1870 to 1899 Cake #4

Angel Food Cake

The Angel Food cake has been known by many names; Silver Cake, Lady Cake, White Sponge Cake, and Angel Food. Angel Food Cake caught on as the title due to the cakes light airiness and its color. Only egg whites are used in this cake, they are beaten until they form stiff peaks so that enough air is trapped inside to help leaven the cake as it bakes.

It is believed that this cake first came about because the hard-working Pennsylvania Dutch cooks did not want to be wasteful on noodle making days. They only used the yolks for the noodles and were not willing to throw away dozens of egg whites, so they figured out a way to put them to good use.

Recipes very similar to this one were published in 1839 in The Kentucky Housewife and later in an 1866 cookbook, A Domestic Cookbook. The first time that the recipe was published with the name "Angel Cake" was in 1884 in the Boston Cooking School Cook Book by Mrs D.A. Lincoln.

The following is an excerpt from the book that I thought was really interesting:

Early Prohibitionists approved of the angel food cake because it did not contain yeast, which makes alcohol when heated. One of its biggest fans was Lucy Webb Hayes, wife of US president Rutherford B. Hayes. "Lemonade Lucy," as she was called because she did not drink alcohol, served angel food cake and lemonade at the White House while her husband was in office from 1877 to 1881.

I always feel like it is a guessing game when I try to make Angel Food Cake. I am never sure exactly what the "stiff peaks" should look like when I am beating the egg whites. I also get nervous when I am folding in the flour. Should I mix it fully or let some flour just hang out? I probably should have watched a youtube video, but who has time for that?!

The cake turned out alright, I think it could have been a bit more fluffy, but it is my husbands favorite and I didn't hear any complaints there.