Angel Food Cake

For as much of a chocoholic as I am today, angel food cake was one of my all-time favorite desserts when I was growing up. As far as I can remember, no one in my family made them from scratch, but they were a Sunday staple at my grandma’s house during the summer. I always enjoyed a big slice of angel food cake, lots of sliced fresh strawberries and a big dollop of Cool Whip to cap off my Sunday dinner. Angel food cake is one of those store-bought favorites that I have been wanting to conquer from scratch. Truth be told, it’s not very difficult at all, and is so, so delicious.
The hardest part of the entire process for me was being patient while the egg whites were beating up into soft peaks. I felt like it took forever! But patience definitely paid off. (I was also a little heavy-handed when it came to slicing it as you can see from the photo above – I smooshed it a bit. Use a very light tough with a sawing back and forth motion using a serrated knife.)
This is such a lovely cake – light and spongy, with just a hint of almond flavor, just like the angel food cakes that I remember from when I was a kid. And of course I had to eat it with fresh strawberries and whipped cream! If you haven’t tackled angel food cake from scratch yet, I highly recommend it. Not too difficult, and very rewarding.
One year ago: Monster Cookies
Two years ago: No-Bake Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Oatmeal Cookies
Three years ago: Wedding Shower Cake

Angel Food Cake
Ingredients:
1 cup sifted plain cake flour
1½ cups sifted granulated sugar
12 egg whites, at room temperature
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
¼ teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon almond extract
Directions:
1. Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees F. Have ready an ungreased large tube pan (9-inch, 16-cup capacity). If the pan bottom is not removable, line it with parchment paper.
2. Whisk the flour and ¾ cup of the sugar in a small bowl. Place the remaining ¾ cup sugar in another small bowl next to the mixer.
3. Beat the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer at low speed until just broken up and beginning to froth. Add the cream of tartar and salt and beat at medium speed until the whites form very soft, billowy mounds. With the mixer still at medium speed, beat in the remaining ¾ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until all the sugar is added and the whites are shiny and form soft peaks. Add the vanilla, lemon juice and almond extract and beat until just blended.
4. Sift the flour-sugar mixture over the whites, about 3 tablespoons at a time, and gently fold in, using a large rubber spatula.
5. Gently scrape the batter into the pan, smooth the top with the spatula, and give the pan a couple of raps on the counter to release any air bubbles.
6. Bake until the cake is golden brown and the top springs back when pressed firmly, 50 to 60 minutes.
7. If the cake pan has prongs around the rim for elevating the cake, invert the pan onto them. If the pan does not have prongs, invert the pan onto the neck of a bottle or funnel. Let the cake cool completely, 2 to 3 hours.
8. To unmold, run a knife around the edges of the pan, being careful not to separate the golden crust from the cake. Slide the cake out of the pan and cut the same way around the removable bottom to release, or peel off the parchment paper, if using. Place the cake, bottom-side up, on a platter. Cut slices by sawing gently with a large, serrated knife. Serve the cake the day it is made.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
(Recipe adapted from Baking Illustrated)
All images and text ©
There is nothing better for a light dessert than angel food cake with strawberries. Love this, Michelle!
One of my favorite desserts!
Gorgeous angel food cake, Michelle!
This is my father’s favorite cake and it is just in time for his birthday! Thank you for posting! Looks amazing!!
I haven’t had much angel food cake in my life. My Dad believed if it wasn’t chocolate it wasn’t dessert, so my mom never made this. I have tried a couple store bought ones at parties before, but have never had a homemade one. This looks amazing – I want to get a pan, so I can make one!
angel food cake reminds me of 8th grade basketball, when one mom would always bring us the funfetti angel food cake for after games! i’ve made cupcakes from scratch but need to get a tube pan so i can make a whole cake!!
I love this angel food cake because of its light and fluffy texture and because its so easy to make. I used to buy angel cake in the bakery but I find there is nothing better then to make it myself because I get to have control over how sweet the angel cake turns out. I prefer my cakes to be on a slightly less sweeter side (But thats just me). Awesome post and thank you for sharing this recipe!
My dad and I love baking…we made a delicious chocolate angel food cake (unbelievably good!) with a raspberry glaze and fresh whipped cream. A-ma-zing. It would take care of the chocoholic in you too!
The only tube pan i have is a kugelhopf pan. Can it be used the same?
12 egg whites! Wow. I have never tried to bake an angel food cake but I really want to and since I can trust your recipes with my eyes closed, this has to be good.
Great post! You’re absolutely right – Angel Food Cake is rarely made by scratch any more. My mother (who sadly died when I was a child) was NOT a cook. She made everything from a box….except Angel Food Cake. About once a year, she’d break out this amazingly old pan and make it…I wish I had that pan, but she ditched it years ago.
Looks amazing! I’ve been trying to find a great angel food cake recipe. This may be it!
So simple and yet so delicious! One of my favorite cakes is angel food with a strawberry icing/glaze!
If you like using gadgets an electric knife is beautiful for cutting Angel food cakes.
Homemade are the best and plenty of egg yolks for ice cream and/or pasta.
angel food cake is one of those summer staples that we always had in our house. so light and fluffy and delicious!
Angel food cake is my dad’s favorite. We used to make it for his birthday every year. There is something about a fresh homemade angel food cake that is so delicious!
My mother used to frost angle food cakes with frosting made with Hershey’s chocolate syrup, whipping cream, and ???–never got the recipe. Anyway, she’d buy English Toffee, scrape off the “coating”, and sprinkle on top to add crunch. It was so good, and I’ve been trying to find the recipe. I think it was common in the 1960’s. Have you or any of your readers seen this recipe? Do you have anything similar? Thanks, Michelle! Enjoy your blog.
I found this using google- maybe this is what your talking about.
http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1830,159183-249206,00.html
This light cake is one of my favorites! I love it. Thanks so much for the recipe!
This is my absolute favorite! I had one every year for birthday as a kid!! I haven’t had one in ages! I need to make one now.
There is something so simple about this cake, but it is so delicious. Simple is good.
And girl, you’ve been busy!!! How many posts you doing a day, 2 or 3? I can’t keep up!
You’re awesome Michelle, and I so look forward to reading your posts every day!