Easy Pink Angel Food Cake

Pink Angel Food Cake is a dreamy, cloud like dessert that’s as beautiful as it is delicious! With its delicate crumb, heavenly vanilla almond flavor, and soft blush color, this cake is perfect for baby showers, bridal showers, Valentine’s Day, or any time you want to serve something truly special. It’s lighter than air, not too sweet, and surprisingly easy to make once you know the secrets!

Love More Dessert Recipes? Try My Chocolate Tres Leches Cake or this Applesauce Cake Recipe next.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Delicate, and sweetly charming, this Pink Angel Food Cake is a show-stopping dessert that feels as light as a cloud. Its tender, spongy layers are subtly flavored and beautifully tinted pink, making every slice as delightful to look at as it is to eat. Perfect for celebrations or a special treat, it’s a simple yet elegant cake that melts in your mouth with every bite.

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Ingredient List

Dry Ingredients

• 1 cup cake flour, sifted
• 1 ½ cups superfine sugar (divided: ½ cup for whites, 1 cup for flour mixture)
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Egg White Mixture

• 12 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon almond extract (optional but recommended)
• 2–3 drops pink gel food coloring

Optional Pink Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1–2 tablespoons milk or cream
• A drop of pink food gel

Substitution Notes:

• No superfine sugar? Pulse regular granulated sugar in a food processor for 30 seconds.
• Skip the almond extract if you have allergies — vanilla alone is still wonderful!
• Use liquid food coloring if that’s what you have, but gel gives better color with less liquid.

Why These Ingredients Work

Cake flour is essential here — it has less protein than all-purpose flour, which means a more tender, delicate crumb. Superfine sugar dissolves quickly into the egg whites, creating that smooth, glossy meringue we’re after.

Room temperature egg whites whip up to maximum volume — cold eggs won’t give you the same height! Cream of tartar stabilizes the egg whites and helps them hold all that beautiful air we’re beating into them.

The almond extract is my secret weapon — it adds a subtle, sophisticated flavor that makes people ask, “What IS that amazing taste?” And gel food coloring gives you vibrant color without adding extra liquid that could weigh down your batter.

Essential Tools and Equipment

• 10-inch tube pan (angel food cake pan) with removable bottom — this is a must!
• Large mixing bowl (metal or glass work best)
• Electric mixer (stand mixer or hand mixer)
• Fine-mesh sieve or sifter
• Rubber spatula for folding
• Long glass bottle or wine bottle for cooling
• Thin knife or offset spatula for releasing the cake

How To Make Pink Angel Food Cake

Step 1: Prep Your Kitchen

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Now here’s the most important thing: make absolutely sure your tube pan is completely clean, ungreased, and bone dry. I mean SPOTLESS! Any trace of grease will prevent the egg whites from climbing up the sides of the pan, and you’ll end up with a sad, flat cake. The batter actually needs to grip the sides to rise properly.

Sift together your cake flour, 1 cup of the superfine sugar, and salt into a bowl. Set this aside — we’ll come back to it later.

Step 2: Whip the Egg Whites

Add your room temperature egg whites to a large, clean bowl. Start beating on medium speed until they look foamy and bubbly — this takes about 1 minute. Sprinkle in the cream of tartar.

Now increase the speed to medium-high and start adding the remaining ½ cup superfine sugar, just a tablespoon at a time. Don’t rush this part! Slow and steady wins the angel food cake race. Beat until you see soft peaks forming when you lift the beaters.

Add your vanilla extract, almond extract, and those gorgeous drops of pink gel coloring. Keep beating until you reach thick, glossy medium-stiff peaks. When you lift the beater, the peaks should stand up but the tips should curl over just slightly. Be careful NOT to overbeat to dry, stiff peaks — that’ll make your cake tough and dry.

Step 3: Fold in the Dry Ingredients

This is where patience pays off! Sift about one-third of your flour mixture over the whipped whites. Using a large rubber spatula, gently fold it in with a cutting and turning motion. Think of it like you’re giving the batter a gentle hug, not a vigorous stir.

Add the second third, fold gently. Then add the final third and fold just until no white streaks remain. The batter should look fluffy and cloud-like. You might see a few small lumps — that’s totally okay! Better to have a few tiny lumps than to deflate all those beautiful air bubbles by overmixing.

Step 4: Bake to Perfection

Spoon the batter into your ungreased angel food cake pan, smoothing the top gently with your spatula. Now take a butter knife or a long skewer and run it through the batter in a zigzag pattern — this releases any large air pockets that could cause holes in your finished cake.

Bake for 35–40 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the top looks dry and lightly golden, and it springs back when you gently touch it. The cake should feel firm, not jiggly.

Step 5: Cool Upside Down

Here’s the fun part that always makes people giggle! The second you take that cake out of the oven, flip it upside down. If your pan has little legs, rest it on those. If not, carefully insert the center tube over the neck of a glass bottle (wine bottles work perfectly!). This keeps the cake from collapsing while it cools.

Let it hang out upside down for at least 1½–2 hours until it’s completely cool. I know it’s hard to wait, but this step is crucial! Run a thin knife around all the edges — the outer edge, the inner tube, and the bottom. Give the pan a gentle shake, then remove the cake and place it on your prettiest serving plate.

You Must Know

Room temperature eggs are non-negotiable! Cold egg whites simply won’t whip up to the volume you need. Set them out for 30 minutes before you start, or place them (still in the shell) in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes.

