Posted by Amy on Aug 29th 2022
Contrary to popular belief, devil’s food cake is not just angel food cake with cocoa powder. Like thelegendary beings after which they’re named, the differences between the two desserts go layers deep.Let’s talk about angel food and devil’s food cake, along with some tips and tricks for preparing both.
Angel Food Cake
Recipes for this light and airy dessert date back to the 1800's. Angel food cake was allegedly named for its texture; it was said to be so light, an angel could eat it and still fly away. Angel food cake contains no chemical leavener and verylittle fat. It gets its classic lift from whipped egg whites. To help your angel food cake rise to the heavens, use room temperatureegg whites, which incorporate air more easily than chilled egg whites.
If you want to jazz up your angel food cake, add a teaspoon of flavored extract to the egg whites before you whip them. You can also add spices to your flour mixture before it is sifted. Add flavor sparingly: too much canimpact your cake’s density, and your cake may not rise as expected.
At Chef’s Corner Store, we’re not usually fans of tools designed for a single task, but when it comes toangel food cake, there is no substitute. The idealangel food cake pan will have three features:
AnUncoated Interior - Angel food cake climbs up the side of the pan as it rises. Nonstick coating doesn’tallow the cake to adhere to the interior surface of the pan. Angel food cake baked in a nonstick pan will be delicious, but dense.
A Tube - The tube helps the center of cake rise as high as the edges, preventing your angel food cake from cratering in the middle. The tube and bottom of thepan are usually removable from the outer layer to help release the cake from the pan. Sadly,a Bundt pan is not a good substitute. Angel food cake will bake into the detailedpattern of your Bundt pan, and it will be a nightmare to get out of the pan.
Legs - Angel food cake cools upside down in thepan. It needs the support of the pan to keep the light and tender texture as it cools. If you already ownan uncoated tube pan, you can use that. Place a wine bottle or can under the tube while the cakecools to help keep the pan elevated.
If you’d like to try your hand at this heavenly dessert, we recommend this angel food cake recipe fromSally’s Baking Addiction. It contains only six ingredients, and Sally's post is packed with helpful how-to's. We're confident you’ll bake up a caketo make the angels sing.
Devil’s Food Cake
Devil’s food cake first came on the scene in the early 1900’s. There are a few theories as to how it got itsname. One, it's the decadent counterpart to angel food cake. Two, it's sinfully delicious. Finally, devil's food cake came about during a time when food that was spicy, rich, or dark was described as deviled, like deviled ham and deviled eggs.
Devil’s food cake differs from a standard chocolate cake in two ways. First, it uses more baking soda thantypical chocolate cake. Devil's food cake also calls for unsweetened cocoa powder. The combination of baking soda and unsweetened cocoa powder causes a chemical reaction that gives devil's food cake a rich mahogany color, similar to earlyred velvet cake. Several recipes also callfor coffee orespresso powder to enhance the chocolate flavor.
If all this talk about cake has you craving a slice, we recommend this "obscenely fudgy" devil's food cake recipe fromJocelyn Delk Adams of Grandbaby Cakes. It's made from unsweetened cocoa powder, coffee, and bakingsoda, in addition to tangy sour cream, and topped with a Swiss meringue buttercream. We can’t wait totry it.
Heaven and Hell Cake
Like Bobby Vee in his 1960’s song "Devil or Angel," we can’t make up our minds. Luckily, Imperial Sugar offers a recipe forHeaven and Hell cake. This divine lookingdessert contains alternating layers of angel food cake and devil’s food cake, separated by peanut buttermousse and topped with a chocolate ganache.
As neither devil’s food nor angel food cake is traditionally served with peanut butter, we changed up this recipe a bit. We created our own version of Heaven and Hell cake with an Italianmeringue dam around whipped cream, plus fresh sliced strawberries, which are commonly served withangel food cake.
We were concerned the rich layers of devil’s food cake might squish the delicate crumb of the angelfood cake. So we went with a single layer of each cake type, and we opted to put the angel food layer on top. But however you choose to create and serve yourversion of Heaven and Hell cake, we bet it will be delicious!
FAQs
Angel food cake has a light and airy consistency, while devil's food cake is enhanced with the additions of unsweetened cocoa powder and extra baking soda, giving this baked dessert a rich color and texture.
Is Devil's Food cake the same as angel food cake? ›
Angel food's alter ego, devil's food cake, is not plain at all but comes fully dressed with dense chocolate icing over and between two round layers of chocolate cake. The cake's genealogy is also American; the first printed recipe dates to 1905.
