Cranberry Angel Food Cake

SCRUMPTIOUS CRANBERRY ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Clean and dry tube or bundt pan (trace amounts of oil may cause whipped egg whites to deflate).
• Stir together flour and 3/4 cup sugar, and set aside.
• In a large bowl, whip egg whites with vanilla, cream of tartar, and salt until medium stiff peaks form.
• Gradually add remaining 3/4 cup sugar, and continue to whip until stiff peaks form. Batter will fill mixer's bowl and appear very shiny (see note in step 7 also).
• Carefully fold in flour mixture, 1/3 of it at a time.
• Carefully fold in cranberries and orange zest (batter should be very thick - when I made it it was thick enough to keep the cranberries in suspension and they did not sink to the bottom during baking - see photos).
• Pour batter evenly into pan.
• Bake for 40 minutes, or until cake is light golden brown and springs back when lightly touched.
• Invert pan over the top of a thin necked bottle and allow to cool completely (this prevents decompression while it is cooling).
• Loosen cake by running a knife around the edges and center of the pan. Invert onto a serving plate.

CRANBERRY ANGEL FOOD CAKE ROLL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Lightly coat a 10x15-inch baking pan with nonstick spray. Line the bottom of the pan with waxed paper, then spray the paper.
• Sift cake flour, 1/2 cup superfine sugar, and salt into a bowl. Sift the mixture two more times.
• Beat egg whites in a glass, metal, or ceramic bowl until foamy. Gradually add vanilla and cream of tartar, continuing to beat until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in remaining 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons superfine sugar. Gradually sift flour mixture over egg white mixture, folding it in until just combined. Spread batter evenly in the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until top of cake is lightly browned and springs back when lightly pressed, about 20 minutes.
• Remove cake and set on a wire rack. Loosen sides with a spatula, then generously sift confectioners' sugar over top. Cover cake with a clean kitchen towel and invert onto a second wire rack. Remove the pan and peel off the waxed paper. Starting at the short end, roll up the cake and towel together. Place, seam-side down, on a rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Simmer cranberries, sugar, and water in a pan over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Strain well and return to the pan.
• Whisk in cornstarch; simmer until thick, about 2 minutes. Cover and chill until cake has fully cooled.
• Very gently unroll the cooled cake. Carefully spread cranberry filling over top, leaving a 1/2 border with no filling. Gently re-roll the cake and place, seam-side down, on a serving platter. Refrigerate for up to 2 hours before serving.

ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with rack in lower third but not on bottom shelf. Prepare a 10-inch angel-food-cake pan: Using the pan as your guide, cut a circle from a piece of parchment paper; use it to line bottom of pan. Using a sieve, sift flour and 1/2 cup sugar onto another piece of parchment.
• Set sieve over a bowl, and return mixture to sieve; sift again and set aside.
• Place egg whites in a large mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed until frothy, about 1 minute. Add the cream of tartar, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt; continue beating until soft peaks form, about 2 1/2 minutes. With mixer running, add remaining cup sugar a little at a time, beating no longer than 1 minute.
• Raise speed to medium-high; continue beating until firm, but not stiff, peaks form (when beater is lifted, only the tip of the peak should fall over slightly). Gently transfer egg-white mixture to a large, wide bowl. Sprinkle a third of the reserved flour mixture over the whites. Using a whisk, gently combine in a folding motion, allowing batter to fall through the whisk as you fold. Sprinkle remaining flour mixture over whites in two more batches; fold until just combined. Be careful not to overmix because the egg whites will deflate.
• Using a large rubber spatula, transfer batter to prepared pan. Run a knife gently through the center of the batter to remove any large air bubbles. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean and cake is springy to the touch, 45 to 50 minutes.
• Remove pan from oven and invert onto its legs, making sure cake clears the surface of the counter. (If using a tube pan, invert it and hang over the neck of a bottle.) Let cool completely, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. To remove cake, reinvert pan, top side up. Run a knife around the inner and outer edges of the cake before releasing the bottom. Cake will keep up to 2 days at room temperature in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic. To serve, slice with a serrated knife.

STRAWBERRY ANGEL FOOD CAKE DESSERT

Steps:

• 1. Prepare angel food cake according to package directions and let cool completely.
• 2. Tear up angel food cake and lay in bottom of 9X13 pan.
• 3. Make Jello according to directions.
• 4. Add cut up strawberries to jello and pour mixture over cake.
• 5. Put in fridge until jello thickens.

