(L)Oven Monday – A Healthy, Yummy Dessert

Cooking Light has great recipes for Angel Food Cakes.  These cakes have no fat, making them a healthier dessert than most.  The nice thing about baking your own Angel Food cake is:

1. They taste better
2. You can add flavorings
3. They cost pennies
4. You can make it ahead of time and freeze it

This recipe  – Cafe’ au Lait Angel food has a coffee flavor and we love that!  Cafe’ au Lait means coffee with milk.  This recipe also has a custard-like sauce to serve with it,which gives the coffee flavor it’s “milk addition.  It takes regular old Angel Food to the next level, and certainly makes it company worthy!  Here’s the recipe:

Cafe’ au Lait Angel Food Cake

Ingredients

• Cake:
• 1 cup sifted cake flour – Don’t have any?  Try this – Take one level cup of AP flour, remove two tablespoons, and then add two tablespoons of cornstarch back in. Be sure to sift the flour to distribute the cornstarch well before using it in your cake batter.
• 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons instant espresso granules or 2 tablespoons instant coffee granules
• 2 tablespoons hot water
• 12 large egg whites
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Sauce:
• 3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups 2% reduced-fat milk, divided
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 3 tablespoons Frangelico (hazelnut-flavored liqueur) –  I didn’t use this or substitute
• Remaining ingredient:
• 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts, toasted

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. To prepare cake, lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, 3/4 cup sugar, and cinnamon, stirring with a whisk, and set aside. Combine espresso and hot water, stirring until espresso dissolves; set aside.

3. Place egg whites in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until foamy. Add cream of tartar and 1/4 teaspoon salt; beat until soft peaks form. Add 3/4 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, beating until stiff peaks form.

4. Beat in espresso mixture and vanilla extract. Sift 1/4 cup flour mixture over egg white mixture; fold in. Repeat procedure with remaining flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time.

5. Spoon batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan, spreading evenly. Break air pockets by cutting through batter with a knife. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Invert pan; cool completely. Loosen cake from sides of pan using a narrow metal spatula. Invert cake onto plate.

   I had to work just  a little to loosen my cake from the pan, but it did come out whole after a few little “tugs” with my metal spatula.

   I saw that eggs are on sale at Kroger this week for .79, so it’s a good time to make one of these cakes!  I’m going to attempt to upload a video  this Wednesday of how to make this cake.  You can see just how simple it really is!  It’s really fun to venture out a little a make something a little challenging.  I hope you’ll give this a try!  Plus it’s just fun to say – Cafe’ au Lait!

   Happy baking!

   With love from my country kitchen,