 Ingredients:1 1/2 cups Sugar
1 cup all-purpose Flour
12 egg whites, at room temperature
Pinch of Salt
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
4 drops Vanilla extract
2 drops almond extract
Confectioners' Sugar, to dust
Strawberries, halved, to garnish
Directions:1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Have ready an angel food cake pan, measuring 9 1/2-10 inches across the top and 4 inches in depth. The pan needs no preparation.
2. Sift 1 cup of the Sugar together with the flour. Repeat the sifting process six times, then set aside. Beat the egg whites in a large bowl, using an electric mixer, until they are foamy with soft peaks. Add the Salt, cream of tartar, vanilla and almond extract and 1 tablespoon water, and when bubbles form, add the remaining Sugar, a few tablespoons at a time. Beat in well until all the sugar has dissolved and the mixture stands in a very stiff peaks.
3. Add the sifted Flour and sugar and, using a plastic spatula, carefully fold in to blend thoroughly. Spoon into the pan and pull a flexible metal spatula, upright in the pan and touching the base, through the mixture in a circle. This will remove pockets of air and help to blend.
4. Bake for 50 minutes, or until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Turn the pan upside down onto a wire rack and cool completely in the pan so that it will not collapse as it cools. To remove, the cake may require loosening around the edge with a metal spatula. Transfer to a serving plate, dust with the sifted confectioners` sugar and garnish with strawberries. |
