Welcome to the June Recipe of the Month: Angel Food Cake! Maybe you recognize this cake (my all-time favorite!) from when I originally shared it, but I’ve updated the post to include detailed instructions, critical tips, and a step-by-step video.
This is an easy, classic Angel Food Cake recipe that uses all-purpose flour (but does includes tips to use cake flour, if you choose). Today’s post is chock full of tips to make sure your cake comes out perfectly every time!
Welcome to my second “Recipe of the Month”: Angel Food Cake!
In case you missed it, each month I’ll be selecting a recipe that I’d love for everyone to try, be sure to check out all of the details that I shared yesterday (including how to enter to win an Amazon gift card!).
Sweet, soft, slightly sticky and lighter than air, each bite of Angel Food Cake just absolutely melts in your mouth. While it may appear plain, the flavor is extraordinary: lightly vanilla with traces of almond, a fluffy, pure white interior with a golden brown, crackly meringue-like bottom.
This cake is my all-time favorite, my mom has been making it for years (partially due to the need to use up her surplus of fresh chicken eggs). Given the opportunity I could absolutely finish off this cake with just a fork and twenty minutes of time… or with just twenty minutes, fork optional.
I have lots of tips that I want to share with you today, so let’s dig in.
First, let’s talk egg whites.
Angel Food Cake requires 1 1/2 cups of egg whites (for me this is usually about 11 eggs). Egg whites are what make up the majority of our batter, so let’s cover some critical points here first.
- Your egg whites should be at room temperature for angel food cake, so set your eggs out to reach room temperature the night before. If you forget to set out your eggs, you can set them in a bowl of lukewarm water for about 15-20 minutes to bring them to temperature faster, just make sure to dry them very well before cracking.
- A clean and dry bowl is critical. Do not get any yolk into your egg white and make sure to crack into a completely grease and moisture-free bowl. Even the tiniest bit of yolk or grease can keep your eggs from whipping correctly… that’s a lot of eggs to waste!
- You must beat your egg whites to stiff peaks. Stiff peaks exist when you can dip a knife or spatula into the mixture and the peaks that form when you remove the utensil hold their shape firmly without the point of the peak folding or receding back into the mixture. Reaching stiff peaks usually takes me several minutes, so some patience is required. For more information on stiff peaks please see my meringue cookie recipe and I also use them when making my Funfetti Cake.
- You don’t have to use a KitchenAid/stand mixer, but I do recommend using at least an electric hand mixer (with a large bowl!), as whipping the egg whites by hand would be very difficult, time consuming, and exhausting!
- The egg whites will increase in volume an incredible amount! Once your egg whites reach stiff peaks, they’ll likely fill up your whole mixing bowl: as you can see in the photo above the egg whites fill about 3/4 of my KitchenAid mixer bowl.
- The mixture will be thick, glossy, sticky, and very full once it’s finished. You don’t want to over-mix your egg whites, but it is so critical that you beat them to stiff peaks. I think this is where many people go wrong and feel that they are mixing too long. Your egg whites should look like mine in the photo above or in the video or they aren’t ready yet.
- Don’t know what to do with your leftover egg yolks? Try my chocolate pie!
Once you’ve achieved thick, glossy, stiff peaks with your egg whites, we’ll add a mixture of flour and powdered sugar into the mix.
It’s critical that you fold these ingredients in by hand. Using an electric mixer at this point would almost definitely over-beat your mixture and cause your egg whites to deflate and your cake to sink, so stir gently with a light hand.
Why Do You Have To Turn Angel Food Cake Upside Down?
Remember those delicate egg whites we just spent all that time whipping to stiff peaks? Well they are responsible for angel food cake’s extremely light and airy texture. However, they are still rather fragile while fresh out of the oven and leaving the cake upright can cause the cake to collapse in on itself and deflate, which is why we turn the cake upside down once it’s finished baking. We’re using gravity to our advantage here rather than falling victim to it.
To help the cake keep its height and its fluffy interior, you’ll simply turn it upside down while it cools. I recommend placing the center or neck of the tube pan on an empty bottle or a can and allow it to cool completely there.
Now, some tube bans are made with little feet or prongs coming off the rim with the plan so that you can skip the bottle or can and just set the pan upside down on the prongs. However, I’ve never had success with this and find that doing this usually causes my angel food cake to fall right out of the pan (!), so even if you have this sort of tube pan I still recommend using a can or a bottle to cool your angel food cake.
