Maureen's Kitchen

Angel Food Cakes

by: MAureen hADDoCk

Often considered a symbol of spring, the egg is one of the most versatile foods available. At this time of year, I think about my childhood visits to my aunt and uncle’s farm where there were often too many eggs. A huge Pyrex bowl filled with eggs sat on the countertop. My aunt could whip up an angel food cake in minutes, and she was famous, locally, for her prizewinning Toasted Coconut Angel Food Cupcakes.

Angel food cakes have long been considered a treat because in the days before stand mixers they required extreme effort to create. Imagine how long it would take to whip air into egg whites by hand until stiff peaks formed. By the mid to late 1800s, tools like the hand-crank rotary eggbeater had been invented and by the 1900s stand mixers

appeared on the market.

In the early 1950s, Betty Crocker launched an angel food cake mix that contained powdered egg whites. Although mixes improved with each decade, they couldn’t replicate the angel food cakes my aunt used to make.

In the 1970s, recipes using angel food cake mixes as a base were featured in many magazines. I often used a mix to make Lemon Angel Food Slice or Spiced Autumn Angel Food Dessert. My favourite was Chocolate Angel Food Cake with Coffee Whipped Cream.

These days we have an exciting cake mix option. Kinnikinnick’s Gluten-Free Angel Food Cake Mix tastes just like homemade. The box contains the perfect blend of gluten-free dry ingredients to which one adds 1 ½ cups of real egg whites. If you don’t want to have loads of yolks left over, you can use Simply Egg Whites by Naturegg.

When making an angel food cake, it’s important to use grease-free baking utensils, mixing bowls, and pans. If I am concerned about traces of oil left from a previous recipe, I simply wipe the surface of the bowl with a vinegar-soaked paper towel and follow with a clear rinse.

The following recipe for homemade angel food produces a cake with a lovely texture. It isn’t too sweet, so it’s great with fruit and sauces. It is also quick and easy to make as long as you have a stand mixer. If you are fortunate enough to have an old family recipe that you love, be sure to type it out with instructions and a little history. Future generations will thank you.

Egg colour is determined by the genetics of the hen that produced it.

Vintage Angel Food Cake Toasted CoconutAngel Food Cupcakes

This is a smaller recipe, so the size of the pan determines the height of the cake. You will need a sieve or sifter for this recipe. Preheat the oven to 375°F

InGReDIenTS:

1 cup sifted cake and pastry flour. Sift first, then measure and level 1 ¼ cups fine granulated sugar (divide in half) 1 cup egg whites (8-10) ¼ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cream of tartar ½ teaspoon vanilla ½ teaspoon almond extract

ToASTInG CoConuT

Spread 2 cups of unsweetened, flaked coconut onto an aluminum cookie sheet. If you only have a few cupcakes, toast less coconut. Place the pan in a 350°F oven for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes. Set aside while you ice the cupcakes.

PRePARInG THe CuPCAkeS

Remove the paper liners from the cupcakes and invert them on a rack. Once cool, ice the bottom, which is now the top, and the sides, with your favourite buttercream icing. While the icing is still sticky, roll the cupcakes in toasted coconut. Let the cupcakes sit for an hour before eating, freezing, or serving. I can never wait that long because these fluffy treats are delicious.

Sift the flour with ½ cup of the sugar, together, twice, and set aside. Beat room temperature egg whites and salt until foamy. Once the eggs are foamy, sift in the cream of tartar. Add the remaining sugar, 4 tablespoons at a time, beating through each addition. Beat in the flavouring. Continue beating until the whites develop a nice sheen and form stiff peaks that hold their shape. A spoon will stand up in egg whites that are stiff enough. Next, gently fold the flour-sugar mixture into the egg whites in 4 separate lots, until no flour shows. Spoon the batter into an ungreased, ten-inch tube pan, cut batter with a knife to remove air pockets, and level the top with a spatula. Bake at 375°F for 35 to 45 minutes. This will produce a cake that is about three inches high. If you use a smaller pan to make a taller cake, just fill it to the ¾ mark. I often bake this recipe in my 7 ½-inch pan and use the extra batter to make a few cupcakes. When golden brown, remove the cake from the oven and invert the pan. Leave the cake in the pan to cool. To make cupcakes, line muffin tins with large cupcake wrappers and fill each to the ¾ mark. Cupcakes will bake within 15 minutes, and there is no need to invert them while they cool. If you plan to make delicious Toasted Coconut Angel Food Cupcakes, remove the wrappers while the cakes are still slightly warm.

The colourful eggs featured in our angel food cakes were a gift to Maureen from Maria and Elise Mann, the owners of a Saskatoon company called The Egg Mann. They are in the business of raising chickens, and know a good egg when they see one. These young entrepreneurs were the 2020 winners of the Get a Bigger Wagon Young Entrepreneur Awards - age 7 to 9 category.

Recipes in italics at www.getabiggerwagon.com Angel Food Tips and Tricks

• For a tall, 10-inch angel food cake, use a recipe calling for at least 1 ½ cups of whites. • Egg whites whip better when they are at least 3 days old and at room temperature. Grocery store eggs will be older than 3 days. • If you use grocery store eggs, you must store them in the fridge. If your eggs are farm fresh and they haven’t been washed, you can store them on the counter; washing removes nature’s protection. • A gift of farm fresh eggs could never be wasted at my house.

One dozen egg whites will yield a beautiful angel food cake, allowing me to make a Golden Angel Food Cake. Gord’s

Favourite Butterscotch Pudding also requires yolks. For other yolk-based recipes visit www.getabiggerwagon.com. • Angel food cakes are super easy to make, but if you’ve never made one, start with a Kinnikinnick brand mix which is sort of a hybrid between a cake mix and a scratch cake so you can add your own touches. • If you aren’t sure how fresh your eggs are, do the water test as outlined in the 1915 Five Roses Cookbook. Gently lower an egg into a bowl or tumbler filled with water. If it sinks to the bottom it is fresh. If it hovers in the middle, use it soon. If it floats, throw it away. • So many more hues than white and brown! Did you know that egg colour is determined by the genetics of the hen that produced it?

Maureen Haddock