Angel food cake

Angel food cake or angel cake is a type of sponge cake made with egg whites, sugar, and flour, and without oil, baking powder, and various other ingredients common in cakes. It is made in a process of whipping egg whites to a foam, beating in sugar, and folding in flour and more sugar. After baking in a pan with a tube in its center, the cake is hung upside down until cool. The final cake has a slightly chewy texture and white interior.

Apart from the three basic ingredients, salt and vanilla are often featured, as does cream of tartar, which lends stability, a softer crumb, and a lighter color. In more complex preparations, inclusions and flavorings such as chocolate, spices, and citrus flavors are added. Angel food cake is often served with a sauce or glaze.

Angel food cake originated in the United States in the 19th century. Gaining popularity and its name in the 1870s, angel food cakes developed over the next century. By the 1930s, the technique of folding in half the sugar had become standard, and less air was incorporated into the eggs. From that decade, angel food cake variants with flavors including maraschino cherries, peppermint, and crushed canned pineapple began to be produced.