My grandmother didn't enjoy baking, but every year she made the best angel food cake. Covered with her famous seven minute icing, she’d serve it with peppermint ice cream for the ultimate combination of temperatures and textures. The leftovers were even better, because after a day or two the icing would crust over and flake off to reveal the creamy, slightly grainy interior. At the time, I never noticed or cared that it was a fat free dessert (without the ice cream, of course), but these days that just adds to the appeal.
Because I have such fond memories of regular angel food cake, I never bothered making a chocolate version. But since I’ve been experimenting and have discovered that the loaf pan size is perfect for our family and doesn’t use up all the eggs, I decided to make a small chocolate angel food cake.
It’s interesting. I still feel partial to the vanilla, but Fuzz loves angel food cake as much as I do and will get a kick out of this as an after school snack. Plus it’s nice being able to serve cake with berries and whipped cream as a snack and feel good about it.
Recipe
Chocolate Angel Food Cake
Ingredients
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons cake flour 1 ½ oz/42 grams
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 20 grams
- ¾ cup granulated sugar extra fine or ground in a small food processor (150 grams)
- 6-7 large egg whites at room temperature
- ¾ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 9x5 inch or slightly smaller metal loaf pan with regular foil.
- Sift together the flour, cocoa powder and half of the ground sugar.
- In a mixing bowl using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until foamy. Continue beating and add the cream of tartar. When soft peaks form, begin adding the sugar gradually until peaks are just stiff enough to hold – don’t overbeat. Beat in the salt and vanilla.
- Sift about a third of the flour mixture over the top of the egg white mixture and fold it in with a big rubber scraper. Continue adding the flour mixture, folding until incorporated.
- Carefully scrape into the loaf pan. It should come just about to the top.
- Bake at 375 degrees F. on center rack for 28 minutes.
- Let cool completely. Lift from pan, carefully peel away the foil, then slice with a serrated knife
Anna says
You could use it for a different angel food cake recipe, but this one is best with cake flour. Good luck!
Bre says
Can I use all purpose flour instead if cake flour?
Rodzilla says
Thanks Anna!
Anna says
Rod, I used to always make angel food cake with regular granulated sugar, so it can be done. Ground sugar or super fine sugar is supposed to blend into the egg whites easier without weighing them down. In the end, it's supposed to give your egg whites (and your cake) a little more lift. I think grinding the sugar is a good idea, but if you are very careful folding, you can get away with not doing it.
Rodzilla says
question to show my inexperience, what happens if you use regular (non-fine) sugar?
Ryan says
Oh this looks delicious! I just made normal angel food cake today 😀
CindyD says
The standard birthday cake for my mother's family was cherry angel food cake. Mom would drain maraschino cherries and slice them very thin with a scissors and also finely chop walnuts and then add both to the angel food cake batter.
Katrina says
The only dessert I remember my grandma making (and she did for all our birthdays) is angel food cake. The girls' cakes always had pink frosting and those big nasty sugar decorations on it (at the time we loved those!). I need to make some angel food cake!
Nancy says
Imagine my surprise and delight when I opened your post and saw this! Thank you so much for doing a chocolate version. I'll make it soon and let you know how it comes out. You've made my day!
Try this cake served w/ vanilla frozen yogurt and fresh or thawed frozen raspberries (the kind that come in the pack w/ a light syrup). Having all 3 items in the freezer makes having a special dessert available any old time.
Glanathema says
Chocolate angel food? Cookie MADNESS! What's next, vanilla devil's food??
Adam says
My last failure of an angel food cake was a chocolate one, but it only failed due to my impatience. You are giving me too many things to think about baking this weekend. And I risk everyone I know accusing me of making them fat again if I go ahead an make everything :). Once again though, love the loaf pan.