The beloved angel food cake reminds of cotton candy - airy, light, and sweet. Years before the establishment of American Heritage, the angel food cake was the favorite cake in our home, and the special baking pans quickly made their way onto our inventory list. It requires a substantial amount of egg whites, extracts, cream of tartar, and a specific angel food cake pan (here we offer a non-stick coated steel angel food cake pan as well as a cake pan made of lighter aluminum).
- Ingredients for the Angel Food Cake:
- 350 g sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 200 g sifted flour
- 12 egg whites (room temperature; the fresher the egg whites, the easier to separate)
- 80 ml warm water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or extract of your choice (e.g., lemon or orange)
- 1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
Preparation of the Angel Food Cake:
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C (347 degrees F). Mix half of the sugar with salt and flour; set aside the remaining sugar.
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix egg whites, water, extract, and cream of tartar using a whisk. Then, use an electric mixer and gradually add the remaining sugar at medium speed. When the mixture forms peaks, sift a portion of the flour over it and gently fold it in with a spatula. Repeat until all the flour is incorporated.
Carefully pour the mixture into an ungreased (very important, as the cake won't succeed otherwise) angel food cake pan. Bake for 40 minutes, then check with a wooden skewer to see if it's done (inserted into the middle between the inner and outer wall, the skewer should come out dry). Remove the angel food cake from the oven and invert it onto the feet of the cake pan, letting it cool for at least one hour. Afterward, slice with a bread knife.
In our case, angel food cake is most popular with hot cherries and vanilla ice cream. Strawberries are delicious too!
