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The Sky's the Limit Angel Food Cake

Angel food cake, the light airy sponge cake made with stiffly beaten egg whites, but no yolks or other fats, is one of the most versatile dessert choices around. It's a plain cake that tastes as delicious as is, and it's also a great dessert to dress up. A simple garnish of fresh fruit complements angel food cake, but since it's a lighter cake, you can also feel good about embellishing it even more. You might:

Drizzle with prepared fudge and caramel sauces, then sprinkle with toasted almonds.
Drizzle with fudge sauce and sprinkle with toasted coconut.
Drizzle with fruit sauces or syrups and garnish with complementary fruits.
Frost with sweetened or flavored whipped cream.

These are a few secrets to preparing the best, tallest angel food cakes at home:

Egg whites are important to the structure; make sure they yield the best volume by separating the yolks from the whites while the eggs are still cold. Allow whites to come to room temperature before beating for the best volume. Always beat the whites before adding them to the batter; they lose volume if beaten ahead and allowed to stand, even for just a few minutes. The pan should not be greased; batter will cling to the sides and rise higher in ungreased pans.
Cool angel food cakes upside-down to prevent shrinking and falling. To cool, immediately invert cake pan. When cool, gently loosen the sides of cake with a thin-bladed, flexible knife, moving the knife firmly in one direction. Do not use an up and down or sawing motion.
Angel food cake mixes are also readily available in the supermarket. Super simple to prepare, you can make a mix extra special by adding other ingredients like ground cinnamon, crushed peppermint candies, finely chopped well-drained maraschino cherries or grated semisweet chocolate. To make Chocolate Angel Food Cake, unsweetened cocoa is stirred into the mix. Serve with an easy Raspberry sauce for a stunning dessert.
Another way to dress up an angel food cake is to fill it. Simple hollow out the center section of a tube-shaped angel food cake and fill with flavored whipping cream or whipped topping. The creamy center of Orange Creme Angel Food Cake is made of orange-flavored whipping cream with a little gelatin added to help stabilize the cream. Not only is it versatile in serving options, but Wilton offers an array of pans suitable for baking an angel food cake for almost any occasion. The traditional tube pan, of course is the most familiar. Angel food cakes can also be baked in Wilton's long loaf pan; it's made especially for angel food cakes.

Wilton's Baby Angel Cakes are made in the Mini Angel Food Pan. It makes four small (4-inch diameter) cakes at one time, just right for one serving, and a great party dessert idea. These pans are versatile, too. Use them for quick breads, pound cakes, chiffon cakes, gelatin molds, fruit cakes and quick breads.

The Mini Angel Food Pan retails for $14.99 and can be ordered directly from Wilton, 2240 W. 75th Street, Woodridge, Illinois, 60517.

(Or call 800-794-5866 or 630-963-1818) Or, look for it in decorating or craft stores, wherever Wilton products are sold. To learn basic decorating techniques for a variety of fabulous cakes and confections, Wilton Method of Cake Decorating Classes are held in department and craft stores and cake decorating specialty shops across the country.

Call toll free 1-800-323-1717, Operator 440 for information on the decorating classes nearest you. (In Illinois, call 1-800-942-8881. operator 440.)