Angel food cake pan question

[Sararwelch]

The thread about angel food cake pans yesterday got me thinking...

I was going to make CL's vanilla bean angel food cake this weekend. I don't own an angel food cake pan, nor do I have any interest in buying one right now (don't have storage space). I do have a tube pan like the recipe calls for. I'm just wondering, have any of you made angel food cakes in a regular old tube pan? I'm wondering if I should line the bottom of the pan with parchment so that the top of the cake doesn't stick - it shouldn't affect the volume of the angel food cake since the sides will still stick, right?

[ljt2r]

What's the difference between a "regular old tube pan" and an angel food cake pan? I thought that's what an AFC pan was? Is it just the fact that the tube doesn't come out? I only ask because I am the one who posted the question yesterday and I still can't decide what to buy! Non-non-stick bakeware is practically an endangered species these days! I found the plain Wilton 10 inch at Amazon, but a baker friend of mine really dislikes the plain Wilton. SO I am at a loss.

[withak48]

I use a plain, old (really old), tube pan for angel food cake. I've never lined the pan with parchment, and can't recall a cake ever sticking. I would think it would be okay, but the bottom might not brown as well as normal. Just a guess.

I've never used any other kind of pan--I guess I'll have to go back and read the thread!

Kathy

[ljt2r]

I use a plain, old (really old), tube pan for angel food cake. I've never lined the pan with parchment, and can't recall a cake ever sticking. I would think it would be okay, but the bottom might not brown as well as normal. Just a guess.

I've never used any other kind of pan--I guess I'll have to go back and read the thread!

Kathy

Keep that sucker--it is practically an heirloom at this point. I can't believe how hard it is to find heavy, well-contructed NON-non-stick bakeware.... :mad:

[sneezles]

You can bake an angel food cake in a non-stick tube pan. The advantage of the non-stick is the clean-up. I have 8 of the minature pans and the cakes come out perfectly every time so I imagine the same would happen with a full-sized pan.


BTA: For those looking for a non-stick tube try Chefs.com

[ljt2r]

You can bake an angel food cake in a non-stick tube pan. The advantage of the non-stick is the clean-up. I have 8 of the minature pans and the cakes come out perfectly every time so I imagine the same would happen with a full-sized pan.

so yours still climb the sides? i've never made an afc but that seems to be a concern on the clbb....

[avariell]

dont do anything.. use your regular old tube pan... nonstick screws up angel food cake

here is a link to some angel food pans that aren't non stick

http://www.sugarcraft.com/catalog/pa...elfoodpans.htm

http://www.goldaskitchen.com/merchan...id=2604&step=4

http://cooksdream.com/store/be1.html

[sneezles]

so yours still climb the sides? i've never made an afc but that seems to be a concern on the clbb....

Yes, the cakes climb just fine. And I've noticed the recent flurry of AFC threads!

[avariell]

You can bake an angel food cake in a non-stick tube pan. The advantage of the non-stick is the clean-up. I have 8 of the minature pans and the cakes come out perfectly every time so I imagine the same would happen with a full-sized pan.
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most chefs on tv seem to disagree with you as well.. Ina Garten just recently prepared an angel food cake and made a huge deal about not using a non-stick pan... interesting!

do you still get the crust on the outside of the cake? that is my favorite part about angel food cake.

[ljt2r]

most chefs on tv seem to disagree with you as well.. Ina Garten just recently prepared an angel food cake and made a huge deal about not using a non-stick pan... interesting!

do you still get the crust on the outside of the cake? that is my favorite part about angel food cake.

my baker friend said she uses non stick and it just does not climb as well. she really dislikes the plain wilton pan and seened to prefer a good quality nonstick as the lesser of 2 evils....

[sneezles]

most chefs on tv seem to disagree with you as well.. Ina Garten just recently prepared an angel food cake and made a huge deal about not using a non-stick pan... interesting!

do you still get the crust on the outside of the cake? that is my favorite part about angel food cake.

Well, fortunately for me I learned to cook/bake without tv chefs. The pan my mother had when I was a child was non-stick and it worked for her and mine works just fine for me. So while they may disagree I'm fine in my own little world!

And yes, the cake has the nice crust on the outside.

[Middydd]

Keep that sucker--it is practically an heirloom at this point. I can't believe how hard it is to find heavy, well-contructed NON-non-stick bakeware.... :mad:

Restaurant supply stores are a good source.

[ljt2r]

Well, fortunately for me I learned to cook/bake without tv chefs. The pan my mother had when I was a child was non-stick and it worked for her and mine works just fine for me. So while they may disagree I'm fine in my own little world!

And yes, the cake has the nice crust on the outside.

You have inspired me. I think I am going to get the nonstick Chicago Metallic--after all their stuff is top quality and I am likely to make many more pound cakes than angel food anyway.

I know what you mean about TV chefs though. Sometimes it is hard not to hear them in your head (those of us who are making a particular dish for the first time I mean)--and then you see them disagree with one another and are left feeling really clueless.

Oh and I had the baby on my lap while typing in my earlier post so let me clarify--my baker friend still prefers the non-non-stick for afc. Apparently her pan was a wedding gift so she has felt stuck with the non stick and feels that it works, just not as well as her mom's, which is an old fashioned, heavy, non-non-stick afc pan. There really needs to be a better word for non-non-stick bakeware.

[avariell]

Well, fortunately for me I learned to cook/bake without tv chefs. The pan my mother had when I was a child was non-stick and it worked for her and mine works just fine for me. So while they may disagree I'm fine in my own little world!

