The American Angel Cake (English: angel food cake), or angel cake, owes its name to its lightness.
It first appeared in a cookbook in 1839, The Kentucky Housewife by Lettice Bryan, opening the path to butter-free cakes.
➡To prepare it, you must whip the egg whites at room temperature until very stiff with cream of tartar, sugar, and gradually add the flour, preferably soft wheat.
➡Once baked, leave the cake in its mold inverted until it cools.
The Angel Cake is very similar to the Chiffon Cake, both cakes share the following:
– both are dairy-free
– they are baked in the same mold, which should not be greased or floured, nor lined – and go in the oven at a moderate temperature (300°F)
– they must be removed from the oven immediately and left to cool upside down
What are the differences?
– The angel cake has less fat;
– the chiffon cake contains oil, baking powder, and whole eggs in its batter.
The American angel cake should not be confused with the British namesake dessert, which consists of three layers of sponge cake in white, pink, and yellow colors separated by a layer of cream.
This version of mine is enriched with crumbled amaretti.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 6 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 12 egg whites
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
- as needed butter
- 6 soft amaretti
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 pinch salt
Tools
- 1 Baking Pan Angel Cake
Steps
Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer until very stiff with the cream of tartar and a pinch of salt.
Gradually add the sugar, one tablespoon at a time, while continuing to work.
Gradually add the sifted flour with the help of a spatula, blending from bottom to top to avoid deflating the mixture and achieve a soft and voluminous consistency.
Then transfer the batter into the mold, without greasing or flouring it.
Bake in a preheated static oven in the middle section for about 40 – 45 minutes at 300°F.
Immediately remove from the oven and invert the mold, lifting the dedicated legs to let the cake cool upside down for about 1 hour.
When it’s cold, brush the top with a thin layer of melted butter and sprinkle crumbled amaretti over it.
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The best amaretto is certainly the one from Sassello, a small town in the Ligurian hinterland; they fall into the category of “Soft Amaretti” and must be produced with sugar, apricot kernels (armelline), almonds, and egg white.
They appear as small hemispheres with a cracked surface and a soft interior; they have the characteristic almond aroma with that “amaretto” note.
