Diana's Desserts - www.dianasdesserts.com
See more recipes in Cakes and Tortes

Angel Food Cake

in Diana's Recipe Book

Average Rating: 
(total ratings: 3)
[Read reviews] [Post a review]
Servings: 10
 
Comments:
Angel Food Cake is an airy white sponge cake made without egg yolks or any fat. It gets its volume from stiffly beaten egg whites, and it's normally baked in a tube pan. Many bakeries sell it ready made. It will keep its shape better if you cut it with a serrated knife.

For a special occasion, decorate the top of the cake and cake plate with edible flower petals. This is nice for a wedding or baby shower or for a special birthday or anniversary.

Ingredients:
1 cup cake flour
1 1/4 cups superfine or caster sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cups egg whites (from about 10 eggs)
1 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest

Garnish:
Fresh berries
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting cake

Instructions:
Preheat an oven to 350°F/180°C. Line a 10-inch angel food cake pan with parchment paper.

Sift together the flour, 1 cup of the superfine sugar and the salt three times; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on medium-low speed until foamy. Add the cream of tartar, increase the speed to medium-high and beat until the whites are soft and foamy. Gradually add the remaining 1/4 cup superfine sugar and beat until medium-firm peaks form when the beaters are lifted. Do not overbeat. Stir in the lemon juice, vanilla and lemon zest.

Transfer the egg mixture to a very large bowl. Sift one-fourth of the flour mixture over it and, using a rubber spatula, gently fold it into the whites using deep strokes. Add the remaining flour mixture in three equal additions, sifting and folding each time.

Scoop the batter into the prepared pan and gently smooth the top. Bake until the cake is golden and springs back when touched, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and invert the pan onto its feet or the neck of a wine bottle. Let cool completely.

Gently run a long, thin-bladed knife around the outer sides of the pan, pressing it firmly against the pan to prevent tearing the cake. Then run the knife or a skewer around the inside of the tube. Invert the pan and let the cake slide out. Remove the paper lining. Garnish with berries and dust with confectioners' sugar.

Makes 10 servings.

Notes:
Eggs are easier to separate when they are cold. Carefully crack the egg and, holding it over a bowl, pass the yolk back and forth between the shell halves and let the whites fall into the bowl. Drop the yolk into a separate bowl, then transfer the whites to a third bowl Separate each additional egg over an empty bowl, for if any speck of yolk gets into the whites, the whites will not whip up properly. If a yolk breaks, start fresh with another egg. Let the separated egg whites come to room temperature before using them in the batter.

Source: Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Collection Series,Dessert,by Abigail Johnson Dodge (Simon & Schuster, 2002).

Date: June 24, 2002

Reviews

Reviewer: kathy
Rating: 
 
Reviewer: micha
Rating: 
Review:
this cake is the most amazing thing i have ever tasted

 
Reviewer: jen
Rating: 
Review:
can this cake be frozen? because I want to sandwich it with ice cream...

 

Add Your Review

  YOUR NAME (required)
  YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS (required)
 (Excellent)
 (Very Good)
 (Good)
 (Could be Better)
 (Poor)
  RATING (required)
YOUR REVIEW:

More Recipes in this Section

A Sophisticated Strawberry Shortcake Angel Food Cake Apple and Pecan Nut Cake Apple Cake Apple Maple Upside-Down Cake Apple-Cinnamon Cake Applesauce Cake with Hot Milk Frosting Applesauce Layer Cake Aunt Lily's Caramel Layer Cake Banana Cake Banana Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting Banana Torte Basic Genoise (Sponge Cake) Bee Sting Cake Black Forest Cake Bordeaux Cake with Cherry Preserves Boston Cream Pie Brownie Cake Cafe' Mocha Layer Cake Carrot Cake Charlotte Russe with Strawberries Chocolate Almond Cake Chocolate Almond Mary Ann Cake Chocolate and Pear Brownie Cake Chocolate Angel Food Cake Chocolate Buttermilk Sheet Cake Chocolate Chip Almond Cake Chocolate Chip Banana Bundt Cake Chocolate Chip Zucchini Cake Chocolate De'Light Cake With Chocolate Ganache Chocolate Fudge Cake Chocolate Hazelnut Torte with Chocolate Ganache Chocolate Layer Cake with Chocolate Frosting Chocolate Lemon Cake Chocolate Marble Cake Chocolate Mousse Torte with Saffron Cream Chocolate Orange Cake Chocolate Pecan Layer Cake Chocolate Raspberry Cake Chocolate Souffle Cake with Orange Caramel Sauce Chocolate Victoria Sponge Cake Chocolate-Banana Layer Cake Chocolate-Orange Bundt Cake Classic Butter Cake Classic French Genoise Cake Classic Orange Chiffon Cake Classic Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Classic Sponge Cake Classic White Cake Classic Yellow Cake Cocoa Chiffon Cake with Vanilla Glaze Coconut-Pineapple Cake Cola Zucchini Cake Country Apple Cake with Caramel Sauce Courting Cake Easy Almond Cake Five Flavors Cake Fresh Strawberry Layer Cake Fresh Strawberry Torte with Rum Custard Frosted Banana Cake Gâteau de Pistache de Chocolat avec le Vin Rouge Gâteau d'huile d'olive German Chocolate Cake Ginger Cake
Ginger Cake Golden Cake with Boiled Chocolate Icing Guava Chiffon Cake Holiday Ginger Pumpkin Torte Hummingbird Cake Lemon Layer Cake Lemon Lime Mousse Cake Lemon Meringue Cake Lemon Pistachio Bundt Cake with Glaze Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Lemonade Layer Cake Light Chocolate Zucchini Cake Lucy's Luscious Lemon and Key Lime Cake Magic Swirl Cake Maple Cake with Brown Sugar Buttercream Maple Pecan Cake with Blueberries Marble Gugelhupf Cake (Marmorgugelhupf) Mint Devil's Food Cake Mississippi Mud Cake Mocha Layer Cake with Chocolate-Rum Filling Mocha Spice Cake Molten Chocolate Cakes Opera Torte Orange Carrot Cake Pan di Spagna-Italian Sponge Cake Peach Cream Cake Peachy Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Pineapple Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Pineapple Chiffon Cake Plum Cake Raspberry Charlotte Russe Red Velvet Cake Red Velvet Cake with Chocolate Frosting Red Waldorf Cake Rich Chocolate Bundt Cake Rum Soaked Fudge Cake Sachertorte Sherry Wine Cake Simple Flourless Chocolate Cake Simple Syrup (for Genoise Cake) Simple Syrup II Sour Cream Pumpkin Bundt Cake Sponge Cake St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake Strawberry Cake Superb Strawberry Cream Torte Strawberry Layer Cake Strawberry Log Cake Strawberry Shortcake Layer Cake Strawberry Shortcake Ring Strawberry Torte Sunny Chiffon Cake with Lemon Glaze Sweet & Tangy Lemon Layer Cake The Best Chocolate Cake Three Layer Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Torta con Cioccolata e Ricotta Tres Leches Cake with Mango Garnish Upside-Down Pear Honey Spice Cake Vanilla Sunshine Cake Velvet Chocolate Cake Warm Chocolate Cake White Chocolate Lemon Torte White Chocolate Pecan Cake White Sheet Cake White Texas Sheet Cake