So my husband and I watched The Great British Baking Show together last year, and I was so inspired by each episode. I appreciated the feel of the show - not much stress, and the photography... (still do, by the way). We noticed the contestants tend to be quite supportive of each other, and there is no yelling. Thanks be.
Well, this year, we are watching the show as a family, and loving it. And, after watching the first episode of the current season, I decided to make the weekly challenge recipes. I'm so glad I did, because I learned things about Angel Food Cake over the weekend that I didn't know before (like, Epicurious discusses this reasoning for not greasing the pan in Angel Food Cake and Its Perfect Pan: As angel food cakes bake, the air that was beaten into the egg whites, along with the moisture in the batter, expands and the cake climbs the sides of the pan). And, I'm learning even more about my new oven - like, I need an oven thermometer. It will happen soon.
For now, though, I have another challenge to catch up on (I was travelling, and missed the first episode's initial air date): English Muffins. I. Am. So. Excited.
On to the cake, though... The recipe I used can be found on the show's PBS page - Angel Food Cake with Lemon Curd. It's as delicious as it looks (thanks to my husband for photographing, as we were quickly losing light).
Some musings on this cake... One, I slightly overbeat the egg whites, which I'm sure had an effect on the end result (which was still tasty). Two, I processed cane sugar in my much-loved Vitamix to break it down more like caster sugar. Three, I think the oven was slightly off temperature-wise, and I will be "fixing" that issue soon. Four, I left it in a bit too long, and the crust - the top, especially, before inverting - was slightly bitter and definitely dark. Noone minded this, but it did change the flavour, and I'm sure the texture. Five, the lemon curd turned out a bit runnier than I'm used to, which worked well for this cake. Six, after checking a few stores, I gave up on the passion fruit. It was not going to be an easy find, and while I'm sure it would have changed the overall result, flavour was not lacking, by any means. And, seven...regardless of all these things...the guys asked for more.
It is - ahem, was - was a lovely cake. Music for Baking...Bon Iver.