that are coming from the memories of my Arctic Roll recreation. It is, after all, a spectacular and temperately diverse dessert that our lauded culinary British chef, Saint Nigel Slater, once referred to as The Carpet of Desserts. My goodness! At the very least, he could have stayed in keeping with the Arctic Roll generational undertone and condemned it as Shag.
Of course, respectfully, Saint Nigel, I disagree. For me, and for much of Middle England that shared a 1980's childhood, Arctic Roll is a treat that commands a seat right next to the Lazy Susan of Dips, the Mighty Pineapple and Cheddar Hedgehog, and the Billowing Bowl of Strawberry Trifle. Seriously, I don't think I have ever been in peak party mode without ALL these treats on hand.
Now, Christmas is on the horizon, the geese are getting fat (and so am I on all the toffee apples I have been scoffing). It's the time when plans start coming together around what you are going to feed your family for a post-Christmas lunch pud. Genuinely, and I cannot stress this enough, if you, like me, value nostalgia and dreams... with a soupcon of inspiration, then you should consider creating an Arctic Roll for your big event. You will not be disappointed. My son asked for one for his birthday. The joy for all was palpable.
I'm not even joking. It's ice cream AND cake AND jam, for heaven's sake.
What is not to love? My boy's eight-year-old brain was blown away! As for everyone else, well, they were all swept away in deep sighs of ... I remember when! Alongside exclamations of Wow, I never remember it tasting this good!
No, of course not, because the version you had back then was likely mass-produced Shag, whereas this version has been made with love and genuine affection.
Here is how I made mine:
Make the ice cream in this link:
Make the swiss roll sponge in this link without the jam:
Make a coulis using a pack of frozen strawberries, heated, sugared and blitzed in a food-processor. No need to get thermometers out for jam! Keep the coulis in a jug in the fridge until needed.
Assembly and Prep:
When you remove the sponge from the oven, turn it out and roll it immediately on sugared parchment paper. Leave the paper attached and curled against the sponge to cool until you are ready to serve.
Remove the ice cream from the freezer and leave it to soften until it is pliable. When it is, roll it into a cylinder and wrap it in foil. Re-freeze until you are ready to serve.
When ready, unroll the sponge and drench in the coulis (reserve a little coulis in the jug for topping). Wrap the coulis-soaked sponge around the un-foiled cylinder of ice cream. Place the sponge-wrapped ice cream on a plate and drizzle the remaining coulis over the top.
Decorate with powdered sugar and your own personal creative flow.
Enjoy! CJ xx
With thanks to Jay Kantor for the inspiration to post this recipe.
Here is his wonderfully nostalgic story...
About the Creator
Caroline Jane
CJ lost the plot a long time ago. Now, she writes to explore where all paths lead, collecting crumbs of perspective as her pen travels. One day, she may have enough for a cake, which will, no doubt, be fruity.
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Comments (28)
Delicious 🤤 and great narrative
Looks so very yummy
I love Arctic Roll and sorry I missed it first time round
Ohh I enjoyed reading this and your creation looks absolutely delicious. :D So much that I would really like to have some of it right now. :)
Congratulations on the top story!
I like that the first paragraph was brimming with descriptions and it worked so well in pulling us in and getting us invested. I love how enthusiastic it came across as well. I absolutely love the way you write, and how much effort you put into the way it comes across to your readers. I enjoy your personality too, it’s very special and unique to you and adds richness to your writing. Your son blowing out the candles was so adorable ☺️ The arctic roll looks delicious 🤤 and although I am not going to make it, I love reading these because it’s another level of entertainment for me, I always come away very pleased and I was pleased with this one 👏🏽🤗♥️
Wow, this looks so delicious! Thank you for sharing.
This looks absolutely delicious, and I want some now. Perfect for a sweet tooth like me I would savor each piece and bite I would take into my mouth.
...just to add, great food photo too. Makes a really enticing image, particularly noting the detail of the vanilla seeds set against the delightful marble effect of coulis against sponge. Even the texture of the cut ice cream shows through well. Really well done for the recipe presentation and the photography
Back to say congratulations on your Top Story! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
You make it sound so simple to make lol You should have a show Caroline. If would be a blast.
Such a simple recipe but I think that's the point. Sometimes the most joy comes from the simplest of things... I loved your commentary through this Caroline!! Congrats on Top Story!!
Benny Hill, Nigella, cake and ice cream! What's not to like! Love this Caroline.
🎉 Congratulations on hitting Top Story on Vocal! 🏆 Your hard work and creativity truly shine through, and it’s so well-deserved! 🌟 Keep up the amazing storytelling—this is just the beginning of even more success! 🎈📖🙌
3 cheers for the arctic roll. Great recipe and would love to say I’ll try it but probably never will. I probably will buy an arctic roll from the supermarket some time soon though. Thanks for the reminder and congrats on the T S
Cj - You go to 🔝 Top and my 🍦 ‘Melt Me’ is sloshing at the bottom—Doesn’t that ‘Chiil’ all…! — Big Bites, Then? — j.bud.in.l.a.
Beautifully done artic roll....I expect to see you on the next Great British Baking Show! Congratulations on your Top Story for such a great, dual accomplishment! Well done.
Oh how I wish I could eat this kinda thing. I love the idea of yummy, sugary desserts but I rarely indulge. Beautiful job!
Your writing style is so engaging and humorous. I love how you've captured the essence of the Arctic Roll and the joy it brings. I'm curious to know what other nostalgic treats you plan to recreate. I'm already excited to see what you come up with next!
Yay! Glad this got Top Story, well done Caroline!
I love artic roll!
I'm so excited. I can't... WAIT to try this. But instead of strawberry, I'm going to try cherries because my brother decided to suddenly become allergic to strawberries after 34 years of life last year lol. poor guy. it bums him out every time lol. I hope it works just as well.
"Now, Christmas is on the horizon, the geese are getting fat (and so am I on all the toffee apples I have been scoffing)" Me too friend. But like..happened a long time ago. I'm happy though. LOL.
I just do not see this working for me, even if I didn't attempt it gluten free, but I want a mouthful badly.
I'm not a fan of sponge cake or strawberries but that ice cream inside your cake seemed soooo delicious! I might just try the ice cream and eat it as it is hehehehehe