Chinese Angel Food Cake with Tart Lemon Glaze and a Warm Blueberry Sauce

This delicate yellow sponge cake is really quite simple to make;

the recipe calls for whole eggs, no powdered sugar

and is not as sweet as a traditional Angel Food Cake.



Chinese Angel Food Cake

Prep Time:  20 minutes
Bake Time:  60 minutes
Serves:  16

8  large  Eggs, separated
2  Cups  Cake Flour,
               or substitute with 1 Cup sifted Flour, minus 2 Tablespoons,  for each cup of Cake Flour required
1 1/2  Cups  Sugar
1  teaspoon  Baking Powder
1/4  teaspoon  Salt
1/2  Cup  Oil
1/2  Cup  Water
1/2  teaspoon  Cream of Tartar
1/2  teaspoon  Lemon Extract

Preheat oven to 350*.   Grease Angel Food cake pan and set aside.

Separate Eggs into two bowls, placing Yolks in a large bowl and Whites in your mixer bowl.  To the Yolks, add the Cake Flour, Sugar, Baking Powder, Salt, Oil, and Water, mixing until blended.  Set aside.

To the Egg Whites, add Cream of Tartar and Lemon Extract; beat until stiff.  Gently fold the Egg White mixture into the Egg Yolk mixture until well-combined.  Pour the cake batter into the prepared Angel Food cake pan.

Bake at 350* on the lowest oven rack for 50 to 60 minutes or until the cake is light brown and the top springs back when gently touched.  Remove from oven and cool upside-down until completely cool.

And this is what happens if you forget to cool it upside down.  Pitiful, isn't it?

Oh well, it still tasted good!

Tart Lemon Glaze

1  Cup  Powdered Sugar

1  large  Lemon, Meyer preferred

Place the Powdered Sugar in your work bowl, set aside.  Zest half of the Lemon.  Finely chop the Zest, set aside.  Juice half of the Lemon, adding the juice to the Powdered Sugar.  Mix together the Lemon Juice and Powdered Sugar until smooth.  Gradually add in the juice from the other half of the Lemon until you get the consistancy of a thin glaze.  Stir in Lemon Zest and drizzle over the Chinese Angel Food Cake.

Warm Blueberry Sauce

1/2  Cup  Sugar

1  Tablespoon  Cornstarch

1/2  Cup  Water

1  Cup  fresh or frozen  Blueberries

1  Tablespoon  Butter

In a small saucepan combine the Sugar and Cornstarch; add Water.  Bring to a boil over medium heat; boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.  Stir in Blueberries; reduce heat.  Simmer 8 to 10 minutes or until Blueberries have burst.  Stir in Butter until melted.  Serve warm over Chinese Angel Food Cake.

I have adapted and expanded this recipe which was first published in Teri Watson's "Taste" column, The Sacramento Bee.  The original was requested by Edna Wong Yue and submitted by Jenlane Gee.