The Best Angel Food Cake

I have a confession- I am actually not a huge fan of boxed Angel Food Cake mix. My family loves it- but the flavor is just a bit off for me.

I have always wanted to love Angel Food Cake. I mean- its basically fat free! Not saying its completely guilt free- It still has sugar obviously, but hey if you going to eat a cake, its a good one to eat!

THE BEST Angel Food Cake from scratch! This cake has the most perfect texture and flavor! Once you make this, it will become your new favorite!

I have tried several homemade versions. All of which have been slightly disappointing unfortunately. They were all dense, heavy and just not what I was looking for.

Then, the wonderful day came where I stumbled across this recipe from Food Network. It. Is. AMAZING! I have made it 3 times since discovering it and it always a smashing success.

THE BEST Angel Food Cake from scratch! This cake has the most perfect texture and flavor! Once you make this, it will become your new favorite!

If you are looking for a treat, that’s light on fat- this is a PHENOMENAL recipe to make! NOTE: this recipe is 10 fold easier and quicker in my opinion to make if you have a stand mixer. Otherwise you will be beating for forever like 20-30 minutes forever. So its doable, just a little more tedious to stand there whipping it yourself.

The texture of this angel food cake is PERFECTION! You will LOVE everything about it!

THE BEST Angel Food Cake from scratch! This cake has the most perfect texture and flavor! Once you make this, it will become your new favorite!

4.6 from 16 reviews
The Best Angel Food Cake
 
This cake has the most perfect texture and flavor! Once you make this, it will become your new favorite!
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Ingredients
  • 1¾ cups sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup cake flour
  • 12 egg whites, room temperature
  • ⅓ cup warm water
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1½ teaspoons cream of tartar
Instructions
  1. Place sugar in a food processor and blend for two minutes, until sugar becomes very fine.
  2. In a small-medium bowl, combine cake flour, salt and half of the fine sugar. Sift together and set aside.
  3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  4. Combine egg whites, water, vanilla and cream of tartar in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients together for 2 minutes by hand until well combined. At this point, switch to a hand mixer or pour egg white mixture into bowl of a stand mixer and using a whisk attachment. Gradually add remaining half of sugar and Beat egg white mixture until medium peaks can be formed.
  5. Sprinkle some of the flour mixture over the top of egg white mixture. Gently stir in. Repeat until all of the flour mixture has been stirred evenly in.
  6. Spoon mixture into an ungreased tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes until golden brown in color and cake is cooked through.
  7. Invert cake pan and cool upside down (cake remaining in pan) until completely cooled.
  8. Once cooled, and carefully remove from pan, carefully scraping edges from sides.
Notes
Recipe from: Food Network

Enjoy!

If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #chefintraining and/or #chefintrainingblog. I would love to see how these recipes take shape in your kitchens.

Filed under: cake, dessert

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Comments

  1. Rachel Osborn

    Do you know if it matters if you buy a box of Just Whites or do you actually have to hand separate all the eggs? I hate wasting those yolks. :)

    1. sandy zoeller

      I use the yolks to make noodles. They are delicious!

    2. Cheryl L.

      I just came across your post and your question. I can tell you that I use All Whites, in the carton all the time for my homemade Angel Food Cakes. But mine also uses powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar. If you see this comment and would like the recipe I use, just let me know.

    3. laura

      how much of the egg whites in the carton is equal to how many eggs?

    4. julia

      It will tell on the carton

    5. Sharon

      Cheryl, I would love to have your recipe for homemade Angel Food cake. I would like to try it rather than the usual boxed mix. I like the idea of using a carton of egg whites and I think the powdered sugar would make it light. If you would share the recipe, I would really appreciate it.

  2. sue|theviewfromgreatisland

    5

    I'm plugging in my KitchenAid now - this really does look amazing, and I want to perfect the method so I'm ready when the spring berries start showing up!

  3. Averie @ Averie Cooks

    This looks like THE perfect angel food cake! I admit I almost never make angel food but now I want to start because this looks do-able and with totally spot-on amazing results! Pinned of course!

  4. Laura Louis

    What happened to the reserve sugar?

    1. Chef in Training

      So Sorry about that typo. You add the remaining sugar to the egg whites gradually. Again, so sorry for the typo and it is all fixed now. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

  5. Megan Nelson

    I love alot of your recipes there so great but for this recipe could i use all purpose instead of cake flour

  6. Judy S.

    Is cake flour different from regular flour?

    1. Chef in Training

      yes. You can make a homemade version though if you can't find any.

  7. Janet

    What do you do with the rest of the fine sugar??? It only says add half of the fine sugar to the salt and flour mixture.

    1. Chef in Training

      so sorry about that typo! You add it to the egg whites gradually. It is corrected now. Thanks for bringing it to attention.

  8. Debbie Conrad

    My mom always made homemade angel food cake for our birthdays. A box cake is not anywhere close! I can't wait to try this recipe. Is powdered sugar the same as sugar ground in the food processor? I don't have one.

    1. Chef in Training

      no unfortunately its not the same thing. This just makes the sugar granules really fine.

    2. Veronica

      You can buy something called "super fine sugar". It normally comes in a box near the powdered sugar in the grocery store.

  9. Karen

    does the recipe really said mix the egg white with water?will it still form peaks?haven't tried it though.

  10. Vickie Langhals

    Angel food cake. Yummy!!! Do you have a suggestion what to do with the egg yolks? Could you use the egg whites in a carton? Thank you.

    1. Veronica

      Make a pastry cream or a custard to go on top of the cake. Make creme brulé. Glaze pretzels. Bake challah bread. There are so many yummy possibilities!

    2. Charlotte

      I'm going to make Lemon Curd and hollandaise with my leftover yolks.

  11. Merri

    3

    Love angel food cake! Was anxious to try this recipe. I was very careful to follow the recipe exactly like you have it posted. After 35 minutes it was clearly not done, I kept adding 5 minutes - 3x's. The top browned nicely but it fell once I took it off the inverted bottle. It could have stayed in the oven probably another 30 minutes from what you've got posted.

    1. Becci Clark

      Mine is also not cooking after 40 minutes so I'm adding another 10 to see if that works

    2. Judy

      4

      I had the same experience with the first one I made. It looked great and had raised to the top of the pan in the 35 minutes. When I took it out and tried to turn it over, it started falling out of the pan. I quickly put it upright and back in the oven, thinking it had not cooked long enough. It fell while finishing the cooking process and was compressed when I took it out - unusable for the dessert at my granddaughter's bridal shower. I made a second one and happened to beat it a little stiffer. It was cooked in a 9x13 pan because the first one wasn't cool enough to remove it from the angel food pan. It cooked in the right amount of time and stayed put when I turned the pan over to allow it to cool. I don't think the cooking time is the problem. I think the instruction to whip the liquid to medium peaks is not quite long enough. I will continue to whip the liquid beyond what I consider to be medium peaks and try it again in the angel food pan.
      Also, I used regular all-purpose flour and sifted it three times to approximate cake flour. I have done that before and had good results.

  12. Anum

    What is cake flour? All purpose flour??

  13. Julie

    5

    Made this recipe yesterday and it was amazing! I served it at a dinner party and everyone loved it. The recipe is going in my saved file so I can make it again. Thanks for sharing!

  14. Celisse

    I just tried making this recipe and it didn't work at all, my cake came out with lumps and bums and was super dense:/ any idea of how i messed it up because I followed the recipe to a T.

  15. mrstkdsd

    5

    I made this and it turned out awesome! First time to make an angel food cake, so I was thrilled. I want to try to make a chocolate one -- do you think I can add cocoa powder to this recipe?

    Thanks.

  16. Kathryn

    This be made using a sheet cakepan? If so, for how long and at what temperature would one bake it?

  17. Chris

    looks amazing..... I will try for sure..... I will also add 1/4 c. Of cocoa powder and make chocolate angel food cake! Thanks!

  18. Marcia Slaughter

    Would that recipe work at high altitude? I assume I would reduce the amount of sugar, but would there be anything else that should be done? We live at about 7000 ft.

