If you’ve never had a homemade angel food cake, you’re in for a treat. It’s one of those things that tastes soooo much better when you make it fresh; I think it is totally worth the effort (and the investment in an angel-food cake pan). This recipe is from Gale Gand.
Cranberry Angel Food Cake
For the cake:
- 1 -1/2 cups egg whites — (from about 1 dozen eggs) at room temperature
- 1- 1/4 teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 -1/2 cups sugar
- 1-1/8 cup sifted cake flour (or substitute regular flour)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tangerine — or orange, zested
- 1 cup fresh cranberries –or thawed frozen
For the glaze:
- 2 tablespoons tangerine juice — or orange
- 2 tablespoons cranberry juice
- 1 tablespoon egg whites
- 1-1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or using an electric 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 sugar and continue whipping until stiff and the sugar has dissolved, about 30 seconds.
2. Sift the remaining 1/2-cup sugar with the pre-sifted cake flour 3 times, to aerate the mixture. Sprinkle this over the egg whites, then fold it in. Fold in the vanilla, zest, and cranberries.
3. Spoon the batter into an ungreased tube pan. Bake until light golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool by hanging the cake (in the pan) upside down around the neck of a glass bottle (wine bottle, soda etc.) 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. The outside of the cake will remain in the pan.
Glaze: Stir the ingredients together until smooth. Pour glaze over the top of the cake and spread with a spatula, letting it 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.