Why You Absolutely Need Cream Of Tartar For The Fluffiest Angel Food Cake

For bakers and foodies who want a little slice of heaven, angel food cake is a devilishly irresistible treat. If you're a fan of the lighter-than-air confection with a divine name, you'll know the necessity of preparing it to delicate perfection. The angel food cake is distinguished by its almost otherworldly fluffy texture and pale color and by having a hole in the middle. Among the many different ways to make the best angel food cake, one tip is baking it in an ungreased tube pan. The central tube acts as a heating element, allowing for the cake to rise and keep its fluffy consistency. The other secret to the fluff? Cream of tartar.

You'll probably never guess what cream of tartar actually is, (it's powdered tartaric acid), but the addition of it is essential for the fluffiest angel food cake possible. By chemically changing the pH of the egg, cream of tartar acts to keep the egg whites from collapsing, and adds the right volume and lightness to the cake. As angel food cake calls for only egg whites in the batter, the cream of tartar also assists with the visual element of lightness by keeping the cake extra white in color. Between the right pan, ingredients, and taking a gentle and patient approach to the process, your light and fluffy angel food cake is sure to rise to the occasion in a most dreamy way. From there, it's up to you how to accent and serve it.

Angel food cake is a carefully crafted confection that can seem initially intimidating given its particularly soft and airy feel, but it's really a matter of getting the basics down. Like a science project, the basis requires following they key steps. Although it can often be swapped or substituted, you really don't want to find out what happens if you skip cream of tartar in a recipe, particularly when you're working with angel food cake. Without this acidic component, the result would be a flatter cake without the feathery texture that its known for. 

Understanding baking concepts is important to getting the result you want. For example, you should always cool angel food cake upside down, because it redistributes air that is incorporated throughout the beating and baking processes. When it comes to topping your dessert, things aren't as specific. You can try a retro angel food cake twist with whipped cream for extra silk addition to go along with your already fluffy cake. You can also experiment with different fruit toppings or even a daring drizzle of chocolate if you wish. If you already enjoy the spongy texture of an angel food cake, try incorporating it into a parfait or a trifle. Any way you do it, knowing how all the elements work together will create a most fantastic cake.