How Long Can You Keep Angel Food Cake?
In my house, you can’t keep it longer than 12 hours without it magically disappearing! However, generally angel food cake will keep for about 2 days at room temperature if stored in an airtight container.
Can You Freeze Angel Food Cake?
Yes, you can, (though I firmly believe these cakes taste best fresh). Allow the cake to cool completely and then wrap the cake tightly and completely in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil. Angel Food Cake can be frozen for several months.
To thaw, just place the (wrapped) angel food cake in the refrigerator the night before you intend to serve it and allow it to thaw in the refrigerator.
Can I make this Angel Food Cake Recipe into Cupcakes?
You can, and I’ve done it before with this exact recipe. I always use cupcake liners when making angel food cupcakes, you’ll fill each cupcake liner with batter (I usually fill mine right to the top) and bake on 375F (190C) for about 12 minutes.
Let them cool completely in the pan before removing. This recipe will make about 24 cupcakes.
The cake is utter perfection on its own, but I usually keep homemade whipped cream and strawberries handy to dress it up a little bit. I’ve also transformed this cake into a Strawberry Lemon Layer Cake, which is incredible!
Treat yourself to a FREE E-BOOK!
Alright, I hope all of you will try out this cake for yourself, and please make sure to share a picture and tag me to participate in the Recipe of the Month challenge for a chance to win an Amazon gift card.
Angel Food Cake is a simple cake, but the technique can be tricky the first time you make it, so make sure to let me know if you have any questions or ask them in my Baker’s Club! Also, if you do happen to have a recipe fail, that still counts as an entry for the recipe of the month so long as you share a photo and tag me according the guidelines I shared yesterday!
Looking for more classic cake recipes? Check out my vanilla cake, my chocolate cake, my white cake recipe or my pineapple upside-down cake!
How to Make Angel Food Cake
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Angel Food Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup powdered sugar (156g)
- 3/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour (90g) OR you can use 1 cup of cake flour
- 1 1/2 cups egg whites at room temperature 10-12 egg whites (375ml)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract optional
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar NOT powdered (200g)
- strawberries and homemade whipped cream for topping optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F (190C).
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and flour and set aside.
- In KitchenAid mixer, combine egg whites*, cream of tartar, vanilla and almond extracts and salt. Mix well.
- With mixer on high, beat in sugar, about 1 Tablespoon at a time, adding more only once the previous tablespoon has been dissolved (About 10-15 seconds; as you add the sugar, you may be able to hear the faint sound of the granules scraping against the metal bowl. Once you no longer hear this, the sugar has been dissolved). Do NOT scrape the sides of the bowl as you are doing this, just keep beating.
- Beat until stiff peaks** form; the mixture will be thickened, glossy, and sticky and will greatly have increased in volume.
- Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in sugar/flour mix, about ½ cup at a time. Do not over-mix; fold only until the flour mixture is combined with the egg whites mixture.
- Pour mixture into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan and use a knife or spatula to cut through the batter to break through any air bubbles that may exist.
- Bake the cake on 375F (190C) for 35 minutes or until the top of the cake springs back when lightly touched. Any cracks on the surface should look dry.
- Immediately upon removing from oven, invert the cake onto a bottle or funnel and allow it to cool completely.
- Once cake has cooled, place right-side-up and run a knife inside the rim of the cake pan. Invert cake onto serving platter.
- Slice carefully, Angel food cake is delicate so be sure to saw/slice each piece carefully with a serrated knife to avoid smashing it with a dull straight-blade. Serve with strawberries and homemade whipped cream, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published 3/30/16
Mary Ann says
Sam,
What a wonderful recipe! Do you have a suggestion for turning it into a chocolate angel food cake?
Thank you!!
Sam says
Hi Mary Ann! I’m glad you enjoyed it! Unfortunately I don’t have a good answer for how to make this chocolate, but it’s definitely on my list of things to try. 🙂
Liz says
Hi Sam! I don’t have a tube pan with a removable bottom. What are your thoughts of lining the bottom of a regular tube pan with parchment paper so I can get the cake out once it’s cooled?
Sam says
Hi Liz! I wouldn’t line the pan with parchment paper. The cake actually needs to stick to the pan to turn out properly. You should still be able to get it out without having a removable bottom. I would take a butter knife run it along the inside rim and outside edges of the cake when it is done baking. You will also probably need to push on the bottom of the cake while working the knife around the edges but you should still be able to get it out. 🙂
Marina says
Hello! This is Marina, an Italian-American girl writing from Italy!
