Angel Food Cake, or There's No Substitute for Actual Egg Whites

(see, it's ugly because i didn't grease it.)

Here's the scoop on egg whites:

You need the real deal. I tried egg beater's egg whites. It was a major fail. The contents of the "egg beaters" where clearly chemically very different. Egg whites are known for being fluffy/foamy and a little bit unstable, so I knew nearly instantly that the non-foaming "egg whites" were duds. So I dumped them, went through the egg white/yolk separation which was gross but shockingly fun. I also got to use the leftover egg yolks for chocolate mousse (the next post).

Needs:

12 oz. egg whites (About 12 large eggs)

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 cup cake flour or all-purpose flour (I used all-purpose minus a tiny bit)

1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

a tube pan (I used a bundt pan, I guess it worked ok)

a mixer

a light greasing agent for the pan (even though it says not to)

a bunch of spare bowls

something to store the leftover yolks in

Do:

• Separate out egg whites & yolks. Place egg whites in mixing bowl.
• Move the oven rack to the lowest position. Heat the oven to 375°F. 
• In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar and flour; set aside.
• Add the cream of tartar to the egg whites; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until mixture looks foamy. 
• On high speed, beat in the granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time; add the vanilla, almond extract and salt with the last addition of sugar. Continue beating until meringue is stiff and glossy. Do not underbeat!! STIFF AND GLOSSY FRIENDS, STIFF AND GLOSSY!
• Sprinkle the powdered sugar-flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, over the meringue. To fold in, use a rubber spatula to cut down vertically through the batter, then slide the spatula across the bottom of the bowl and up the side just until sugar-flour mixture disappears.
• Pour into very lightly greased pan. Use a knife to slowly break up any big air pockets. Only a few turns around the pan.
• Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until cracks in cake feel dry and top springs back when touched lightly. Immediately turn pan upside down onto a heatproof funnel or bottle. I used a bottle of cooking sherry because the neck was thin enough. Let cake hang over what you plan to serve it on, just in case, until completely cool.
• Use a knife to separate cake from pan when you're ready to flip it onto the serving plate

Raspberry sauce:

Needs:

10 oz. frozen raspberries, thawed

1/3 c simple syrup (aka 1/3 c hot water, 1/3 sugar fully incorporated)

2T  cornstarch

spatula

saucepan

Do:

Set syrup in raspberries, let mellow for a few minutes. Then add 1/3 c  of simple syrup and 2T cornstarch. Bring to a boil, let simmer for about 5 minutes. Then add raspberries and remove from heat. Once cooled, enjoy!

All recipes courtesy of the Betty Crocker cookbook my grandmother got me for Christmas. Because, you know, I'm gonna "have" to be all domestic and such when I get married. Angel Food Cake, Raspberry Sauce