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Recipe Detail Page
Angel Food Cake with a Hint of Orange and Roasted Rhubarb Compote
Early Summer 2009
Angel food cake is one of the lightest cakes that exists and is traditionally made with true cake flour (not to be confused with cake and pastry flour), which can be quite hard to find. Using all-purpose flour in place of cake flour sacrifices little in texture and gives the cake slightly more flavour. The hint of orange in the cake lifts it out of the ordinary and combines beautifully with the Roasted Rhubarb Compote. When measuring flour for this cake, it is important to spoon the flour into a dry measuring cup, and then sweep the top level—thisavoids compressing the flour and adding more than a cup to the batter. Make sure your mixing bowl and beaters are very clean and that there are no traces of yolk in with the whites or the egg whites won't whip up properly. Be careful that you don't overbeat your egg whites: when you 're whipping this large a quantity of egg whites it can be hard to tell that their structure is changing until it’s too late. Be sure to lift out the beaters every minute or so to see if they have come to soft peak stage without your noticing it.
Serves 8 to 10
1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour
1 cup (250 mL) icing sugar
12 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 tbsp (15 mL) warm water
1 1⁄2 tsp (7 mL) cream of tartar
1⁄2 tsp (2 mL) kosher salt
1⁄2 tsp (2 mL) vanilla extract
2 tsp (10 mL) grated orange rind
3⁄4 cup (175 mL) superfine sugar
1 Sift together flour and icing sugar and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
3. Place egg whites and water in the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a large bowl and electric mixer) and whip until whites are frothy. Add cream of tartar, salt, vanilla and orange rind and continue mixing until soft peaks form. Add superfine sugar to whites about 1 tbsp (15 mL) at a time while beating until all the sugar has been added and the whites form soft, slightly droopy, peaks (about 2 minutes on medium speed). Sprinkle one-third of flour mixture over whites and use a rubber spatula to fold it in as carefully as possible so that egg whites don’t deflate too much. Repeat process with remaining flour, adding one-third at a time until it has been incorporated.
4. Gently transfer batter to an ungreased 10-inch (25-cm) angel food or tube pan and smooth top.
5. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the top of the cake is golden brown and springs back when touched.
6. Remove cake from oven and immediately invert pan onto its little feet (if it has them), or slide the cake pan onto the neck of a wine bottle so that it can cool upside down (this keeps the cake from “falling”) and leave until fully cool (about 45 minutes).
7. When cake is cool: turn cake pan right side up and slide the blade of a long and flexible knife around the edge of the pan to release the cake from the pan. Turn the pan on its side and tap the edge of the pan on the counter while turning to ensure that the cake isn't sticking anywhere, and remove from pan. Carefully peel top of pan, or parchment, away from the top of the cake, and place on a serving plate. Use a serrated knife to cut cake for serving.
Tip: If you are going to purchase a new angel food cake pan, look for one with a separate base as this makes removing the cake from the pan so much easier. If you are using a one-piece pan, line the base of the pan with a doughnut-shaped round of parchment paper.
Serves 8 to 10
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Roasted Rhubarb Compote
Roasting rhubarb in the oven brings out its flavour and allows it to keep its shape. Adding pomegranate juice to the baking dish enhances the colour of the compote and helps create deliciously syrupy juices.