Why do they call it Devil's food? ›
There are a few theories as to how it got its name. One, it's the decadent counterpart to angel food cake. Two, it's sinfully delicious. Finally, devil's food cake came about during a time when food that was spicy, rich, or dark was described as deviled, like deviled ham and deviled eggs.
What is the difference between devils food and cake? ›
In general, devil's food cakes will have a deeper chocolate flavor because they're made with cocoa powder, and will be fluffier than other chocolate cakes, due to the higher amount of baking soda.
Is angel food cake better than cake? ›
Angel Cake: Given its fat-free nature, angel cake tends to have fewer calories than many other traditional cakes. The primary source of its calories is sugar and the egg whites. It's a popular choice among those who are mindful of their fat intake or are seeking a slightly "lighter" dessert option.
What is the main difference between angel food cakes and sponge cakes? ›
It's all in the eggs: Sponge cakes, in general, are made with whole eggs, while angel food cake only uses egg whites.
What makes Devil's Food cake special? ›
Devil's food cake is sometimes distinguished from other chocolate cakes by the use of additional baking soda (sodium bicarbonate), which raises the pH level and makes the cake a deeper and darker mahogany color. Devil's food cake incorporates butter (or a substitute), flour, and less egg than other chocolate cakes.
What's the difference between red velvet and devil's food? ›
Devil's food cake typically has coffee, sour cream, or water in the batter. While red velvet cake has tangier flavored liquids like buttermilk or vinegar. The different liquids also mean that Devil's food cakes have more moisture, which results in a more tender cake than red velvet.
What is the difference between Devils food and tempting chocolate? ›
Most chocolate cakes call for melted chocolate while the Devil's Food version uses cocoa powder and sometimes even coffee, which increases the robust, chocolatey taste. Using extra baking soda raises the ph levels to give the dessert a deep, dark color and help to make it a bit fluffier.
What is the chiffon cake method? ›
In chiffon cakes, the batter is aerated by whipping high amounts of whole eggs, often enriched with extra egg yolks, into a light and fluffy foam. Small amounts of melted butter or vegetable oil are often incorporated into the aerated batter to produce a more tender cake structure.
The Duncan Hines cake was more rich and buttery. The others were slightly less flavorful, despite having great textures and baking evenly. Call me Goldilocks, but the Pillsbury cake verged on too sweet, and the Betty Crocker one wasn't quite sweet enough. Duncan Hines' cake was a perfect middle.
Why is it red velvet cake? ›
When bakers added vinegar, baking soda, or buttermilk to their recipes to tenderize the cakes, the acid in those ingredients reacted with the cocoa, which was not Dutch-processed, to give the cakes a red tint. That color became a signature of velvet cakes.
What flavor is red velvet? ›
What flavor is red velvet? While there are cocoa undertones, red velvet is not chocolate cake because it balances both chocolate and vanilla flavors. It contains cocoa but not the same quantity as traditional chocolate cake, resulting in a more subtle cocoa flavor and tanginess due to the buttermilk and vinegar.
Why do diabetics eat angel food cake? ›
As stated previously, Angel Food Cakes are great for people with diabetes because they are low in sugar compared to most other cakes, and especially low in simple sugars and carbohydrates.
Why do people like angel food cake? ›
Angel food cake gets its wonderfully light, fluffy texture from whipped egg whites (think about a nice, airy meringue). There is very little flour, compared to other cake styles, and no fat or egg yolks are used.
Why do you flip angel food cake? ›
Angel food cake will continue to set as it cools, and it can sink down in the pan and collapse if you don't flip it to cool. Use a serrated knife to cut angel food cake once you remove it from the pan. Non-serrated knives can smash the delicate cake.
What is the difference between Black Forest cake and devil's food cake? ›
The cherry filling and lightly sweetened whipped cream are true to traditional black forest cake recipes. However, the genoise sponge (which gets its lift from whipped eggs and sugar) is replaced with a devil's food cake. This creates a more rich chocolate cake that pairs beautifully with cream and cherries.
What cake is similar to Angel Food Cake? ›
Sponge and angel food cakes are similar in a lot of ways, and to the naked eye (and tongue), you're going to notice that both are light and springy without a heavy dense flavor. This is because neither of them use butter in the recipe for moisture, flavor, texture, or body.
Does Devil's Food cake rise? ›
Why It Works. Acidic ingredients like coffee and brown sugar activate the baking soda, giving the cake its rise.
What makes Angel Food Cake different? ›
Angel food cake, or angel cake, is a type of sponge cake made with egg whites, flour, and sugar. A whipping agent, such as cream of tartar, is commonly added. It differs from other cakes because it uses no butter. Its aerated texture comes from whipped egg white.
