Vegan Angel Food Cake

Vegan angel food cake swaps egg whites for aquafaba, the liquid from a can of chickpeas, whipped to stiff peaks with cream of tartar. Six ingredients, about 20 minutes of work, 45 to 50 minutes in the oven and then a long cool. It comes out tall and cloud-like, and the two things that decide whether it does are how far you whip the aquafaba and how gently you fold the flour in.

Why this one is harder than it looks

Angel food cake has no fat, no raising agent and no structure except the air you beat into it. That is true of the traditional version and it is more true here, because aquafaba is a less forgiving foam than egg white.

Whip it further than feels right. Eight to ten minutes on a hand mixer, and it is done when you can turn the bowl upside down over your head. Under-whipped aquafaba is the single most common reason a vegan angel food cake comes out of the oven two inches tall.

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Fold, and fold in thirds. The flour goes in through a sieve, a third at a time, folded with a spatula rather than stirred. Every stir costs you height. Tipping it in all at once collapses the foam in seconds.

Do not grease the tin. This is counterintuitive and it is correct. The batter climbs the bare sides of the tin as it bakes, and that grip is what holds it up. A greased tin gives it nothing to climb and the cake slumps.

Cool it upside down. As soon as it leaves the oven, invert the tin and leave it. The structure is still soft and warm and it will compress under its own weight if it cools the right way up. Most tube tins have feet for exactly this. If yours does not, balance the tube over a bottle neck.

Vegan Angel Food Cake Recipe

• Prep time: 20 minutes
• Cook time: 50 minutes
• Cooling time: 3 hours
• Total time: 4 hours 10 minutes
• Serves: 12

Ingredients

• ¾ cup aquafaba, 180ml, the liquid from a can of chickpeas
• 1½ teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup granulated sugar, 220g, blitzed fine
• 1 tablespoon chickpea flour, 10g
• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon plain flour, 135g, sifted

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 165C, 330F. Have an ungreased 23cm tube tin ready.
2. Blitz the sugar. Run the granulated sugar in a blender or food processor until it is fine and powdery. This helps it dissolve into the foam instead of weighing it down.
3. Whip the aquafaba. Put the aquafaba, cream of tartar and vanilla in a large clean bowl. Start the mixer slow, then build to high. Whip for at least 6 minutes, until it holds stiff peaks that do not slump when you lift the beaters.
4. Add the sugar. Still on high, add the blitzed sugar a spoonful at a time. Take a couple of minutes over it. The foam should end up glossy and thick.
5. Add the chickpea flour. One tablespoon, beaten in for a further minute. By now you have been whipping for at least 8 minutes in total.
6. Fold in the flour. Sift the plain flour over the foam in three lots, folding gently with a spatula after each one. Cut down through the middle, sweep round the side and turn over. Stop as soon as no dry flour is visible.
7. Into the tin. Spoon the batter into the ungreased tin and level the top. Tap the tin once on the bench to settle it.
8. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the top springs back and a skewer comes out clean.
9. Invert immediately. Turn the tin upside down onto its feet, or over a bottle neck, and leave it there for 2 to 3 hours until completely cold.
10. Release. Run a thin knife around the outside and the tube, then turn it out. Dust with icing sugar and serve with berries and vegan cream.

Tips

• Use the liquid from a can of unsalted chickpeas. Salted works, though it is worth a taste first, and the chickpeas themselves are dinner tomorrow.
• Any trace of fat kills the foam. Wipe the bowl and beaters with a little vinegar or lemon juice on paper towel before you start.
• If it is not at stiff peaks after 10 minutes, keep going. Aquafaba is slow and it does get there. Old aquafaba from a can that has been open in the fridge takes longer.
• Do not open the oven in the first 40 minutes. The draught will drop it.
• Cut it with a serrated knife using a sawing motion. Pressing down compresses the crumb.

What to serve with it

It is a plain, dry-crumbed cake by design, which is why it is nearly always served with something wet.

• Macerated strawberries, sugared for half an hour so they give up their juice
• Vegan whipped cream and a dusting of icing sugar, the classic pairing
• Melted dark chocolate, drizzled rather than poured
• Passionfruit pulp spooned over, which cuts the sweetness better than anything
• Toasted in a dry pan for a minute a side, then served with ice cream

If you are after a denser cake instead, the vegan Jamaican ginger cake goes the other way entirely.

Storing it

Room temperature, in an airtight container, for 2 to 3 days. This is the best way to keep it. The crumb stays soft.

Fridge for up to 5 days if your kitchen is warm, well wrapped, because it dries out fast uncovered.

Freezer for up to a month. Wrap tightly in plastic, then into a freezer bag. Thaw at room temperature still wrapped, so condensation forms on the plastic rather than the cake.

Do not store it with fruit or cream on it. The moisture goes straight into the crumb and it turns soggy overnight.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you make angel food cake without eggs?

Yes, and aquafaba is what makes it possible. The liquid from a can of chickpeas whips into a stiff foam that behaves much like beaten egg white, which is exactly what an angel food cake is built on. It is not a compromise version so much as the same technique with a different foam.

What is aquafaba?

The starchy liquid drained from a can of chickpeas, or from chickpeas you have cooked yourself. The proteins and starch in it let it trap air the way egg whites do. Three quarters of a cup is roughly one 400g can.

What can I use instead of aquafaba?

For this cake, nothing else really works. Flax eggs, chia eggs and commercial replacers all bind, but none of them whip into a stable foam, and foam is the entire structure here. Save those for cakes with flour and raising agents doing the lifting.

Why did my cake collapse?

Almost always one of three things. The aquafaba was not whipped to stiff peaks, the flour was folded in too fast, or the tin was greased. Cooling it the right way up rather than inverted will do it too.

Do I really have to use an ungreased tin?

Yes. The batter needs to grip the sides to climb, and grease removes that grip. It is the one recipe where a non-stick coating is a disadvantage, so use a plain aluminium tube tin if you have one.

How long do I whip the aquafaba?

At least 8 minutes in total, often 10. It is done when the peaks stand up straight and the bowl can be turned upside down without anything moving. Under-whipping is the most common fault with this cake by a long way.

Can I use caster sugar instead of blitzing granulated?

Yes, caster sugar is already fine enough and it saves a step. The reason for blitzing is that coarse granules sit in the foam undissolved and weigh it down.

Why is my cake tough or chewy?

Overmixing at the folding stage. Every extra fold knocks air out and works the flour, and the result goes from cloud-like to rubbery. Stop the moment the flour disappears.

Can I make it gluten free?

You can try a fine gluten-free blend with xanthan gum, though it is a harder cake to get right without wheat. The crumb tends to come out closer and heavier. Sift it twice if you go that way.

The short version

Whip the aquafaba further than you think, fold the flour in three lots, bake it in an ungreased tin and cool it upside down. Those four things are the recipe. Everything else is which fruit you put on top.

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