Well Father’s Day has gone by in a blur and I didn’t have a minute to myself to bake a cake for the husband so I am going to try something different for him involving the “[amazon_textlink asin=’B000IXUJ8M’ text=’Hershey Kisses’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’wwwlovetobake-21′ marketplace=’UK’ link_id=’0280b25a-54e2-11e7-a4c2-7d8aa3b6766c’]” which are still hidden in the cupboard. I am off to try a variation on the standard genoisé sponge.
To make one of these cakes you will need:-
- a ring dish, either glass or metal of some description.
- a whisk, handheld or standing.
- a palette knife to help remove the cake when it is baked.
- a sieve to ensure there are no lumps in the dry ingredients before they are folded in.
- a metal spoon or spatula for folding in the flour and icing sugar.
I have made a visual aid here of the above equipment which are readily available from Amazon.
Today, I am baking an Angel Food Cake which originated in the USA and became popular in the 19th century. If you look online there are many variations on this recipe but the main ingredients are egg whites, sugar and plain flour. I thought I would try an Angel Food Cake recipe but when I have researched what ingredients were needed I realised I did not have everything in stock and as it is too hot today to go to the shop I have improvised and changed the recipe to suit. A lot of recipes I have seen include plain flour and sugar which is great as they are present in cake recipes which I have used in the past but many of the angel cake recipes included [amazon_textlink asin=’B00MWVE70E’ text=’cream of tartar’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’wwwlovetobake-21′ marketplace=’UK’ link_id=’b4ffd7c3-54e1-11e7-ac48-ff67a5cbbb88′] which I have substituted with lemon juice. The cream of tartar helps to strengthen the stiffened egg whites before the flour is added but white vinegar or lemon juice can be used instead. Also I added [amazon_textlink asin=’B007CX69F8′ text=’cornflour’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’wwwlovetobake-21′ marketplace=’UK’ link_id=’cc3417a1-54e1-11e7-8c10-1fa366043d81′] , not too much though, which helps to stabilise the foam. The cornflour combined with the lemon juice should give a soft texture to the cake. Fingers crossed.
The cake is in the oven as we speak or as I write. 🙂 I am quite excited about what it is going to turn out like.
The best advice I have found to try and help with the method is from Fine Cooking.com. This writer has included all the reasons about why you have to follow certain steps in the method to achieve the best results you can. I will be joining this community as I feel they have lots of wonderful information to share.
Well the cake is baked. It is now cooling upside down on the cooling tray in the hope that gravity will cause the sponge to stretch on cooling to form a higher sided cake. Only time will tell. The fun part will be removing the cake from the ungreased dish. I am hoping that it will drop down naturally as it cools. Otherwise, it is palette knife at the ready and all hands on deck. It looks quite good from here and it helps that the dish is glass so I can see quite a lot from this side. It looks to have a similar texture to a genoisé sponge. Due to the amount of eggs which are used I think this type of cake will be for special occasions only as the baker/mother in me is thinking what will I make with the yolks and what a waste of eggs even though I have saved the yolks. I will just have to come up with some ideas for the egg yolks.
As you can see the Angel Food Cake turned out very well. I have drizzled the chocolate over the top, white and milk chocolate. I have tried to take some photos of the chocolate as it drizzles on to the cake. I added the kisses to sit in the centre of the cake (only a small bag) rather than sticking them on the cake like I normally would. As they say “the proof of the pudding is in the eating” so I am going to have a piece but I will wait and try it with my husband at lunchtime. The anticipation is killing me. I am really too hot sat here now so I am off out for a break before I add the final photos. Sorry 🙂
The Angel Food Cake has been tasted, talked about and passed with flying colours. The texture was soft and light, very springy just like it was made in heaven by the angels themselves. The chocolate was just perfect for complimenting the vanilla sponge and the kisses were a real treat. The children are going to love it.
The recipe for this Angel Food Cake is below:-
[lt_recipe name=”Angel Food Cake” servings=”10″ prep_time=”20M” cook_time=”35M” total_time=”55M” summary=”Nutritionally, one slice contains 276 calories, 8.4g total fat (11% daily total fat), 44.7g total carbohydrate (16% daily total carbohydrate), 2g fibre (7% daily fibre) (based on a 2000 calorie diet).” print=”yes” image=”https://www.love-to-bake.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/fathersdayangel12.jpeg” ingredients=”For the cake:;4oz plain flour;3oz icing sugar;6 egg whites;4oz caster sugar;1 tsp lemon juice;1 tbsp cornflour;1 tsp vanilla essence;1/4 tsp salt;For the decoration:;2oz milk chocolate;2oz white chocolate;Hersheys Kisses or any other sweet.” ]Preheat the oven to Gas 4.;In a mixing bowl whisk the egg whites till frothy.;Add the salt, caster sugar, lemon juice and vanilla essence.;Whisk till forming peaks.;Add the cornflour and continue to whisk till very stiff peaks formed.;Sieve in the flour and icing sugar.;Fold gently into the egg whites trying not to lose too much air from the mixture.;Transfer to a ring dish.;Bake for 35 minutes till springs back when touched.;Remove from the oven and turn upside down for cooling.;This helps to stop the cake collapsing.;Using a palette knife ease the cake from the dish when cooled.;Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of boiling water.;Drizzle onto the cake.;Add the sweets to the centre of the cake.[/lt_recipe]
This recipe contains eggs in large quantities but it can be made gluten free by using gluten free flour. I don’t think it would work if you reduced the sugar content as the sugar plays a vital role in helping the egg whites produce volume which is vital for the cake so it is not suitable for a diabetic diet or for anyone allergic to eggs.