Angel Food Cake

My mom learned how to make this scrumptious cake at a Relief Society meeting. I absolutely LOVE it. It's a bit complex (but not really! It sounds harder than it is), but it's worth the effort!

Angel Food Cake

Tips Before You Start:

• If you don't have an angel food pan, the DI usually has one for $1-1.50!
• Use two pieces of wax or parchment paper to sift flour on. It makes it easy to pour back and forth into the sifter. Save the paper and put it in the cake flour box for easy access the next time you make this yummy treat!
• Eggs separate best when cold then warm at room temperature. If in a hurry--put egg whites into a jar with a tight-fitting lid and put in a bowl of hot tap water to bring them to room temp.
• Egg whites wont beat properly if any yolk get in them... so separate the whites from the yolk one at a time, using a separate bowl, just in case!

Ready, Set... BAKE!

• 1 cup plus 2 TBSP of cake flour (sift before measuring)
• After sifting and measuring, add 1/2 cup of sugar and sift an additional 5 times
• Using a mixer (make sure the bowl is GREASE FREE!), beat 1 & 2/3rd cup of room temperature egg whites until foamy (about 10 eggs, give or take)
• Add 1&1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar and 1/2 tsp of salt
• Continue beating until egg whites are glossy, fine grained, and form peaks
• Fold 1 cup of sugar, a little at a time
• Fold in 1 tsp of Vanilla (or for you peeps that like nasty almond flavor, 1/2 tsp of vanilla and 1/2 tsp of almond flavoring)
• Add flour mixture by hand in fourths with a sifter. Use about 15 folding strokes after each addition. After the last addition, fold another 10 strokes.
• Pour into and un-greased, dry 10-inch tube pan. Cut through batter with a knife to release large air bubbles.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes.
• To test cake for doneness, touch the cracks. They should feel dry and no imprint should remain. Invert pan on a pop bottle and allow cake to cool completely before removing from pan.
• Top with sliced, fresh strawberries and homemade whipped cream! If you want your strawberries to be a little syrupy, place sliced strawberries in a bowl with some sugar while the cake bakes. The juices will mix with the sugar to make a simple syrup.