And yes, the cake has the nice crust on the outside.

i am sure this is going to come out the wrong way (which probably means i shouldn't say it, but here i go...)... i assume most everyone on this board is over the age of about 14-15 years old. and from other comments you've posted it sounds like you are an adult with a family, etc. so i guess what i am saying is that i am not trying to make it sound like you are old or anything... but i am 27 years old and i had no clue my parents even had the option of owning nonstick bakeware when i was a child! i am really surprised you were raised with non stick bakeware... i just figured that was something that only became commonplace in the past 10-15 years

anyway, i didnt really learn to bake by watching tv (or at least not angel food cake) my dad always made angel food cake in their old aluminum pan and it never stuck even tho it wasnt nonstick. i would be curious to do a "side by side" comparison.

[sneezles]

i am sure this is going to come out the wrong way (which probably means i shouldn't say it, but here i go...)... i assume most everyone on this board is over the age of about 14-15 years old. and from other comments you've posted it sounds like you are an adult with a family, etc. so i guess what i am saying is that i am not trying to make it sound like you are old or anything... but i am 27 years old and i had no clue my parents even had the option of owning nonstick bakeware when i was a child! i am really surprised you were raised with non stick bakeware... i just figured that was something that only became commonplace in the past 10-15 years

No problem calling me old! Non-stick cookware has been around for a very long time. I remember the inside of the pan was pink, of all colors. I was in high school when she got the pan so it was the late 60s.

I may just have to do the side by side test myself!

[ljt2r]

anyway, i didnt really learn to bake by watching tv (or at least not angel food cake) my dad always made angel food cake in their old aluminum pan and it never stuck even tho it wasnt nonstick. i would be curious to do a "side by side" comparison.

Dad made angel food cake? Well speaking of being old, I feel old and senile now because I have no memory of that! Ha! Maybe I will just ask Mom for her pan for AFC and buy a non stick tube pan for everything else... Hmmm....

[avariell]

No problem calling me old! Non-stick cookware has been around for a very long time. I remember the inside of the pan was pink, of all colors. I was in high school when she got the pan so it was the late 60s.

I may just have to do the side by side test myself!

is that like the old bundt pans that are colorful with the kinda non stick enameling? i have an antique one that is beautiful. now that stuff i could see working for an angel food cake... i guess when my sister (laura) was asking about nonstick i am envisioning the super slick new age stuff where cheese beads up when heated, etc.

laura- dad made them kinda frequently but you might have been in college already. sucks to be the oldest i think it was during one of his many low-fat diet kicks

[sneezles]

is that like the old bundt pans that are colorful with the kinda non stick enameling?

I honestly don't know. I just remember the pan and her saying it was non-stick but it wasn't Bundt shaped. It was a one-piece tube pan.

[Sararwelch]

Mine is an old tube pan - it belongs to my mom, I'm borrowing it so that I don't have to buy a pan. I will try it without parchment and report back.

[withak48]

Keep that sucker--it is practically an heirloom at this point. I can't believe how hard it is to find heavy, well-contructed NON-non-stick bakeware.... :mad:

Funny you should say that. A friend of my mother's just gave me several boxes of her old baking pans (including a tube pan--now I have two!) because she no longer bakes, and I was surprised at how much better constructed her pans and cookie sheets were. I thought it was just me!

Kathy

[Robyn1007]

Ha! I have no input on AFC but I just realized that avariell and ljt2r are sisters! You had me really confused at first.

[ljt2r]

Ha! I have no input on AFC but I just realized that avariell and ljt2r are sisters! You had me really confused at first.

I suppose our posts would have looked a little odd without that knowledge.

[Sararwelch]

I'm reporting back - made it with a tube pan, that worked fine. The cake is delicious, I used the vanilla bean angel food cake recipe from this site. However, the cake (particularly the bottom) is STICKY. It doesn't come up off the plate well. Is that normal? It tastes great, and it cooked for the full length of time and the top sprung back when touched like the recipe indicated.

[JaneCee]

Although I have an angel food cake pan, I often make my angel food cakes in a 9x13 shiny cake pan. Using the same recipe as for a tube/af pan, bake on 2nd -to-bottom oven rack, at 350 degrees for 34 minutes. Cool upside down, with equal-sized cans placed at all 4 corners. When cool, cut off the crusty part that overhangs the pan, then use a spatula to loosen the cake, and invert on cake-taker. My DH likes the cake baked this way because he gets some icing with every bite.

[Middydd]

I'm reporting back - made it with a tube pan, that worked fine. The cake is delicious, I used the vanilla bean angel food cake recipe from this site. However, the cake (particularly the bottom) is STICKY. It doesn't come up off the plate well. Is that normal? It tastes great, and it cooked for the full length of time and the top sprung back when touched like the recipe indicated.

Are you having rainy or humid weather? I've had this happen with Angel Food Cakes when I've made them on a rainy or steamy day. They get a much nicer crust on dry days.

When they've had that sticky quality I've thought of putting them in a low heat oven to dry out a bit.

[Sararwelch]

I didn't think the weather was unusual, although it was much colder than usual. Maybe that's the issue, I don't think I underbaked it because the cake tasted great and had good texture.

[Missi]

My mom recently gave me an AFC pan (non-non stick!!) that was my great grandmother's. When she gave it to me, she made a big deal that it had never had a drop of oil in it, and now I know why! This thread has inspired me to get it out and make a cake in it!!!

[Sararwelch]

Here's a picture of what I ended up doing with the angel food cake I made: