Post by amarante on Nov 2, 2016 11:49:11 GMT -5
MEYER LEMON ANGEL FOOD CAKE with Honeyed Strawberries
Excerpt From: Amy Thielen - The New Midwestern Table
MAKES ONE 10-INCH CAKE; SERVES 8 TO 12
An all-American classic, angel food cake becomes part of a very important trilogy when combined with shiny honey-glazed strawberries and a floating cloud of thick, rich whipped cream. This cake’s subtle boost of Meyer lemon juice, as well as a triple shot of extracts—almond, vanilla, and lemon—balances out the cotton-candy sweetness of the pillowy cake.
2¼ cups sugar
1¼ cups cake flour
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
3 teaspoons (lightly packed) grated lemon zest, preferably from Meyer lemons
⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, preferably from Meyer lemons
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon almond extract
⅛ teaspoon lemon extract
1½ cups egg whites (from 11 to 12 eggs), at room temperature
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 pound fresh strawberries, quartered
2 tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon ground fennel seeds
Confectioners’ sugar, for serving
2 cups heavy cream
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Pulse 2 cups of the sugar in a food processor until super-fine.
In a large bowl, sift the cake flour and salt together three times. In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and juice with the vanilla, almond, and lemon extracts.
Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large, very clean bowl at medium-high speed until foamy and opaque. Gradually add the superfine sugar, ½ cup at a time, adding the last of it at the end when the egg whites stand upright and softly hold their shape.
Next, take off the beaters and with a large whisk incorporate half of the flour by hand, to keep from overmixing. Add the lemon-juice mixture and stir to combine. Finally, add the rest of the flour and whisk gently until smooth.
Pour the batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan, and using a spatula, smooth the top. Bake the cake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.
While the cake is baking, mix together the berries, honey, and fennel in a bowl and set aside to macerate.
Turn the cake upside down onto a cake rack and leave it to cool completely. To unmold the cake, run a knife around the perimeter of the pan and around the center post, and turn the pan over gently to release the cake onto a platter. Put the confectioners’ sugar in a fine-mesh strainer and dust the top of the cake heavily.
Before serving, whip the cream with the remaining ¼ cup sugar. Cut the cake into slices with a serrated knife, and serve with the marinated berries and whipped cream.
NOTES: Thankfully my local grocery store stocks Meyer lemons, which have a more fragrant, sweeter juice than standard lemons. They’re slightly more expensive but they also yield more juice, so it’s kind of a wash.
Super-fine sugar, whether purchased or made in a food processor, gives the cake a finer texture.
Excerpt From: Amy Thielen - The New Midwestern Table
MAKES ONE 10-INCH CAKE; SERVES 8 TO 12
An all-American classic, angel food cake becomes part of a very important trilogy when combined with shiny honey-glazed strawberries and a floating cloud of thick, rich whipped cream. This cake’s subtle boost of Meyer lemon juice, as well as a triple shot of extracts—almond, vanilla, and lemon—balances out the cotton-candy sweetness of the pillowy cake.
2¼ cups sugar
1¼ cups cake flour
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
3 teaspoons (lightly packed) grated lemon zest, preferably from Meyer lemons
⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, preferably from Meyer lemons
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅛ teaspoon almond extract
⅛ teaspoon lemon extract
1½ cups egg whites (from 11 to 12 eggs), at room temperature
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 pound fresh strawberries, quartered
2 tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon ground fennel seeds
Confectioners’ sugar, for serving
2 cups heavy cream
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Pulse 2 cups of the sugar in a food processor until super-fine.
In a large bowl, sift the cake flour and salt together three times. In a small bowl, combine the lemon zest and juice with the vanilla, almond, and lemon extracts.
Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large, very clean bowl at medium-high speed until foamy and opaque. Gradually add the superfine sugar, ½ cup at a time, adding the last of it at the end when the egg whites stand upright and softly hold their shape.
Next, take off the beaters and with a large whisk incorporate half of the flour by hand, to keep from overmixing. Add the lemon-juice mixture and stir to combine. Finally, add the rest of the flour and whisk gently until smooth.
Pour the batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan, and using a spatula, smooth the top. Bake the cake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.
While the cake is baking, mix together the berries, honey, and fennel in a bowl and set aside to macerate.
Turn the cake upside down onto a cake rack and leave it to cool completely. To unmold the cake, run a knife around the perimeter of the pan and around the center post, and turn the pan over gently to release the cake onto a platter. Put the confectioners’ sugar in a fine-mesh strainer and dust the top of the cake heavily.
Before serving, whip the cream with the remaining ¼ cup sugar. Cut the cake into slices with a serrated knife, and serve with the marinated berries and whipped cream.
NOTES: Thankfully my local grocery store stocks Meyer lemons, which have a more fragrant, sweeter juice than standard lemons. They’re slightly more expensive but they also yield more juice, so it’s kind of a wash.
Super-fine sugar, whether purchased or made in a food processor, gives the cake a finer texture.