lemon chiffon cake

We all know that I love to bake.
You didn't know?
Well, now you do.


I'm in the mood for a Lemon Chiffon Cake.
Recipe follows the pictures.

For this cake, you'll need an Angel Food cake tin.
They're not cheap, but if you do a lot of baking, they're worth the investment.
Get a non-stick one.

These come in two parts, as seen here:-

Here, I've got everything I need assembled; see how little bench space I have in my kitchen?

The same amount of space is on the other side of the stove.

Cake tin, check, mixing bowls, check, measuring cups, check, eggs, lemons, flour, sugar, check, check, check.

Light the oven and start measuring ingredients. These tupperware measuring cups are over thirty years old.

See the orange measuring spoons hanging on the wall? They were bought at the same tupperware party. They've lasted well.

Here's the meringue being gently folded into the batter.

And here's the mix ready to pour into the prepared tin and bake.

Once baked, the cake, still in its tin, needs to hang upside down until completely cooled.

I knew those cans of beans would come in handy...

Here is the finished cake. It's a little dark, and cracked on top. That's because my oven thermostat is stuffed and I didn't adjust the setting down quite far enough. The cake is for me, though, not for giving away or selling, so that's okay.

Sometimes I'll drizzle it with lemon icing, but not today.

There's a fair bit of fiddling around involved, separating the eggs, squeezing the lemons and straining the juice, but the end result is worth it. The flavour and texture makes it worth it.

It's a large cake, suitable for parties or gatherings where you're asked to bring a plate.

Sometimes I've sliced it and frozen individual slices and it keeps quite well this way.

This is a great way to finish the day. Cake and a hot chocolate.

Here's the recipe.

LEMON CHIFFON CAKE

2 1/4 cups plain flour 1 1/4 cups caster sugar

1 tbsp baking powder 1/2 cup clean vegetable oil

5 egg yolks, beaten 3/4 cup cold water

8 egg whites 1/4 cup lemon juice

grated lemon rind 1 tsp cream of tartar

1/4 cup caster sugar, extra

Pre heat oven to 170*C

Sift flour, sugar and baking powder.

Stir in oil, egg yolks, water, lemon rind and lemon juice.

Beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until smooth.

Whisk egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy, gradually add the extra sugar, whisk until peaks form.

Stir 3-4 spoonfuls of meringue into batter, then gently fold in the rest.

Pour the mixture into the ungreased cake tin.

Cook as close as possible to the middle of the oven.

Cook for 60-65 minutes until well risen and tests clean with a skewer. (Cooking time will depend on individual ovens, they vary.)

The first time you make this, check carefully so you can get the baking time right.

Remove from oven, leave cake in tin, hang upside down until completely cooled.

Loosen with plastic spatula to remove from tin. (A metal spatula might damage your angel food tin.)

You'll notice that you need five egg yolks and eight egg whites.

I cover the left over egg yolks with gladwrap and use them the next morning in pancakes for breakfast. You might have a different use for them......