Maple Nut Angel Food Cake

GRANDMA LORRAINE'S APPLE ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Place apples in large bowl with 1 can soda and 1 1/2 cups water. Let sit for 5 minutes.
• In a large skillet over medium heat melt butter. Add brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup, cinnamon and salt. Stir until sugar has dissolved and starts to simmer. Add apple brandy, pecans, raisins and apples. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for about 15 minutes or until apples are tender and liquid has reduced to a syrupy consistency.
• Slice angle food cake into wedges and top each slice with apple mixture.

HOMEMADE ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift cake flour and confectioners sugar together 5 times and set aside.
• In a large clean bowl, whip egg whites with a pinch of salt until foamy. Add cream of tartar and continue beating until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar while beating, and continue to beat until very stiff. Add vanilla.
• Quickly fold in flour mixture. Pour into a 10 inch tube pan.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes.

LEMONY ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Make the cake: Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with rack in lower third of oven. Sift flour and 1/2 cup sugar into a bowl.
• Whisk whites with a mixer on medium speed until frothy, about 1 minute. Add lemon zest and juice, cream of tartar, vanilla, and salt; continue whisking until soft peaks form, about 2 1/2 minutes. With mixer running, gradually add remaining cup sugar.
• Increase speed to medium-high; continue whisking until firm, not stiff, peaks form, about 7 minutes. Sprinkle whites with 1/3 of the flour-sugar mixture. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold to combine. Sprinkle remaining flour-sugar mixture over whites in 2 additions; gently fold to combine.
• Transfer batter to a 10-inch angel food cake pan with legs. Gently run a knife through the center of the batter to remove any air bubbles. Bake until a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes.
• Remove pan from oven, and invert onto its cooling legs (if your tube pan doesn't have legs, invert it over the neck of a wine, or similarly shaped, bottle to cool); let cool, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Run a knife around the inner and outer edges of cake to remove. Invert onto a serving platter. (Use a knife to separate cake from bottom of pan.) Let cool on a wire rack. Unfrosted cake can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
• Make the lemon cream: Prepare an ice-water bath. Whisk lemon juice, sugar, flour, and salt in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil; whisk constantly for 1 minute, until it thickens. Transfer to a heatproof bowl set in ice-water bath to cool completely, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, whisk cream and lemon zest with a mixer on medium speed until medium peaks form, about 3 minutes. Gently fold whipped cream into juice mixture in thirds. Refrigerate lemon cream, up to overnight.
• Make the candied lemon-peel flowers: Combine sugar and water in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, using a vegetable peeler, peel 3 lemons to create 6 long strips (at least 5 inches long and about 1/2 inch wide). Remove pith from strips using a paring knife. Cut tops and bottoms off remaining 3 lemons; cut each in half lengthwise. Remove flesh. Cut out 6 flowers from the peels using a 2-inch flower-shaped cookie cutter and remove pith; cut indentations into petals for definition. Punch a hole in the center of each flower using a 1/4-inch plain round piping tip.
• Add lemon-peel strips and flowers to the syrup. Gently simmer until translucent and tender, about 35 minutes. Remove peels from syrup using a slotted spoon, and transfer to a wire rack set over a parchment. Let dry slightly, about 30 minutes.
• Trim strips to 5-inch lengths, and roll each to form centers of flowers; fit into flower holes and let stand on wire rack until slightly dry but still sticky, about 30 minutes.
• Frost cake with lemon cream. Garnish with candied flowers. Serve.

MAPLE-PECAN CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Generously grease and lightly flour 12-cup fluted tube cake pan, or spray with baking spray with flour. In large bowl, beat cake ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan.
• Bake 47 to 53 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 2 hours.
• In large bowl, beat powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons butter, the cream cheese and 3 tablespoons of the syrup with electric mixer on low speed. Beat in enough of the remaining syrup to make a smooth, soft frosting that will flow down side of cake. Spread frosting over cake. Store loosely covered in refrigerator.

ANGEL FOOD CAKE I

Steps:

• Beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks, and then add cream of tartar, vanilla extract, and almond extract.
• Sift together flour, sugar, and salt. Repeat five times.
• Gently combine the egg whites with the dry ingredients, and then pour into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan.
• Place cake pan in a cold oven. Turn the oven on; set it to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Cook for about one hour, or until cake is golden brown.
• Invert cake, and allow it to cool in the pan. When thoroughly cooled, remove from pan.

MAPLE ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or using a hand mixer), whip the egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and salt and continue whipping until soft peaks form. With the mixer running, gradually add 1 cup of the granulated sugar and continue whipping until stiff and the sugar has dissolved, about 30 seconds more.
• Sift the remaining 1/4-cup of granulated sugar with the sifted cake flour 3 times, to aerate the mixture. Fold into the egg whites, then fold in the vanilla and maple syrup.
• Spoon the batter into an ungreased proper angel food pan or 6 miniature ones. Smooth the top with the back of the spoon. Bake until light golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool by hanging the cake (in the pan) upside down around the neck of a bottle until it cools to room temperature. Run a long, sharp knife blade around the cake to loosen, then knock the cake out onto a plate.
• Glaze: Stir the ingredients together until smooth. Pour over the top of the cake and spread with a spatula, letting the glaze trickle down the sides. Let set for at least 30 minutes before serving, or until the icing is hard. Cut with a serrated knife, using a sawing motion.

MAPLE NUT CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs until well blended. Beat in the syrup. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition. Fold in nuts. , Pour into two greased and floured 8-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely. , In a heavy large saucepan, combine the frosting ingredients. With a portable mixer, beat on low speed for 1 minute. Continue beating over low heat until frosting reaches 160°, about 8-10 minutes. , Pour into the bowl of a heavy-duty stand mixer. Beat on high until stiff peaks form, about 7 minutes. Frost between layers and over top and sides of cake.

PECAN ANGEL FOOD CAKE

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Sift flour twice; set aside. Add cream of tartar and vanilla to egg whites; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time, on high until stiff glossy peaks form. Gradually fold in flour, about 1/4 cup at a time. Fold in pecans., Gently spoon into an ungreased 10-in. tube pan. Cut through batter with a knife to remove air pockets. Bake on the lowest oven rack at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until lightly browned and entire top appears dry., Immediately invert pan; cool completely, about 1 hour. Run a knife around side and center tube of pan; remove cake. Serve with whipped cream if desired.

MAPLE NUT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease an 8x8 inch square pan.
• Cream the butter, add the sugar and continue creaming until light and fluffy.
• Beat in the eggs one at a time.
• Stir in the maple flavoring.
• Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
• Add the flour mixture in 3 parts alternately with the milk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour.
• Stir in the walnuts and pour in the prepared pan.
• Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes or until an toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Let cake cool completely, then frost with Maple Butter Frosting.