Family cookout

Ah summertime, the perfect time of year for family cookouts.

Since some of my relatives from out of state are in town for the next couple of days, my dad decided to have a family cookout to bring everyone together.

My parents notoriously go all out, cooking enough meats and baking enough desserts to feed an army. On a day like this it’s hard to keep from indulging on everything, and for this cookout I decided ahead of time that I would not end the day sick to my stomach and weighed down with what feels like a sack of sugar as I slowly slip off into a sugar induced food-coma.

Now, at the end of the day, I feel as though I was successful. Somehow I managed to make it through the day, to indulge in the food I wanted to eat without feeling sick afterwards! All it took was a little mental preparation beforehand.

Luckily, my mom is well known for her fantastic, delicious angel food cake which comes out to only 109 calories a slice.  This recipe comes from a Good Housekeeping cookbook that is so old and worn that its spine is duct taped together.   While this cake is delicious on its own (better than any store bought or box angel food cake you’ve ever had, trust me!), in the summer time I like to sweeten it up even more with about 2 tbsp of cool whip and a generous heaping of fresh, sliced strawberries.

Though the ingredients are simple enough and the process seems quick at a glance, I’ll admit that my first attempt at making this myself was not an overwhelming success (I didn’t mix the batter enough to form stiff peaks, don’t make my mistake!).

Recipe:

1 1/4 cups confectioner’s sugar

1 cup minus 2 tbsp all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups egg whites at room temperature (this could be anywhere from 11-14 egg whites)

1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1/4 tsp salt

1 c. sugar (granulated)

Preheat your oven to 375 F. Stir the confectioner’s sugar and cake flour together in a small bowl and set the mixture aside.

In another, larger bowl, combine egg whites, cream of tartar, vanilla and almond extracts and salt using a mixer on high speed until all ingredients are thoroughly combined

While beating the ingredients in the larger bowl at high speed, begin to add the granulated sugar, 2 tbsp at a time. Beat just until the sugar dissolves and the mixture can form stiff peaks (stiff peaks exist when you can dip a knife or spatula into the mixture and the peaks that form when you remove the utensil hold their shape firmly without the point of the peak folding or receding back into the mixture). Don’t scrape the bowl while beating the mixture.

Using a rubber spatula (not the electic mixer any longer), fold the flour into the mixture, folding in about a quarter of the mixture at a time. It is important that you do not overmix the flour, just fold it in until the flour has disappeared.

Pour mixture into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan and use a knife or spatula to cut through the batter to break through any air bubbles that may exist.

Bake the cake for 35 minutes or until the top of the cake springs back when lightly touched. any cracks on the surface should look dry.

Once you the cake has finished baking and you remove it from the oven, invert the cake onto a bottle or funnel and allow it to cool completely.

Using a spatula or knife, loosen the cake from the pan and remove it onto a plate to serve (what was the bottom of the cake in the pan will now be the top)

Enjoy as is or add some cool whip and strawberries for an extra treat.

Below, find the nutrition facts as per myfitnesspal.com for each slice (strawberries and cool whip not included) if the cake is divided into 18 pieces.

Nutrition facts:

Calories: 109

Total Fat: 0 g

Cholesterol: 0 mg

Sodium: 72.2 mg

Potassium: 48.1 mg

Total Carbs: 24.1 g

Dietary Fiber: 0 g

Sugars: 19.2 g

Progein: 3.5 g

Vitamin A: 0%

Vitamin C: 0%

Iron: 1.2%

…heavenly…