Angel Food Cake
Angel food cake. Never been a fan. I’ve always found it a bit too sweet, and way too spongy–like sweetened cushion foam. Well, I made it today while the snow was falling outside, and my boys were trashing the house inside. It was a fun, and fairly quick process, and the cake came out nicely. Once cooled, I ate a slice with some whipped cream and strawberries. It was lovely. Yes, it was sweet and spongy, but it had a nice crunch on the outer edge, and there was a slight hint of lemon in each bite. Still, not my favorite cake, although I have eaten three slices today. I should have another slice just to be sure. I’ve got big plans for this cake tomorrow, by the way. If there are any leftovers, that is.
Couple of things to keep in mind when making angel food cake:
- Never grease an angel food pan. The batter clings to the side as it bakes, and if the pan has been greased then it won’t rise properly.
- To cool, you must invert the pan on a cooling rack, or jar. Don’t worry, the cake will not fall out. This also keeps the cake from collapsing.
- Despite what you’ve heard, angel food cake is not low in calories. Yes, it only has egg whites, and not the yolks, but it has a heck of a lot of sugar, and sugar is bad for you. Said the girl who ate 3 slices and has a baking blog.
Here’s how it’s done. Whisk the egg whites until frothy.
Then add the cream of tartar and whisk until soft peaks form.
Slowly add the sugar, and whisk until stiff peaks form and it becomes shiny.
Fold in the lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract.
Sift the flour in three parts. Gently fold-in the flour in between sifting.
Pour batter into angel food cake pan, and run a knife through the middle to break up any air bubbles. This helps to make a very fine crumb. Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 40 minutes.
Once out of the oven, immediately invert pan over a wire rack, or stable jar and let cool.
To unmold cake, run a knife along the edge, and then gently push the bottom up (an angel food cake pan is like a spring form pan in that the bottom is removable).
- 1 cup (113 g) Cake Flour
- 1 1/2 cups (298 g) Sugar, divided in 2 equal measures
- 1/4 tsp. Salt
- 10 Large Egg Whites, at room temperature
- 1 tsp. Cream Of Tartar
- 2 tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
- 2 tsp. fresh Lemon Juice
- 1 1/2 tsp. grated fresh Lemon Peel
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, 3/4 cup of sugar, and salt until blended.
- Put the egg whites in a large metal or glass bowl and beat until frothy using the electric mixer on high speed. Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Slowly add the remaining 3/4 cup of sugar and beat until shiny, stiff peaks form. With a rubber spatula, fold in the vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon peel. Beat until combined.
- Sift the flour mixture in thirds over the beaten egg whites, folding it in gently but thoroughly.
- Scrape the batter carefully into the cake pan and run a knife through the batter to release any air bubbles. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the cake springs back when tested with your finger. Immediately invert the cake pan onto a wire rack and let cool upside down until completely cool, about 2 to 3 hours. When ready, run the thin blade of a knife around the edges of the pan and remove the cake. Set bottom side up.
- Electric mixer
- Angel food cake pan
- Citrus grater
- Rubber spatula
