Deluxe Angel Food Cake

ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• About 30 minutes before making the cake, place an egg separator over a small bowl. Crack each egg over the egg separator to separate the whites from the yolk. (save the yolks for another recipe.) Transfer egg whites to a 2-cup measuring cup until there are 1 1/2 cups of egg whites.
• Place the egg whites in a clean large bowl, and let stand at room temperature up to 30 minutes.*
• Move the oven rack to the lowest position; remove other oven rack. Heat the oven to 375°F. In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar and flour; set aside.
• Add the cream of tartar to the egg whites; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until mixture looks foamy. On high speed, beat in the granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time; add the vanilla, almond extract and salt with the last addition of sugar. Continue beating until meringue is stiff and glossy. Do not underbeat.
• Sprinkle the powdered sugar-flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, over the meringue; to fold in, use a rubber spatula to cut down vertically through the batter, then slide the spatula across the bottom of the bowl and up the side just until sugar-flour mixture disappears. When all sugar-flour mixture has been folded in, spoon the batter into an ungreased 10x4-inch angel food (tube) cake pan. Using a metal spatula or knife, gently cut through the batter, spreading batter gently against side of pan and tube, to break large air pockets.
• Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until cracks in cake feel dry and top springs back when touched lightly. Immediately turn pan upside down onto a heatproof funnel or bottle. Let cake hang about 2 hours or until completely cool.
• Remove pan from funnel. Loosen the cake by running a knife or long metal spatula between the cake and side of pan. Place a serving plate upside down on pan; turn plate and pan over together and remove pan. (If pan has a removable bottom, remove side of pan, then carefully run a knife or long metal spatula between cake and pan bottom. Carefully remove bottom.) To cut cake, use a long serrated knife in a sawing motion, or use an electric knife.

DELUXE ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Beat egg whites (at room temperature) and salt until foamy on high speed in electric mixer.
• Add cream of tartar; beat until soft peaks form.
• Add 1 cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, beating until stiff peaks form.
• Sift remaining 1/2 cup sugar and cake flour together.
• Gently fold sugar/flour mixture into egg whites, scraping down the sides of the bowl, turning over in direction of figure "8".
• Lightly spoon mixture into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan.
• Bake at 375ºF for 30-35 minutes.
• Invert cake onto bottle to completely cool (generally takes 2 hours).
• Remove cake from pan by running a sharp knife around the sides and gently pressing on bottom to loosen.

ANGEL FOOD CAKE--DELUXE

Steps:

• .Heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Stir together cake flour and confectioner's sugar; set aside.
• In a large mixer bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt until foamy.
• Add the granular sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, beating at high speed until the meringue holds stiff peaks. (This takes up to 10 minutes.).
• Gently fold in the extracts by hand.
• Sprinkle the flour-confectioner's sugar mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, over the meringue, folding it in gently just until flour-sugar mixture disappears. DO NOT OVER-MIX OR CAKE WILL BECOME TOUGH!
• Push batter into ungreased tube pan, turning it several times to fill pan evenly. Gently cut through the batter with a knife to remove air bubbles.
• Bake 30-35 minutes or until the top springs back when touched lightly with finger.
• Remove from oven and immediately invert the tube over weighted glass bottle; let hang upside down until cake is completely cool (about 2 hours.).
• To remove cooled cake from tube pan, loosen first by moving table knife up and down against side of pan. Next, turn the pan over and hit one side; the cake will slip out onto the platter.

ANGEL FOOD CAKE DELUXE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375º.
• Mix flour and powdered sugar.
• Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in large bowl on medium speed until foamy.
• Beat in granulated sugar on high speed, 2 tablespoons at a time, adding vanilla, almond extract and salt with the last addition of sugar; continue beating until meringue holds stiff peaks. Do not underbeat.
• Sprinkle flour-sugar mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, over meringue, folding in gently just until mixture disappears.
• Spread in ungreased tube pan, 10 × 4 inches. Gently cut through batter with spatula.
• Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until cracks feel dry and top springs back when touched lightly. Immediately invert pan onto heatproof funnel; let hang until cake is completely cool.