Strawberry Shortcake 🍓Angel Food Cake

This recipe contains affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

It’s that time of year again…. Strawberry pickin’ time! 🍓 So many strawberries, so many possibilities. I decided to mix a few of my favorite strawberry recipes from my baking idol Sally’s Baking Addiction to come up with the most decedent strawberry dessert. Who doesn’t love a little angel food cake topped with warm strawberry sauce, homemade whipped cream, and a few slices of fresh strawberries. #Mouthwatering!

This recipe isn’t difficult, but it does require a little finesse. To be honest, as I was making it I was thinking- why in the world am I making angel food cake from scratch- seriously- SO TEDIOUS! But I pushed on, and oh my, it was worth it!

What makes this recipe so perfect is the whipping of the 12 egg whites. Yes, that’s right…. 12 egg whites. I was tempted to use cartoned egg whites, but then when I got to the store, and saw they were almost 4x more expensive than a dozen eggs, I decided to do it the right way. So glad I did! The cake was extremely light and airy. RECIPE TIP: It is important to whip the egg whites until they are completely light and airy. Then when sifting the dry ingredients in be oh so gentle to make sure that the egg whites do not deflate.

The original recipe also calls for the use of an angel food cake pan. Well, I don’t have one, so I used my bundt pan. It worked out just fine and looked pretty too!

This dessert requires 3 steps: the cake, the sauce and the whipped cream. I start with making the cake then worked on the sauce and whipped cream while it was baking. I recommend reading through the whole recipe before starting. You got this!

Ingredients

Cake

• 1 and 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons cake flour *
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 12 large egg whites (room temperature)*
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Strawberry Sauce

• 2 cups diced strawberries
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 2 teaspoons warm water to keep if from getting lumpy (I can never get it right!)

Whipped Cream

• 1 and 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

Cake

1. Make sure your oven rack is adjusted to the lower middle position to allow for your cake to rise properly and preheat oven to 325°F.
2. Prepare your pan with baking spray or butter. I used my bundt pan, but if you have one, use your 10 inch angel food cake pan. Before adding the cake batter to the pan, I wiped it just about clean, leaving only a small layer of baking spray residue.
3. Use your NutriBullet (affiliate link) or food processor to pulse the sugar until fine and powdery. Remove 1 cup and set aside to use later in step 3; keep the rest of the sugar inside the NutriBullet. Add the flour and salt to the Nutribullet. Pulse a few times (5-6) until aerated and light.
4. Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites and cream of tartar together on medium low until foamy, about 1 minute. Switch to medium-high and slowly add the saved 1 cup of sugar.  Whip until soft peaks form, about 5-6 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat just until combined.
5. Slowly sift the flour mixture into the egg white mixture. Sift slowly in 3 additions, while gently folding it in with a rubber spatula. Scrape mixture into your prepared and wiped pan.
6. Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 40-46 minutes. Make sure you rotate the pan halfway through baking. Cool the cake completely upside-down. I set mine on a wire rack to allow the air to get to it. Once cooled, run a thin butter knife around the edges and gently tap the pan on the counter until the cake releases.

Strawberry Sauce

While the cake is baking, wash and dice 2 strawberries (about 10-12 large strawberries). Place the strawberries in a small saucepan over medium heat stirring constantly until the strawberries appear to be getting soft and juicy, about 4-6 minutes. Add the sugar and cornstarch/water liquid and continue to stir for another 2 minutes. The mixture will be much thicker. Remove from heat.

Whipped Cream

In a large bowl, whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla extract together on high speed until stiff peaks begin to form, about 4-5 full minutes. I have found that my whipped cream turns out better when I use my hand mixer rather than my stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.

Recipe Notes

*If you do not have cake flour on hand, you can use all purpose four and cornstarch. For this recipe, I put two tablespoons + 1/4 teaspoons of cornstarch in the bottom of my 1 cup measuring cup then added the flour to make the one leveled off cup. Don’t forget the additional 2 tablespoons of flour to finish off the mixture.

*Place your eggs into a small container of warm water to bring them to room temperature quickly.

Mama’s Wish List & Must Haves

Although, I love the look of my cake as a bundt, I would love to get an Angel Food Cake Pan (affiliate link). I’ll have to update after trying the recipe with it. Will it make a difference?

Separating 12 eggs was not my favorite part of the recipe. I am thinking this little Egg Separator (affiliate link) could be a great stocking stuffer.

Affiliate links: