Lemon Cake Roll — The Sweet End to a Roast Chicken Sunday

Easter Sunday. Ham. Mom's deviled eggs. The grass is up. The wildflowers are on the south slopes.

Patrick on the porch in the afternoon. Coffee in the good cup. The cottonwoods. Tuesday meeting in Roundup. Eight regulars. Three vets. I do not lead. I show up.

Roast chicken Sunday. Whole bird. Salt, pepper, butter, lemon. Three hours at three twenty-five.

Cattle were good. Horses were good. The week was the week.

The barn cats are doing their job. Down to one mouse this week, in the feed shed. The cats brought it to the porch as proof. They are professionals.

Wrote a blog post Friday night. The first one in two months. About making chili in a snowstorm. Short. Practical. Posted it. Forgot about it.

Mr. Whelan from down the road came over Saturday with a story about a horse he sold in 1979. The story took an hour. I listened. He needed someone to tell it to.

Listened to the cattle market report on AM radio while I worked the shop. Beef is up. Feed is up. The math is the math.

Hank, the dog, herded the chickens by accident. He apologized in the way dogs apologize — eyes down, tail low. The chickens were unimpressed.

Worked on the truck Saturday afternoon. Plugs and wires. Two hours. Hands black with grease. Came in. Showered. Ate.

Mended the chute hinge Wednesday. Welder was finicky. Got it on the third try. Patrick used to do this. I do it now.

Storm came through Friday night. Thunder. The dog hid under the bed. The kids slept through it. The cattle bunched up by the windbreak. Standard.

Hauled three bull calves to the auction yard Wednesday. Got a fair price. Came home. Counted the cash. Put it in the ranch account.

A reader emailed about the elk chili recipe. Asked what beer to use if non-alcoholic was not available. I wrote back: any beer is wrong if you don't drink. Use stock.

Three days of horses this week. The work is meditative. The horses know. The owners pay. The cycle holds.

The wood pile is half what it was at Thanksgiving. I will split another cord on Saturday. The cord will be ready by next winter. The wood always is.

Drove to Billings for parts Friday. Stopped at the cemetery on the way home. Stood for ten minutes. Came home.

Took a walk to the river before supper Tuesday. The cottonwoods were silver. The water was running. I did not think much. I just walked.

The Tuesday Roundup AA meeting was eleven this week — three new guys from a referral. The room was full. The coffee was strong.

The Musselshell was clear Sunday. Could see trout in the deeper pools. Did not fish. Just watched.

A neighbor's heifer was choking on a corn cob. I drove over with my emergency kit. Cleared the cob with a length of garden hose. The heifer recovered. The neighbor brought a pie the next day.

Drove the back fence line Saturday. Two posts down from elk. Replaced them in the morning. The fence held the rest of the week.

Truck started cold Tuesday. Twelve below. Battery is the original. I will replace it before next winter. I always say I will replace it before next winter. I never have.

The roast chicken goes in the oven and the afternoon takes care of itself — three hours at three twenty-five, salt and pepper and butter and lemon, and the house smells like something right. When the bird comes out and the table’s cleared, what you want next is something that doesn’t fight it. Light. A little bright. The lemon cake roll has filled that space more Sundays than I can count. It uses the same lemon the chicken did, more or less, and it rolls out on the counter while the kitchen’s still warm. Nothing complicated. Nothing that needs explaining.

Lemon Cake Roll

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 12 min | Total Time: 1 hr (includes chilling) | Servings: 10

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar, for rolling
• For the filling:
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Preheat. Heat oven to 375°F. Line a 10x15-inch jelly roll pan with parchment paper and lightly grease.
2. Mix dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Beat eggs and sugar. In a large bowl, beat eggs and granulated sugar on high speed for 4–5 minutes until thick and pale. Beat in lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla.
4. Fold in flour. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture until just combined. Do not overmix.
5. Bake. Spread batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake 10–12 minutes, until the cake springs back lightly when touched.
6. Roll while hot. Turn the cake out immediately onto a clean kitchen towel dusted generously with powdered sugar. Peel off parchment. Starting from the short end, roll the cake up tightly in the towel. Let cool completely on a wire rack, about 30 minutes.
7. Make the filling. Beat softened cream cheese until smooth. Add powdered sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla. Mix until creamy and well combined.
8. Fill and re-roll. Carefully unroll the cooled cake. Spread filling evenly across the surface, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the edges. Re-roll the cake without the towel. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap.
9. Chill. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before slicing. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 280 | Protein: 5g | Fat: 10g | Carbs: 44g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 180mg