Angel food cake is a go-to for a light, low fat dessert with a subtle sweetness and a cloud-like crumb thanks to the incorporation of whipped egg whites as the main leavening agent and wet ingredient to which sugar and flour are added. We traditionally use a tall baking pan to let the foamy batter rise into the lightest, airiest cake. However, greasing the pan is one step to leave out with angel food cake.
It also might be a mistake you routinely make considering it’s generally crucial with most other types of cakes. While a greased pan is usually the key to a flawless cake removal, it’ll sabotage the light and airy texture of angel food cake. Angel food cake batter relies on the tall walls of the pan to not only guide its rise in the oven, but also to maintain its height. Introducing fat to an egg-white batter will reduce its rising potential. Plus, batter needs a dry surface to cling to, otherwise it will collapse as it cools. A greased baking pan will result in angel food cake sliding back down the moment you take it out of the oven. And a collapsed angel food cake is a sad, dense mound that you’re better off repurposing into cake pops.
More tips for the best angel food cake
Instead of mistakes, let’s shift our focus on ways to make the best angel food cake. In addition to a non-greased pan, an important tip to maintain the height of your angel food cake is inverted cooling. Flip the pan upside down post-bake with the help of a cooling rack so that air can circulate upwards to further prevent the cake from collapsing. The hollowed-out tubular center of an angel food cake pan is designed to help the cake rise evenly. However, if you find yourself without the proper kit, you can follow this ingenious hack to make angel food cake without a special pan using a round cake pan with removable sides and an aluminum soda can.
Since angel food cake relies on the fluffy peaks of egg whites for its tall, spongy crumb, it’s important to facilitate their preparation. You’ll want room temperature eggs for the most thorough separation of the whites, while cream of tartar is a crucial ingredient to get the stiffest, firmest peaks that you often see with meringues. Coincidentally, stiff peaks also translate to a stable crumb and keep the cake from collapsing as it cools. While angel food cake’s simple ingredient list makes it a versatile dessert to garnish with all kinds of seasonal fruit, cool whip, or a sprinkling of powdered sugar, you can also add flavor to the batter. Alton Brown adds lemon or orange extract to his angel food cake for a brighter taste to accompany the sweetness.
