Hi Everyone!  Happy Mother’s Day!  A big shout out to all the Moms, Grandmas, Sisters, Aunts, Nieces, Daughters, and well heck, everyone out there.  I hope that you all have a great day! Mother’s Day can be a bit tricky. It is ideally a day for all moms to relax and have fun.  However, for most moms that entails cooking and entertaining their kids and/or grandkids and that means at least some work. But, I can tell you from my own perspective that it is a labor of love and we wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Recently, I decided to foray into dangerous territory.  I decided to make a version of angel food cake using a couple of vintage recipes as guides.  I say that this is dangerous because old recipes carry so much history and so many powerful memories that families are fiercely protective of their own versions.  To even hint that you can make something that is just as good (or better) than grandma so-and-so or Aunt Whozit is asking for trouble. In my own family angel food cake is one of those recipes.  My paternal grandma, Starcy, made legendary angel food cakes. I was never fortunate enough to try one of those cakes, but I have heard the stories of how wonderful they were. I do remember that my family hosted an auction when I was a teenager to assist an uncle’s wife and kids after he passed away.  Some of the items auctioned were baked goods; including Grandma Goode’s angel food cake. I can’t remember exactly but I believe that it went for close to $100. Many of my cousins were involved in a bidding war for it. I wish that I had Grandma’s recipe to use but I was not lucky enough to end up with any of those.  I’m not sure how much good it would do anyway because, like many cooks in years past, she did not use standard measuring cups or spoons. Likewise, she would use pinches and dashes and instructions would include mixing something until “it looks right”. I’m sure that many of you have experienced the same problem. I do have one of her smock aprons hanging in my kitchen for inspiration.  Grandma Goode raised 10 kids in a 2-bedroom house on a small farm income. She knew how to stretch her groceries. The picture below shows my Grandma Starcy (on the right side with the glasses) along with her kids, kids-in-law and some of her grandkids.  I love that little smirk that she has.  You can tell that she is mighty proud of her family.  My mom is in the middle of the picture with the sleeveless blouse.  My grandpa is in the middle of that picture somewhere too.  Poor guy was covered in a sea of children. 

I have asked my dad about Grandma’s baking prowess. He says that she did not just bake one cake for the sake of baking a cake. She would spend a day baking enough to last the family for a few days. She had her own chickens, so angel food cake was a natural treat to make since it takes so many egg whites.  I wonder what she did with all the yolks. Hmmmm. I will have to ask around about that. Maybe there is an awesome pound cake or custard recipe out there. Someday I hope to get the recipe for her sugar pie to share with you all. But that is a story for another day.  

I tried out a few angel food recipes and this one was the best, I think.  The method comes from a vintage cookbook that I got at an auction years ago.  I must admit that I have made angel food cake from scratch before that turned out okay but not nearly as good as this one.  I did not then use any of these tried and true measuring and mixing methods. I was skeptical, but they really do make a huge difference.  This cake turns out really light and fluffy and TALL. The flavor is delightful with a hint of almond and a wonderful sweetness.

Put your eggs out on the counter a few hours ahead of time if possible to bring them to room temperature.  When you are ready to start mixing your cake, sift some of the cake flour in a large bowl. You don’t need to measure at this step just sift.  Now you should measure out 1 ¼ cups of the sifted flour being careful not to pack the flour into the measuring cup. Just scoop and level it off with your finger or a knife.  Sift this flour 3 more times along with ½ cup of sugar. You will need 2 bowls for this. Just go back and forth between the bowls. Set aside.

(more…)