Lemon Angel Food Cake

Doesn't that title just make you want to eat it? Seriously, Y.U.M. I think there is a clear division among people about how they prefer their "Strawberry Shortcakes". Some are completely turned off by the spongy, classic angel food cake, some completely adore it. Some prefer pound cake and others prefer biscuits.

I, for one, like all versions. It really just depends on what kind of mood I'm in. This here Lemon Angel Food Cake - that's what kind of mood I'm in. If I hold it close enough to my ears, I can almost hear it whisper the word Spring to me. Then there's the angel food cake's best friend: those gorgeous red, plump, juicy, sweet strawberries. They practically scream Spring. Pair them together and  - ahhhhh, so good.

Now if only I wasn't sucking on a Halls cough drop, so congested I can't breathe through my nose and completely stalling to delay the inevitable shot of Nyquil....then that would be really perfect. Oh well, at least this little dessert made me forget all about my crazy spring cold for a few minutes...

Lemon Angel Food Cake
Barefoot Contessa Family Style
serves 8

2 cups sifted superfine sugar, divided
1 1/3 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising)
1 ½ cups egg whites, at room temperature (10 to 12 eggs)
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ½ teaspoons cream of tartar
¾ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 ½ teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine ½ cup of sugar with the flour and sift together 4 times. Set aside.

Place the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and beat on high speed until the eggs make medium-firm peaks, about 1 minute. With the mixer on medium speed, add the remaining 1 ½ cups of sugar by sprinkling it over the beaten egg whites. Whisk for a few minutes until thick and shiny. Whisk in the vanilla and lemon zest and continue to whisk until very thick, about 1 more minute. Sift about ¼ of the flour mixture over the egg whites and fold it into the batter with a rubber spatula. Continue adding the flour by fourths by sifting and folding until it's all incorporated.

Pour the batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan, smooth the top, and bake it for 35 to 40 minutes, until it springs back to the touch. Remove the cake from the oven and invert the pan on a cooling rack until cool.