Angel Food Cake with Chocolate “Mousse”

Angel Food Cake: Either make a boxed mix, purchase an already baked angel food cake, or make your own, like I do. Angel Food Cake is about the lowest in calories of all cakes, since the main ingredient is egg whites.

1-1/2 cups egg whites (about a dozen or so eggs), room temperature
1-1/4 cups sifted cake flour
1-3/4 cups granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat oven to 375. Separate eggs while still cold. Measure whites and pours into mixing bowl. Let come to room temperature. Sift flour; measure, then sift with ¾ cups sugar. Beat whites on medium speed with salt and cream of tartar just until soft peaks form. At high speed, gradually beat in l cup sugar, a little at a time, beating well after each addition.

Continue beating until stiff peaks form. Gently fold extracts into whites. Sprinkle one fourth of flour mixture over whites and with wire whisk, using an under and over motion, gently fold flour mixture into whites, rotating bowl a quarter turn after each stroke, folding just until flour mixture disappears.

Continue folding in flour mixture, one-fourth at a time. Pour batter into ungreased 10” tube/angel food pan. Cut through batter with knife to remove any large air bubbles. Spread evenly and bake on lowest rack in oven 30-35 minutes or until top springs back when gently pressed. Invert pan over neck of bottle to cool – about 2 hours. Loosen cake from sides of pan and turn out. Serves 12.

Chocolate “Mousse”

Not a real chocolate mousse in the culinary sense of the word, but this is quick and really delicious. If your cake is a store bought one and rather small, you can cut this recipe in half. This makes enough for filling and frosting. If you want cut the recipe in half and don’t frost the cake. (See alternative frosting below).

1 tablespoon vanilla
4 cups whipping cream
2-1/4 cups confectioners sugar
1 cup cocoa powder

In mixer, blend vanilla and whipping cream. Beat until slightly thick. Add sugar and cocoa and continue to mix, increasing speed to high, until stiff peaks form.

Berries:
Buy two quarts strawberries. Slice a quart of strawberries and set other quart aside for garnish. Gently fold into mousse. This is your filling.

Assembly:

Cut a tunnel out of the top of the angel food cake going down about 2” or so. Remove pieces of cake dug out to form tunnel and save for later use (or enjoy yourself).

Pile mousse into tunnel, coming to the top edge. Frost cake all over with remaining mousse. Chill until ready to eat, at least one hour or up to 8 hours. Garnish with whole strawberries. Serves 12-15.

Alternative Frosting To Tote to Picnics: Make only half the recipe of mousse and don’t frost outside of cake. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and garnish with berries. This makes it easier to tote.