Coconut Raspberry Angel Food Cake

When you’re with someone for awhile, it’s a treat when you learn something new about them.  I was recently experimenting with an angel food cake donut idea that was going to rock my world.  The recipe didn’t turn out as I expected and will need some serious revisions.  In the process, I learned how much Brent loves angel food cake.  I mean, he REALLY loves it.  Even my deflated donuts that stuck to the pan still magically disappeared when I returned to the kitchen to clean up.

Brent’s birthday was this past Friday, and I wanted to bake him an extra special cake with all of his favorite ingredients.  That’s how this cake was born.  It was actually inspired by the Coconut Raspberry Cake I made for Valentine’s Day he still raves about.  The weather in Pittsburgh that evening was perfect for dining outside.  We had grilled steak salads and used our new patio set for the first time.  I don’t know about Brent, but I would say it was a pretty flavorful birthday.

Coconut Raspberry Angel Food Cake
1 ½ cup egg whites (about 10 large eggs), room temperature
¼ cup water, luke warm
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 ½ tsp. cream of tartar
1 1/2 cup sugar, superfine
1 ½ cup cake flour, sifted
¾ cup + ¼ cup for top of sweetened coconut

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Fit your mixer with the whisk attachment.  Beat the egg whites, water, salt and vanilla on low speed until lightly foamy.  Add the cream of tartar and whip the eggs on high until just before it reaches stiff peaks.  With the mixer still running, slowly pour the sugar into the white meringue.

Carefully transfer the meringue into a large mixing bowl.  Fold a quarter of the flour until just incorporated.  Repeat the folding with the remaining flour.  Finally, fold the sweetened coconut into the batter.  Note:  It’s really important to be very gentle with the folding.  The last thing you want to do is deflate the egg whites.

Pour the batter into an ungreased angel food cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 35 – 40 minutes until lightly browned on top.  Allow the cake to cool slightly before removing it from the pan.

Raspberry Sauce:
2/3 cup raspberry preserves
1 ½ tsp. water

Over a low flame, heat the preserves and water for 1 – 2 minutes until it becomes a syrup.  Cool slightly.

Spoon the raspberry sauce over the top of the cake and sprinkle with about ¼ cup coconut on top.

Authors Note:  Don’t even think about substituting egg beaters for real egg whites.  Egg beaters have stabilizers that prevent them from giving you the volume you need for angel food cake.  Also, it is very important to use room temperature egg whites with NO TRACE of yolk.  It will ruin the cake.

Recipe Idea:  Are you wondering what I did with the leftover egg yolks?  I made a double batch of Homemade Oreo Ice Cream.

Photo Caption:  Top:  The cake in all of its glory.  Bottom:  Dinner through the lens of the IPhone.

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