Pumpkin Angel Food Cake

Let the pumpkin madness begin. MM MM sooo yummy!

Serves 12
Prep time 30 minutes
Cook time1 hour
Total time1 hour, 30 minutes
Adapted from :The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook, 2001-2010

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup Coconut palm sugar
3/4 cups cake flour-I used Swan’s Down
1 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or Chinese Five-Spice Powder
1/2 teaspoon of Korinjte Cinnamon (because I am a Cinnamon snob you can use regular ground Cinnamon)
(I used Alchemy Spice Wake & Bake Sweet Spice Blend)
12 Large egg whites (room temperature)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon table salt (or 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt)
1 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
3/4 cups pumpkin puree (fresh or canned)

Note

*****A tube pan is essential to making this cake.  Any other pan will not allow the cake to “climb” and reach the height that an angel food cake should reach, resulting in a squat, dense cake.  You can buy an inexpensive tube pan at any store that sells home goods.  It’s worth the investment.*****

I made these in heart mini cakes for proper serving portions. (I can can eat can eat way can eat way to much cake,when left to left to my own slicing).

Directions
Step 1)Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. (IA do the dishes at my house so I use this for all of my baking) Whisk 3/4 cup of the sugar and the pumpkin pie spice or Chinese five-spice powder and cinnamon (fanvy or regular) with the cake flour in a medium bowl.

Step 2) Whip the egg whites and the cream of tartar together over medium-low speed in a stand mixer for about a minute, until foamy. Increase the speed to medium-high and whip until puffy, about a minute, then add the salt and the remaining sugar a tablespoon at a time. Whip until soft peaks are reached.

Step 3)Remove from the stand mixer and gently whisk in the lemon juice by hand. Sift the flour/sugar mixture over the egg whites 1/4 cup and a time, gently but thoroughly folding in with a spatula after each addition. Now, add the pumpkin puree 1/4 cup at a time, taking great care not to deflate the egg whites as you are folding. You will end up with a few pockets of pumpkin throughout the batter-that’s okay.

Step 4)Carefully scrape the batter into the prepared tube pan. Tap the bottom of the pan against the counter a few times to settle it. Place in the oven for 50-60 minutes, until golden brown and springy.

Step 5)Remove the cake from the oven and immediately invert. Most tube pans have “feet” or the center portion is taller than the edges allowing the pan to stand off of the counter, but if yours does not place the center of the pan over a sturdy bottle. Cool like this for at least three hours before removing from the pan. This step keeps the cake from deflating as it cools.(grandma tip…she taught me this one)

Step 6)Run a thin knife or spatula around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake, then (assuming your pan has a removable bottom) under the Serve at room temperature