Green Velvet Angel Food Cake

March 20, 2014

No Thanks to Cake –

Happy St. Paddy’s Day, Y’All!

While I am not huge on celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, I do love all things GREEN and amazingly festive recipes. This season, I’ve already made my version of a Shamrock Shake…

And, I made a last minute decision to make one more green treat before the holiday passed. I spent this past weekend in the mountains with a fabulous group of ladies. Each of us were tasked with bringing a healthy(ish) snack to share. Not knowing where to begin… I went to Pinterest to see what dishes I had saved that might be perfect for the occasion.

When I spotted this recipe for Red Velvet Angel Food Cake, I knew I wanted to try it. After all, I had an angel food cake pan that I had never used. What a great adventure this would be! Oh, and it certainly was…. I’ll leave a few notes below to guide you along.

Not only did I make this traditionally light cake for the first time, but I also painted it green for St. Patrick’s Day! It was spongy, airy, and delicious with a light chocolate flavor. This moist cake is one that I will make again, in ANY color!

Green Velvet Angel Food Cake

Adapted from Healthy Girl on the Run

Serves 16

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/4 cup water, boiling
2 tsp. vanilla extract or paste
2 Tbsp. food coloring, green (1 oz)
1/4 tsp. table salt
1 3/4 cup sugar, divided
1 cup cake flour
16 large egg whites, about 2 cups
2 tsp. white vinegar

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF.

2. In a medium bowl, combine unsweetened cocoa, boiling water, vanilla and food coloring; whisk and set aside.

Note: I used a different kind of vanilla for this recipe. Have you ever used vanilla paste?

3. In another medium bowl, combine salt, 3/4 cup of sugar, and cake flour; mix well and set aside.

4. Using an electric mixer, in a large bowl, beat egg whites until foamy. Note: Cracking the eggs and separating them is intense… next time, I may buy the kind in the carton.

5. Add vinegar; continue to beat until soft peaks form.

6. With electric mixer running on slow speed, gradually add remaining cup of sugar; increase to high speed and beat until stiff peaks form.

7. Remove a heaping cup of egg whites and add it to chocolate mixture; gently combine and set aside.

8. Sift flour mixture over egg whites, a little at a time, and fold after each addition to incorporate.

9. Add chocolate mixture and gently fold into egg whites.

10. When just combined, turn batter into an ungreased two-piece 10-inch angel food cake pan with feet; smooth top into an even layer.

11. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes.

12. Remove cake from oven and invert pan onto its feet so the inverted cake can cool properly (the cake will not fall out of the pan). If your pan does not have feet, invert it over the neck of a wine bottle or a glass soda bottle. Note: I did use a wine bottle even though I was skeptical. It worked!

13. When cake is completely cool to the touch, loosen edges with a sharp knife and remove cake from pan. Slice into 16 pieces and serve. Yields 1 piece per serving. Note: The cake will naturally bake itself to the pan and will stick. You will need to use a knife to cut it out. Loosen the cake around the outer edge and the inner tube. Invert the cake on a cake holder, and then remove the outer tube carefully. You will need to use the knife again to loosen the flat bottom of the pan as well.