  19. Dot

    My deceased mother was famous for her sky high angel food cakes. They would rise so high that she tried every thing to make then not be so tall because they put others cakes to shame at potlucks or showers when she was asked to bring an angel food. She always said her secret was to beat the egg whites with a two pronged fork like her grandfather did. Can you imagine? I will try this recipe to see if I can get results like Mom's. I do win a blue ribbon at the fair every year. I only had one competitor, now she is deceased so I will be the only one entering. I just wish that I would have asked mom which recipe she used. Anxious to try this recipe.

  20. Ange

    tell me, could you colour this cake? I am doing a rainbow cake for my sons birthday and this looks divine, but wondering if the food colouring will change the results?

  21. Allison

    I'm in Australia and gonna try and make this... Temp is in c not f here and its a convection oven. Help! What temp for how long?

  22. simplybo

    Hi thanks for this cant wait to try it! Just wondering, instead of processing the sugar (as i dont have a food processer), could I just use caster sugar instead? Not exactly what the difference is and not sure why recipes call for one or the other.
    Thanks

  23. Sjannette Hagoort

    Hi Nikki. I am wanting to make this delicious looking angel food cake. Please tell me what you mean by cake flour? Is it plain flour, high grade flour or self raising flour perhaps? I am in NZ so may have different mixes from you. Perhaps a different mix all together. I enjoy following your "chef in training".

  24. Kathi Nichols

    I made this last night and loved it. Had a slight problem in the appearance. The sides were lumpy not straight like your picture. What did I do wrong? Did I beat too long to form medium peaks? I guessed about how firm that should be. I am an inexperienced baker, so I need guidance. Thanks.

  25. Kristi

    5

    Made this last night and it was great! Really good flavor and texture. Ate way too much...:)

  26. Linda

    Can the flour be substituted with white whole wheat flour and the sugar to stevia for a diabetic cake?

    1. Mishel

      From what I just read online, the sugar, even the amount of sugar, is necessary. It can't be omitted or even reduced for this cake to work.

  27. Meridith Gray

    The batter was amazing!!! My only concern is that the fluted bundt pan I used is too small and that my cake will rise too high. For that reason I withheld some of the batter and may use one of my mini bundt pans next time. Will see how much it rises?! Hopefully not up and over.... Fingers crossed.

  28. Taylor Doc

    I made this last night for my family and when I woke up this morning there was only one slice of the cake left! It was delicious and soft and fluffy! I'll probably make it again tonight! Thank you for the wonderful recipe!

  29. Joe

    Hey, can you tell me why the water is used in this recipe? We tried it 3 times ( a friend requested that cake) and it failed to rise or for us to be able to get the peaks that would be needed. Looking at other sources I haven't seen many that say to use water, so what is it for here? Its the only thing I can think in this recipe thats not working or a normal standard.

  30. Asha

    What can I ise in place of cream of tartar

    1. iVONNE

      LEMON JUICE

  31. Belinda Rowland

    How do you keep a angel food cake from falling as it cools?

  32. Anita

    I just made this. It looks so pretty. First time I have made one from scratch! Thanks! ☺

  33. Joyce

    5

    I have made this cake for the 3rd time today. I am taking to our neighbor's for their Memorial Day cook out. Fresh fruit and whip topping. My hubby ate half of this cake the first time I made it and almost left none for our daughters! hahaha! It is also great to drizzle chocolate syrup on if you don't have fresh fruit. Thanks for this recipe, by for the best way for me to use the over abundance of fresh eggs my chickens are giving me. Awesome!

  34. Marilyn Amico

    I followed the directions exactly and it fell out as it cooled! What a waste
    Of ingredients.

    1. Patti

      Did you cool it totally while it was inverted? That's supposed to work if the cake is totally baked.

  35. Lucy

    Outstanding; will use this for a shower cake!

  36. Poppy

    5

    I cannot even thank you enough for posting this!!! My Angel food cakes are beautiful, we have an Urban Farm so I am lucky to use such fresh eggs it makes for even bigger cakes! Love this recipe.

