Angel Cake
BY READERS DIGEST
1st Jan 2015 Recipes
It’s funny how cakes go in and out of fashion. I was having a conversation about this book and saying I would love to include angel cake, and at the time nobody knew what it was. Then six months later the cake turned up as a challenge on The Great British Bake Off! You think you have a great idea, but they have all been done before! It’s a very light cake and you need the proper cake mould, but it really is super-impressive.
Serves 8-10
Ingredients
- Butter, for greasing
- 115 g (4 oz) plain flour
- 85 g (3 ¼ oz) icing sugar
- 8 large egg whites, at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 150 g (5 oz) caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the icing
- 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 150 g (5 oz) caster sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2 tablespoons water
- ½ teaspoon coconut extract
To serve
- 250 g (9 oz) desiccated coconut
- 400 g (14 oz) strawberries, cut into quarters, or blueberries
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180C (350F), gas mark 4, and grease a 25 cm (10 inch) angel cake tin. Sift the flour and icing sugar into a large bowl and set aside.
2. Tip the egg whites and salt into the bowl of a free-standing mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk to soft peaks (you can also use an electric hand whisk). Add the cream of tartar then gradually whisk in the sugar until the mixture is stiff and glossy. Fold in the vanilla extract and the flour mixture and pour into the prepared tin.
3. Make a few wholes in the mix with a skewer to let out the air bubbles and bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown. Stand the mould on its feet. Meanwhile make the icing. Combine all the ingredients in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water. Using an electric hand whisk, whisk the mixture until doubled in volume. Check the temperature of the mixture regularly with a sugar thermometer; once it reaches 70C (160F), remove from the heat and continue to whisk until stiff and glossy.
4. Cover the cake with the icing; it doesn’t have to be neat as you’re going to cover it with coconut. Pack the desiccated coconut over the cake then spoon in the berries.
Note: If you can’t find coconut extract, you can use vanilla extract.
Actress Lisa Faulkner was the clear winner of 2010 Celebrity MasterChef. Since then Lisa hasn't looked back in her cooking career. She is regularly on our television screens cooking on This Morning, Saturday Kitchen and Sunday Brunch. This exclusive recipe is from Lisa’s latest book, Tea & Cake.