I wanted to ask you if you ever tried to make a chocolate angel food cake and if it turned out any good? Do you have tips to share? Tnx!!!!
Sam says
Hi Marina! I have experimented with it in the past by substituting in some cocoa powder for flour and stirring in some melted chocolate. I don’t have a really solid recipe for it at this point, but it’s something I can add to my list to make. 🙂
Kay says
Hello! I’m planning on making this recipe into the cupcake form, and was wondering if I still need to turn them upside down to keep them from deflating. If so, how would I do that? It seems the bottle method would not work the same way. Thank you, have a lovely day.
Sam says
Hi Kay! Unfortunately you do have to invert it, but there isn’t a really good way to invert them without them all falling out. I don’t really recommend them as cupcakes but I know they have turned out for others in the past.
Laura says
Thanks so much for posting this. I’m going to be trying it today.
I have a couple of questions.
1: how long will this cake keep once made
2: will it hold up to the addition of a light buttercream/Italian frosting?
Essentially I want to make this for my daughters first birthday. But having a toddler around it’s handy to be able to make things the day before.
Thanks
Sam says
Hi Laura! This will hold up for several days in an air tight container at room temperature. The cake isn’t the most stable so it may be difficult to frost it, and it would be really rich. The best topping for this cake is some homemade whipped cream. 🙂
Krysta says
This was my very first recipe for Angel Food Cake and it will be my one and only! Absolutely delicious! I did make it in a bunt pan and it was interesting trying to get it out but it worked and it’s beautiful. Needless to say, I’ll be investing in a AF pan! Thank you for the recipe!
Sam says
Thank you so much Krysta! I am so glad you enjoyed it so much! You definitely won’t regret that investment in a new angel food pan. 🙂
Gommy the baker says
My first attempt with your recipe since being in 4-H in 6th grade for a bake show competition & that’s been over 50 years ago. That experience traumatized me from ever wanting to try again. Today was a birthday for our pastor & AF is his favorite so I tried your recipe! I have to say, I’ve never had a bite of cake melt in my mouth like this did and Pastor said it was absolutely the very best he’s ever eaten, including his mom’s! Your video helped immensely, by the way. I’ll be baking this one again!
Sam says
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much! It’s definitely one of my favorite cakes. 🙂
Brittany Greaves says
Can you make this recipe as cupcakes?
Sam says
Hi Brittany! My experience in the past has been that they cave in after baking and I’m not sure how to prevent that.
Margaret Robertson says
Hi, when you make the angel food cupcakes, do you torn the cupcake pan over to let them totally cool? Thanks♥️
Sam says
Hi Margaret! My experience making this as cupcakes is that the cupcakes tend to cave in after baking. I’m not sure if you’d be able to invert the pan and prevent that but if you find that it does work I would love to know how you did it. 🙂
Margaret Robertson says
I decided not to try to invert the cupcake pans and the angel food cupcakes turned out lovely and are equally delicious!
Sam says
I am so glad they turned out! 🙂
Tori says
Is it possible to use a bundt cake pan instead of a tube pan?
Sam says
I’ve never tried it in a bundt pan but I don’t see why it wouldn’t, my only concern would be that it might be tricky to get the cake out of the pan without tearing it up.
Emmylou says
I made this using two loaf pans and they turned out great! Not quite as pretty as a tube pan, but my family still loved it!
Sam says
I’m so glad to hear this! Thanks for commenting, Emmylou!
Caryn says
Hi….can I use a normal cake pan?
Sam says
Hi Caryn! You will probably have too much batter and it won’t bake properly. 🙁
Katherine says
What if you accidentally mixed in the POWDERED sugar and flour mixture one tablespoon at a time??
Sam says
Hi Katherine! Honestly I am not sure how the cake is going to turn out. If you bake it I’d love to know how it goes. 🙂
Tami Kruse says
Hi, I love the cake. My eleven year old daughter just gave it a go, here at very high altitude. Just wondering more about turning the cake over on the funnel. How does that keep it from falling straight out as you mentioned? Tami
Sam says
Hi Tami! The purpose of turning it upside down is so that the weight of the cake doesn’t deflate it. When you turn it upside down it sticks in the bottom of the pan but gravity helps pull the cake down so it doesn’t crush itself. 🙂