This Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake is a delicious dessert consisting of a layer of flourless oat chocolate cake that is rolled up with a filling of dark chocolate ganache and pistachio cream with kataifi. The rolled cake is slathered with a chocolate mousse, drizzled with more chocolate ganache, and decorated with pistachio kataifi bites.

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Slicing into the Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake

This Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake, much like this Dubai Chocolate Strawberry Cake, is inspired by the viral Dubai Chocolate Bar. This roll cake is a current favorite, embracing the unique flavors and textures of the infamous Dubai Chocolate.

What is Dubai Chocolate?

The creation of Chef Nouel Catis Omamalin and Fix founder, Sarah Hamouda, the Dubai Chocolate bar gained popularity in 2024 for its unique combination of flavor, color, and texture. It is a delightfully delicious blend of pistachio butter (or pistachio cream), kataifi, and chocolate.

Chef Omamalin’s favorite Middle Eastern dessert was knafeh. So, he, with Hamouda, decided to incorporate it into a chocolate bar. And that is how the viral Dubai Chocolate Bar was born.

Today, many retailers have come up with a variety of Dubai Chocolate Bars, with Costco even selling some. There are also a variety of Dubai chocolate-inspired treats like Dubai chocolate cake and Dubai Chocolate shakes, available at a variety of cafes and bakeries.

Now, back to this Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake…

This roll cake is a delicious layered dessert, with 3 layers:

There’s the soft layer of flourless chocolate oat cake.
Then, a creamy and rich, dairy-free, chocolate ganache.
Followed by a creamy and crunchy layer of rich pistachio cream mixed with toasted kataifi.

These 3 layers are rolled up and topped with a soft and light chocolate mousse.

Then, this roll cake is decorated with crunchy pistachio kataifi bites and chopped pistachios.

Ingredients to make this dubai chocolate roll cake

What are the ingredients needed to make this Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake?

This Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake is made with 6 main ingredients or elements. Some of these elements are recipes that have already been featured on this blog.

Chocolate Oat Cake
This is a gluten-free chocolate roll cake made with oats. Since 2014, I have been making this roll cake, AKA yule log, every Christmas. This recipe is a blend of eggs, caster sugar, pure vanilla extract, ground rolled oats, cocoa, and a few tablespoons of brewed strong coffee. It is a lot easier to make than most roll cakes, as it does not need to be rolled while hot, after a quick bake. When the directions are followed exactly, this cake can be rolled without any cracks. The recipe for this Chocolate Oat Cake, with ingredients and detailed directions with photos and videos, can be found here.
Pistachio Cream
I used a double batch of this homemade pistachio cream. However, if you prefer to cut down on the sugar content of this cake, homemade pistachio butter can be used instead to make the pistachio kataifi filling. If you do not want to go through the trouble of roasting and blending pistachios in a food processor or high-speed blender, then you can use some of this pistachio cream or pistachio butter from Amazon. Or, if you prefer, a premixed pistachio filling can also be used instead.
Kataifi
Not to be confused with knafeh, kataifi pastry is made with flour, cornstarch, salt, oil, and water. It is often referred to as resembling shredded phyllo dough. It is usually the star of Middle Eastern treats like baklava and knafeh. Knafeh is a layered dessert made with kataifi, cheese, and a sweet rose syrup. I get Kataifi from Amazon, but it can also be found at Middle Eastern shops. To toast the kataifi for this recipe, I toasted 3/4 cup kataifi with 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat.
Dark Chocolate
I used dark chocolate to make the ganache as I wanted to balance out the sweet milk chocolate mousse topping. However, semi-sweet chocolate or milk chocolate can also be used.
Almond Milk
As I wanted to keep the ganache dairy-free, I opted for almond milk at room temperature. However, coconut milk, soy milk, or any nut milk would work as well. If you are not lactose intolerant, then whole milk or heavy cream can also be substituted.
Chocolate Mousse
I used this super-easy 3-ingredient chocolate mousse with Cool Whip as a topping. However, I have also used this chocolate cashew cream as a filling and a topping for roll cakes and yule logs. A regular chocolate icing can also be substituted for the chocolate mousse.

Instructions

Make the chocolate oat cake using these instructions.

While the chocolate oat cake cools, make the pistachio cream or pistachio butter.

Toast the kataifi and mix it into the pistachio cream or butter.

Pistachio cream and katafi mixed together

Then, melt the dark chocolate. This can be done in the microwave or a double boiler. I did this by placing the dark chocolate in a bowl. I placed this bowl over a pan with water. I placed the pan and bowl over a stovetop set to medium heat. As the water boiled, the chocolate started to melt, and I added the almond milk, stirring the mixture with a whisk, the whole time.

Adding a layer of chocolate ganache on to the oat chocolate base

Once the chocolate ganache was ready, I slathered it onto the cooled chocolate oat cake.

Then, I added spoonfuls of the pistachio kataifi filling on top of the chocolate ganache layer and smoothed it out, using the back of the spoon.

Adding a layer of Pistachio cream and katafi over chocolate ganache

Then, gently roll the cake and layers of filling. Wrap the rolled cake in plastic wrap and set it to chill in the freezer for an hour or the refrigerator for up to 3 hours.

Make the chocolate mousse according to these directions.

Once chilled, slather on the chocolate mousse or your favorite chocolate buttercream. Heat and drizzle over any leftover chocolate ganache, and decorate with some easy kataifi and pistachio bites and chopped pistachios.

All that’s left to do is cut a slice of this Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake and enjoy with a big mug of coffee, tea, or almond milk!

This Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake is a delicious dessert to serve up for a special occasion or just because you want a fun and unique treat.

The end slice of Dubai Chocolate Roll Cake

More Dubai Chocolate-Inspired Treats

Dubai Chocolate Chia Pudding
Easy Dubai Chocolate Cups
Dubai Chocolate Stuffed Muffin Tops
Easy Dubai Chocolate Strawberry Cake

Thanks so much for stopping by. If you make this recipe, please let me know in the comments below what you think of it, or tag your creation on social media with @savoryspin or #savoryspin. For more fusion, spice-filled, recipe ideas, please subscribe and follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and/or Pinterest!