Angel Food Cake

Here is recipe #2 from my Cooking Light cookbook. A light and spongy angel food cake. A friend of mine had just told me that she was wanting to make an angel food cake, that she didn't realize how easy it seemed, she had seen one being made on FoodTV, and she is correct when she said that they are simple. Just a few ingredients folded into whipped egg whites and bake it. That's it!

The temps have been in the high 70's this week and this angel food cake made the perfect strawberry shortcake!

Angel Food Cake
from: Cooking Light Desserts

1 cup sifted cake flour
1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
10 egg whites
1 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together flour and 1/4 cup sugar, set aside. Beat egg whites with a mixer at high speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar and salt; beat until soft peaks form. Add remaining 1 cup sugar, 2 Tbsp at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. Sift 1/4 cup flour mixture over egg white mixture, and fold in. Repeat procedure with remaining flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time. Fold in vanilla.

Spoon batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan, spreading evenly. Break air pockets by cutting through batter with a knife. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Invert pan, cool 40 minutes. Loosen cake from sides of pan using a narrow metal spatula; invert cake onto a serving plate.