Angel food cake

with orange icing

This cake comes from the American tradition , it is very soft and the frosting orange  gives an aromatic touch. I think it’s great for breakfast or as a snack for the kids , because it has absolutely no fat and it’s very nutritious thanks to the egg whites !

Let’s see how to prepare it , and remember that if you want, you can replace the orange icing with other fruits, grapefruits and tangerines for example, or make it very exotic with passion fruit!

RECIPE

Preparation : 25 minutes, plus cooling time – Cooking time: 50 minutes – Difficulty: Medium

Ingredients ( for 8 people) :

85g flour 00
200g sugar
80g brown sugar
8 egg whites
1 teaspoon tartaric acid
a pinch of salt
essence of vanilla or vanillin (a teaspoon)
2 tablespoons warm water

for the frosting:

the juice of one orange
200g icing sugar

Preparation:

Sift the flour with 2 tablespoons sugar in a separate bowl. In a larger bowl whip the egg whites until stiff, then add the tartaric acid and salt. Continue beating with a whisk (photo 1) .

photo 1

Now add the vanilla, and hot water and continue to beat the eggs. Mix the two types of sugar, pressing the whip between one addition and the other (photo 2). You must obtain a soft cream but compact (photo 3).

Photo 2

Photo 3

Now add flour and sugar prepared in advance by mixing from top to bottom to don’t deflate egg whites (photo 4) .

Photo 4

Pour the mixture into a baking pan with greased and floured (photo 5) and bake in preheated oven (180°C) for about 50 minutes.

Photo 5

After that time controlled the cake with a toothpick, remove from oven and let it cool.

Meanwhile, prepare the glaze by working the icing sugar with the orange juice filtered. You need to get a cream solid (if too runny , add a bit of sugar icing) (photo 6).

Photo 6

Turn out the cake from the pan and place it on a serving plate. Pour the icing on the cake and let it solidify at room temperature.

I sprinkled it with sugar decorations to make it even more delicious !

Good breakfast… good snack … good coffee break …

Nutritional curiosity: this cake is fat-free, free of oil or butter, in addition we used only the egg whites, which are one of the food that contain protein at higher biological value, ie they are all used by our body. It also contains essential amino-acids, those we must assume from the diet because the body can not synthesize them.

For this reason the egg white is a valuable food , especially for children and athletes .

This cake is without fat ,but nevertheless has a high content of simple sugars and therefore suitable for breakfast to start the day, or as a snack before exercise , where it serves as fuel ready to be used immediately. It ‘ important, however, don’t overdo with simple sugars because they increased glycemia … the keywords are always BALANCE and ACTIVE LIFE!