ANGEL FOOD ROLL WITH CRANBERRY FILLING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Lightly grease a 10x15 inch jellyroll pan with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup of superfine sugar, cake flour and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, whip egg whites until foamy. Add vanilla and cream of tartar, and continue to whip. Gradually sprinkle in the remaining superfine sugar while continuing to whip the egg whites to firm peaks. Sift the flour mixture over the egg whites and fold in by hand using a rubber spatula. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.
• Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the center of the cake springs back when lightly pressed. Cool in the pan over a wire rack. Generously sift sugar over the top of the cake, and cover with a clean towel. Run a spatula around the outside of the cake in the pan to loosen, and turn out onto the towel. Remove the parchment paper from the back of the cake, then place it back on loosely. Roll up with the towel loosely from short end to short end, and allow to cool in the rolled position.
• In a saucepan over medium heat, combine 1 cup of white sugar, cranberries and water. Simmer until the cranberries burst, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the cornstarch, and simmer just until thick, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate.
• Unroll the cake so that it is sitting flat on the towel. Spread the cooled cranberry filling over the top, leaving 1/2 inch border. Use the towel to help you keep a grip on the cake for an even roll. Roll up from short end to short end and place seam side down onto a platter. Refrigerate until serving.
• Whip cream with confectioners' sugar until soft peaks form. Serve slices of cake with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream.

NO-BAKE STRAWBERRY ANGEL FOOD CAKE WITH WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• First, let the strawberries and Cool Whip rest on the counter. The strawberries will mix with the Jell-o better if they're not rock hard, and the Cool Whip will incorporate better if it's a little soft.
• Slice the angel food cake into 1/2 to 1-inch pieces using a serrated knife, and spread half of the angel food cake pieces on the bottom of the 9×13 inch dish. (Or a fun glass dish like a trifle bowl.)
• Bring two cups of water to a boil. In a large mixing bowl, combine the water and Jell-o powder. Stir until fully combined.
• Then, add the frozen strawberries and stir, breaking up the chunks until they have melted. Fold the Cool Whip a few dollops at a time into the strawberry mixture, stirring gently to combine without deflating the dessert. Again, you can leave it a little less than uniformly combined, but you want it well-mixed.
• Spread half the mixture over the cake. Add the remaining cake, then cover with the remaining mix. Spread to ensure the cake is fully covered.
• Alternatively, you can combine all the cake and mix in a large bowl. You may prefer this method if you're serving the dessert in a trifle or glass bowl.
• Chill in the fridge four hours or overnight. If the cake feels wet or jiggles, it's not set.
• To glam it up, you can cover the chilled cake with Cool Whip, or garnish or decorate the top with sliced strawberries.

RASPBERRY ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• In a bowl, beat egg whites until frothy; beat in cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Add the extracts. Gradually beat in sugar until stiff, scraping bowl occasionally. Sift flour over beaten whites; sprinkle with berries. Gently fold flour and raspberries into batter until well mixed. Pour into an ungreased 10-in. tube pan. , Bake at 325° for 40-45 minutes or until lightly browned and entire top appears dry. Immediately invert the pan; cool completely, about 1 hour.

CRANBERRY CAKE ROLL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan with waxed paper; grease the paper and set aside., Add vanilla, cream of tartar and salt to egg whites; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, on high until stiff glossy peaks form and sugar is dissolved. Fold in flour, about 1/4 cup at a time., Carefully spread into prepared pan. Bake until cake springs back when lightly touched, 15-20 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes. Turn cake onto a kitchen towel dusted with confectioners' sugar. Gently peel off waxed paper. Roll up cake in the towel jelly-roll style, starting with a short side. Cool completely on a wire rack. , For filling, in a large saucepan, combine the cranberries, sugar and 4 Tbsp. water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5-6 minutes or until berries pop. Mash berries; strain, reserving juice and discarding pulp. Return juice to the pan and if desired, add chopped candied orange peel, orange liqueur and orange zest. Combine cornstarch and remaining water until smooth; gradually add to cranberry juice mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until thickened, about 2 minutes. Chill., Unroll cake and spread filling to within 1/2 in. of edges. Roll up again. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving. If desired, top with additional confectioners' sugar, candied orange peel and sugared cranberries. Refrigerate leftovers.

LOAF PAN ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Position a rack in the bottom of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with aluminum foil, allowing the foil to hang over the long sides by at least 1 inch. Do not grease the pans.
• Whisk together the flour and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Whisk the egg whites in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment at medium speed just until they start to look foamy, for 30 seconds. Add the lemon juice and cream of tartar and beat on high speed until soft peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Gradually add the sugar in a slow, steady stream and beat until thickened and shiny, about 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the orange extract and vanilla bean seeds, then decrease to the lowest speed. Add the flour and salt mixture in a steady stream and beat until just combined.
• Turn off the mixer as soon as all the flour is added. Fold the mixture with a rubber spatula once or twice to make sure the flour is fully incorporated. Divide the mixture evenly between the two prepared pans.
• Bake on the bottom rack of the oven until puffed and slightly golden brown on top, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool the cakes upside down by balancing the edges of each pan on two cans or jars, 15 to 20 minutes. Once completely cooled, remove the cakes from the pan, peel off the foil and serve.