Angel Food Cake

thanks to my friend Nikki Joiner for emailing the recipe, I never thought homemade angel food cakes could be as fluffy as store bought. I was wrong! Great flavor and stayed light and airy. and I actually bought cake flour instead of cheating with all-purpose flour. I used vanilla extract instead of orange.

Angel food cake from Alton Brown

* 1 3/4 cups sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup cake flour, sifted
* 12 egg whites (the closer to room temperature the better)
* 1/3 cup warm water
* 1 teaspoon orange extract, or extract of your choice
* 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a food processor spin sugar about 2 minutes until it is superfine. Sift half of the sugar with the salt the cake flour, setting the remaining sugar aside.

In a large bowl, use a balloon whisk to thoroughly combine egg whites, water, orange extract, and cream of tartar. After 2 minutes, switch to a hand mixer. Slowly sift the reserved sugar, beating continuously at medium speed. Once you have achieved medium peaks, sift enough of the flour mixture in to dust the top of the foam. Using a spatula fold in gently. Continue until all of the flour mixture is incorporated.

Carefully spoon mixture into an ungreased tube pan. Bake for 35 minutes before checking for doneness with a wooden skewer. (When inserted halfway between the inner and outer wall, the skewer should come out dry).

Cool upside down on cooling rack for at least an hour before removing from pan.

Cook's Note: Since they're easier to separate use the freshest eggs you can get.