Adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction. The family cookbook did not have a recipe for angel food cake from scratch. There were a couple recipes for cake rolls or chocolate angel food cake that called for a box of angel food cake mix as one of the ingredients. I felt these were too much of a “cheat” to include.

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, pulsed to dust in a blender
• 1 cup + 2 tbsp cake flour (no substitutions)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 12 large egg whites (360g)
• 1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• Optional: powdered sugar, whipped cream and berries

Yield:

Adjust the oven rack to the lower middle position and preheat oven to 325°F (163°C).

Set aside 1 cup of sugar dust and keep the rest inside the food processor. Add the cake flour and salt and pulse until the mixture is aerated and light.

In a large bowl using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip egg whites and cream of tartar together on medium-low until foamy, about 1 minute. Switch to medium-high and slowly add the 1 cup of sugar you set aside. Whip until soft peaks form, about 5-6 minutes. Add the vanilla extract, then beat just until incorporated.

In 3 additions, slowly sift the flour mixture into the egg white mixture using a fine mesh strainer, gently folding with a rubber spatula after each addition. To avoid deflating or a dense cake, don’t add the flour mixture all at once. Sift and very slowly fold in several additions. This is important! Pour and spread batter into an ungreased 9 or 10 inch tube pan. I used a bundt pan even though Sally says you shouldn’t, it comes out fine.

Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 40-45 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through baking. The cake will rise up very tall while baking. Remove from the oven, then cool the cake completely upside-down set on a wire rack, about 3 hours. Once cooled, run a thin knife around the edges and gently tap the pan on the counter until the cake releases.

If desired, dust with confectioners’ sugar. Slice the cake with a sharp serrated knife (bread knife works great). Serve with whipped cream and fresh berries.