Strawberry Angel Food Cake

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There’s not much that brings back summer memories like a fresh baked strawberry angel food cake.

When I posted a behind the scenes photo of today’s recipe, instantly people knew what I was baking. Many shared fond memories of their mother or grandmother who had made this light, delicious treat in summers past. Strawberry Angel Food Cake is not only the perfect tribute to a warm summer day, but a way to actively remember those in life who now spend their summer days on the other side of the rainbow.

Angel food cake isn’t like other cakes you’ve made. And my version is made using a mix, so it’s hands down the easiest darn cake you’ll ever make. Other recipes make promises. This one truly delivers.

You will need some special equipment to make this cake so let’s talk about that.

• Stand mixer: (affiliate link) because this batter needs to have a really good beating.
• Wire Whip: usually you use the paddle attachment when mixing cake batter, but I recommend the wire whip for this one.
• Large Loaf Pan: Angel Food cake looks a certain way because it’s baked in a particular pan. (affiliate link) You do not grease or flour the pan in any way.
• Betty Crocker™ Angel Food cake mix: I started using this one specifically because a close friend said it was what her mom used to make for her,(affiliate link) and it was her favorite. We grew up together in the 70s and 80s and I knew her mom very well. It’s an honor to remake someone’s favorite childhood recipe, so if you can do that for someone you love, then what are you waiting for?

Do I need a special pan?

Ok, it’s time for a little tough love. I looked at what other people had published on the topic of Strawberry Angel Food cake, and the results were a little bit painful. Similar to what I found when I made my lemon Bundt® cake recipe, I see people doing all sorts of weird things.

I saw people frost this cake. *horrors* I saw people cut this cake in half and try to make it a frosted layer cake. *double horrors* I saw people cut the cake in half and pile raw fruit and whipped cream between the layers. *I can’t look anymore*

I also saw people bake their Angel Food Cakes in Bundt® pans. Which I guess is ok in a pinch…but if you want to make an actual Angel Food Cake, you do need the right pan. You wouldn’t bake your Madelines in a muffin pan, so why bake this cake in the wrong pan?

But we are getting ahead of ourselves.

Let’s talk about the mixing of this cake and the batter. Angel Food Cake is super light, and it gets that light texture from whipping egg whites. Essentially, we are mixing a meringue based cake. If you made it from scratch, you would mix a dozen egg whites to stiff peaks and then fold in flour. It’s a LOT of eggs, and not deflating your batter is tricky. That is why I love this mix so much; I don’t burn through a carton of eggs and then have all those yolks to make into something else.

Because the cake is meringue based, I recommend you use the wire whip. Even though we are mixing from a cake mix, using the wire whip will incorporate the most air into the batter.

Tips for your best Angel Food Cake:

• Turn the oven on and allow it to preheat completely before you even open the box. Trust me. The cake mixes so fast, if the oven isn’t ready, your batter will deflate waiting on it to come up to temperature before you even put it in the oven.
• Follow the instructions exactly which is a total mix time of about 90 seconds. YUP. It’s that fast.
• Adding a little flavoring via an extract is a nice way to pump up the cake flavor a little more. I used lemon in mine which is really good with strawberries.
• I used and recommend Betty Crocker ™ specifically because it’s the one my friend’s mom used to make for her. I wanted to match her memory of her mom’s cake as closely as possible.

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How to serve an Angel Food Cake

• As I alluded to earlier, this cake really doesn’t need anything. But a sprinkle of powdered sugar just before serving is always a nice touch.
• This is the original naked cake. It does not require any frosting and definitely don’t cut it in half like a layer cake. Please for the love of all that is holy and good in this universe, don’t frost this cake.
• Whipped cream with fresh berries are all you need to top off this cake. I recommend you serve it on the side unless you know you have enough people there to eat the whole thing. It’s a really soft crumb and will get soggy if you leave it over night with fruit or whipped cream on it.
• I store my cakes in a cake keeper so they stay fresh.
• The texture of an Angel Food Cake is a little different from a regular cake. A regular knife doesn’t cut well, so you need to use a serrated knife to cut this cake. (affiliate link) You use them to cut bread as well, so it’s a good one to have in your kitchen drawer.
• I love the look of fresh flowers or garden herbs as a decorative garnish. I recommend using them from your own garden and never put anything in contact with your food that could have pesticide or some other thing on it. I grow my own flowering plants and herbs in an organic garden, so I can easily use them with my desserts.

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