Light-as-air angel food cake is beyond delicious! Try it with a big dollop of whipped cream and fresh berries.
Prep time: PT20M
Cook time: PT35M
Total time: PT115M
Rating
4.88 stars (171 reviews)
Keywords
Angel food cake, angel food cake recipe, how to make angel food cake
Ingredients
1¾ cups granulated sugar ((350g))
1 cup cake flour ((112g))
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups large egg whites ((10-12 large eggs) (355g))
1½ teaspoons cream of tartar
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
Categories
Dessert
Cuisine
American
Steps
Position an oven rack in the bottom third of your oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Have a 9 or 10-inch ungreased tube pan (16-cup capacity) ready.
Place the sugar in a food processor and blend until the sugar is very finely ground, about 1 minute. (This creates superfine sugar, perfect for dissolving into egg whites!) Remove 1 cup of the fine sugar (200g), leaving the rest in the food processor.
To the food processor, add the cake flour and salt. Pulse 10 times.
Set a fine mesh sieve over a medium bowl. Sift the reserved 1 cup of fine sugar into the bowl. Discard any large grains caught by the sieve.
Place the same sieve over a separate large bowl and add the sugar and flour mixture. Sift the sugar and flour together into the large bowl and set aside.
In a clean, large mixing bowl, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar. Use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat the egg whites on low speed until they turn frothy on top, about 1 minute.
Once the egg whites become frothy, increase the speed to medium and sprinkle the reserved 1 cup of fine sugar 1 tablespoon at a time into the egg whites. Once the sugar is incorporated, beat the egg whites until soft, glossy peaks form. This will take about 5 minutes overall. Add the vanilla and beat on low speed just until incorporated.
Sift a third of the flour and sugar mixture over the egg whites and gently fold in the dry ingredients with a spatula. Repeat two more times.
Transfer the batter to a clean, ungreased tube pan. Smooth the top and clean off the sides of the pan. Gently tap the pan on the counter a few times or run a knife or skewer through the batter to help break up any large air bubbles that may have gotten trapped.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Invert the pan onto the counter and allow the cake to cool upside-down in the pan for at least 1 hour. Most angel food cake pans have feet at the top so the cake can cool upside down but if yours doesn't just invert onto a wire rack.
Once the cake is completely cooled, run a thin knife along the outer edge between the cake and the pan, and around the center tube, then pull the center-piece out to remove the cake. Run the knife along the bottom of the pan and invert onto a cake stand. Place the cake on a serving plate and dust with powdered sugar, if desired. Serve alone or with whipped cream and berries.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 168 kcal
Carbohydrates: 37 g
Protein: 5 g
Fat: 0.3 g
Saturated Fat: 0.03 g
Sodium: 148 mg
Sugar: 29 g
Unsaturated Fat: 0.11 g
Reviews
Linda on 2025-07-02 (5 stars): This is the best angle food cake recipe. I made it for my daughter's birthday but I ended up eating most of it. I couldn't stop. This cake is so light and fluffy and delicious. I will make it again and I will eat all of it. It is very possible to eat the whole cake in one day. OMG is that to much!.? hahahahahaha
Afro on 2020-09-02 (5 stars): Hi john i m ur big fn . I always make cakes for my daughters birthday following ur recipies.
I have a question what is ur recomendation to bake cake in -
If i backe sponge cake or angel cake which oven settings i should use fan forced or grill? I have 3 options in my oven fan forced , fan grill and grill .
Yolonda King on 2020-08-05 (5 stars): This cake turned out amazing, the video was awesome, instructions were on point. I’ll make this cake again and again. Thank you!!!!
Curtis D Namanny on 2020-07-27 (5 stars): Oh my gosh- This angel food cake is amazing. First time I had made angel food cake from scratch. I made it last night, and used the loaf pan. It turned out perfect.
Would like to do a chocolate angel food cake using this recipe. Do you think 1/4 cup of cocoa would be ok to add?
All your recipes I have tried so far don't disappoint in the end product. Thank you.
Shanon on 2020-07-23 (5 stars): Great recipe and super delicious! Directions are a little inconsistent (like which mixer attachment to use as the whisk and paddle attachments were both mentioned at different occasions), and the grammatical errors could definitely use some cleaning up for an easier read/understanding, but other than that, the final product is wonderful!
Claudia on 2020-07-11 (5 stars): This cake came out perfect! My whole family loves it, thank you, John!
Isa on 2020-07-06 (5 stars): Really easy to make and sooo good! Thank you for this recipe.
John McW. on 2020-07-05 (5 stars): It really is like eating a cloud! Angel food cakes have always been a bit persnickety for me, but this one turned out great! Thank you as always for the fantastic recipes!
Cynthia Sy on 2020-06-23 (5 stars): My colleague love this recipe. You’re amazing!
Samantha S on 2020-06-22 (5 stars): I made this cake for Father's Day as a request from my father. I used an inverted pan but it must not have been a legitimate Angel Food Cake pan and, while the cake cooked nicely, it did not come out of the pan as nicely and rose way over the top. Therefore, make sure you have an Angel Food Cake pan! Otherwise, the recipe was simple to follow and my father and brother enjoyed it very much. I discovered that I am not a big fan of Angel Food Cake but it is not because the recipe was bad - it is because I do not care for marshmallows unless it is in a s' more. Thank you!
Shelia on 2020-06-20 (5 stars): I really liked the recipe but I didn't have came flour so will try again.....thanks for sharing
Sophia on 2020-06-20 (5 stars): I accidentally left the pan inside the oven while it was preheating! /: I'm really hoping it doesn't ruin it!
Sarah on 2020-06-18 (5 stars): I have binged watched so many of your videos since finding you on YouTube, including this one! As I watched it I grabbed my phone and ordered myself an angel food cake pan. It was delivered last week and today created the fluffiest angel food cake ever. It's golden, spongy and divine. Thank you so very much! I absolutely adore your videos and your recipes as well.
Veroinca on 2020-06-15 (5 stars): Thank you for posting the video! I have never even made a meringue but I was able to make this cake. It came out a little spongey for me, as in it didn't cut with a fork, but instead bent. I think it was likely due to my sub-par folding technique. Thanks again!
Elaina on 2020-06-14 (5 stars): It didn't last long cause everyone one loved it. Will be making it again and again and again! :)
Tori on 2020-06-11 (5 stars): I always judge new recipes on whether or not the effort is worth it or not (i.e. is the quality really worth spending the time and energy on or can I get pretty much the same thing from the store or a boxed mix), and this one is absolutely worth it! I've always been of the opinion that angel food cakes are sort of bland and overrated, but decided to give making my own a shot, and it has totally changed my mind on them. This recipe was so good, relatively simple (I'm still a novice baker), and has become an instant favorite for both me and my family. I also used the left over egg yolks from this recipe to make your pastry cream and served them together with some whipped cream and strawberries for a sort of strawberries and cream shortcake type thing and it was overall just so so good!
Lauren on 2020-05-31 (5 stars): Can we use powdered sugar rather than super-fine sugar?