Personal Secret: I always use a copper or stainless steel bowl for whipping egg whites — plastic bowls can hold onto grease even after washing, which will ruin your meringue. If you only have plastic, wipe it down with white vinegar before starting.

The tube pan MUST be ungreased — I can’t stress this enough! The batter needs to cling to the sides to rise tall. Greasing the pan = flat cake. Trust me on this one!

Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

• Separate eggs when they’re cold (easier!), then let the whites come to room temperature.
• Test your cream of tartar — if it’s old, it loses potency. Fresh cream of tartar = better stability.
• Don’t open the oven door during baking — the temperature drop can cause your cake to fall.
• Use gel food coloring, not liquid — you get better color without adding extra moisture.
• Save those yolks! Make custard, lemon curd, or hollandaise sauce. Egg yolks freeze beautifully for up to 3 months.

Common mistake: Opening the oven door too early to check on the cake. Wait at least 30 minutes before peeking!

Flavor Variations & Suggestions

Strawberry Angel Food Cake: Add 2 tablespoons of strawberry powder or freeze-dried strawberry powder to the dry ingredients.

Lemon Angel Food Cake: Replace almond extract with lemon extract and add 1 teaspoon lemon zest.

Lavender Angel Food Cake: Skip the food coloring and add 1 teaspoon culinary lavender to the batter (grind it first!).

Chocolate Marble: Fold in 2 tablespoons cocoa powder to half the batter before adding to the pan, then swirl.

Rainbow Angel Food: Divide batter into portions and tint each a different pastel color, then layer in the pan!

Make-Ahead Options

Angel food cake is actually BETTER the next day! The texture becomes even more tender and the flavors meld beautifully. You can bake this cake up to 2 days ahead — just wrap it well in plastic wrap once it’s completely cooled and store at room temperature.

To freeze: Wrap the cooled, unfrosted cake tightly in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight at room temperature, still wrapped.

The glaze is best made fresh, but you can make it a few hours ahead and store it covered at room temperature. Give it a quick stir before drizzling.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

• Angel food cake is technically done when an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center reads 205°F.
• If your cake falls out of the pan while cooling upside down, your pan might have a non-stick coating (angel food pans should NOT be non-stick!).
• The cake will shrink slightly as it cools — this is totally normal!
• For the cleanest slices, use a serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion.
• Never cut angel food cake with a regular knife — you’ll squash it!

Serving Suggestions

This Pink Angel Food Cake is stunning served simply with fresh berries and a dollop of sweetly whipped cream. I love making a berry compote with strawberries and raspberries — the tartness plays beautifully against the sweet, delicate cake.

For a showstopping presentation, drizzle with the pink glaze and top with edible flowers, fresh rose petals, or white chocolate shavings. It’s also gorgeous served with vanilla ice cream and hot fudge sauce for an ice cream cake experience!

Serve it at baby showers, bridal showers, Mother’s Day brunch, Easter dinner, or Valentine’s Day celebrations. It’s light enough to enjoy after a heavy meal, yet special enough to be the star of the dessert table.

How to Store Your Pink Angel Food Cake

Room temperature: Store loosely covered with plastic wrap or in a cake keeper for up to 3 days. Don’t seal it too tightly or it’ll get soggy!

Refrigerator: If your kitchen is very warm or humid, you can refrigerate it for up to 5 days, but bring it to room temperature before serving for the best texture.

Freezer: Wrap slices individually in plastic wrap, then place in a freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for 1 hour.

Reheating: Angel food cake is best enjoyed at room temperature, but you can warm slices for 10 seconds in the microwave if you want them slightly warm with ice cream!

Allergy Information

Contains: Eggs

Gluten-free option: Use gluten-free cake flour (like Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Baking Flour). The texture will be slightly different but still delicious!

Nut-free: Simply omit the almond extract — the cake will still be wonderful with just vanilla.

Vegan: Unfortunately, egg whites are the foundation of angel food cake, and there’s no good vegan substitute that creates the same structure. Aquafaba (chickpea liquid) can work, but results are inconsistent.

Questions I Get Asked A Lot

Why did my angel food cake fall or collapse?

This usually happens for one of three reasons: you overbeat the egg whites to dry peaks, you overmixed when folding in the flour, or you didn’t cool it upside down. The upside-down cooling is essential — it keeps gravity from squashing your beautiful cake!

Can I use a regular cake pan instead of a tube pan?

I really don’t recommend it! The tube in the center allows heat to reach the middle of the cake, ensuring even baking. Without it, the outside will overcook before the inside is done. Angel food cake pans aren’t expensive, and they’re worth the investment if you love this style of cake!

My cake stuck to the pan — help!

Make sure you’re running a thin knife all the way around every edge — the outer side, the inner tube, AND the bottom. Sometimes the cake sticks to the removable bottom, so you need to slide the knife between the bottom and the cake too. Also, make sure your pan isn’t non-stick coated — that actually makes it HARDER to remove angel food cake!

Can I make this without cream of tartar?

Technically yes, but I don’t recommend it. Cream of tartar stabilizes the egg whites and helps them hold their structure. If you’re in a pinch, you can substitute 2 teaspoons of lemon juice or white vinegar, but the results won’t be quite as good.

How do I know when the egg whites are at the right stage?

Soft peaks curl over when you lift the beater. Medium peaks stand up but the tip folds over slightly. Stiff peaks stand straight up. For angel food cake, you want medium to medium-stiff peaks — they should be glossy and smooth, not dry or grainy looking.

💬 Tried this recipe? Leave a comment and rating below! I’d love to hear how your Pink Angel Food Cake turned out, and what you served it with!