  37. Maggie

    My first ever internet review, but this cake totally earned it! Delicious, super springy, and moist. Hands down the best angel food cake I've ever tasted (husband, mom, and 7 year old all agree too)! I didn't have a stand mixer but my hand mixer with whisk attachment worked perfectly and definitely did not take 30 min to harden into peaks (I know because I timed it). Really didn't take long to make but I was very careful to follow your recipe exactly. Thank you so much for this recipe.❤️I'm sure I will be making this recipe again soon.

  38. Katrinna

    Does anything change for high altitude

  39. Anita

    Can these be converted into cupcakes?? im having a kids party where im making Rasberry Shortcake Cupcakes :) (do those sound good? haha)

  40. Jessica

    I don't hav the cake pan this recipe calls for... is that an issue?! Can I use a good ol' round cake pan?

  41. Elena

    Are there other pans I could use? I don't currently own a tube pan type thing. I would love to make this still though.

  42. Kathleen

    Hi, I want to try this recipe. But recently I had a homade angelfood cake I got at a farmers market. The ingredients were on ther. She uses jello, can you tell me how I would do this. It is a fabulous cake and different flavors. Thanks

  43. maryam

    Wat can i use In the absence of cream tartar pls.

  44. Debbie Summers

    My daughter made this and it's the best angel food cake I've ever eaten!

  45. Ron Clark

    5

    In made my angel food cake, was really like you said, came out bueatiful like a picture, the only thing I did different was use almond, but still it was you recipe your direction, thankyou

  46. Peggy

    5

    Best angel food cake recipe yet!!!

  47. TRACY SKAGGS

    5

    Made this for the third time today. We use a gluten free flour as my daughter has a gluten allergy. It turned out amazing all three times! thank you for a great recipe!

    1. Erica Lynne

      Tracy Skaggs--when using the gluten free flour, did you add xanthan gum? If so, how much? Thank you!!

  48. Farah

    Hi ... please give some ideas on what to do with 12 yolks....

  49. Tammy

    I am a diabetic but would love to try this. Could you use Splenda instead of sugar?? If you haven't, what are your thoughts about that change?

  50. Lisa deeter

    I have duck eggs, which are larger than chicken eggs, would I use less eggs?

  51. Jessica

    I tried this recipe this weekend. Turned out amazing! Thank You

  52. Netty

    I just made this recipe and let me tell ya. Magic. So light and fluffy! Thanks for sharing!

  53. Paige

    It turned out beautifully but when I inverted it immediately after taking it out of the oven it fell to the counter. Do I need to cool it in the pan a little before inverting it?

  54. Alicia

    5

    Could you use a bundt pan instead?

  55. Bonnie

    A question-- you don't need to beat the mixture until it has stiff peaks? Every angel food cake recipe I have made has called for that. 20-30 minutes of beating would seem to take it to stiff peak form. No? Thanks!

  56. Margaret Smith

    Totally wrong times written down!! So disappointed with this recipe!!! 12 egg whites wasted on a inaccurate recipe, that does not work! When I flipped my cake over to cool, it completely fell out. Very very upset! ?

  57. Patti

    I have made lots of angel food cakes and I wish I would have stayed with my fail safe recipe! This one also fell - mushy consistency - I followed recipe to the t and was careful in folding in the flour. Thank god I am using it in trifle where the consistency will be masked with the cream and fruit layer

  58. Morgan Utley

    My cake fell and kinda tasted like eggs, what did I do wrong?

  59. Natalie Wegner

    I have made this twice now. It is truly the best.

  60. Suzi Jaksa

    5

    This is the very best angel food recipe I have ever used. Thank you for sharing. It puts a smile on everyone's face.

  61. Jan Cornwell

    5

    Just after I got married an older neighbor lady told me to never preheat the oven. If you put cake in oven as it is heating, your cake will rise taller. I always do this, scratch or box cake, it always works.

  62. Net Hansen

    1

    honestly, I´ve tried this, not delicious. I would not waste more eggs on this.

  63. Amanda Mutchler

    I tried this recipe twice. And it did not work. Followed exactly what it said and it never got to the peak consistency.

  64. Jacqui Miller

    Why the warm water, I'm researching and comparing recipes yours is the only one I have found that adds water to the egg whites?

  65. Brad G

    5

    I have used this recipe for over 2 years and it always turns out amazing. Thank you so much