Recipe
Lemon Angel Food Cake with Passion Fruit
A light lemon angel food cake with soft whipped cream and a bright passion fruit curd topping, made for afternoon tea, celebrations and easy-ahead entertaining.
Ingredients
Method
45 mins prep50 mins cook155 mins total
Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Sift the flour with 100g of the caster sugar into a bowl.
Whisk the egg whites until frothy, then add the lemon zest, 30ml lemon juice, cream of tartar and salt. Whisk to soft peaks, gradually add the remaining 200g sugar and continue until the peaks are firm but still glossy.
Fold the flour mixture into the whites in three additions. Spoon into an ungreased 25cm angel food cake tin, run a knife through the batter to remove large air pockets and bake for 45–50 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
Invert the tin immediately onto its feet or a bottle and leave the cake to cool completely for at least 1 hour. Run a knife around the edges and base to release it, then place it on a serving plate.
For the curd, whisk the egg yolks, 100g caster sugar, the remaining lemon juice and half the lemon zest in a pan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 5–7 minutes until thick enough to coat a spoon. Remove from the heat, stir in the butter and cool.
Whip the double cream with the vanilla until soft peaks form. Spread it over the cooled cake, spoon over lemon curd and finish with the passion fruit pulp just before serving.
Notes
Cool the cake completely upside down before removing it from the tin; add the cream and passion fruit shortly before serving so the sponge stays light.
About this recipe
This airy angel food cake is flavoured with fresh lemon and finished with softly whipped cream, lemon curd and tangy passion fruit. The fat-free sponge stays light because the egg whites are whisked to firm peaks before the flour is folded through gently.
Cool the cake upside down so it keeps its height, then add the cream and fruit just before serving. The curd makes more than you need for the cake, so save the extra for toast, yoghurt or another dessert.
