Angel Food Cupcakes

Angel Food is one of those delectable sounding light as air concoctions that you like just from the sound of the name. Indeed its very light and fluffy and tastes much like how you imagined a cloud to taste like when you were a child. I have made angel food cake before but I bought some lovely cupcake holders on the weekend from DJs. They are by Donna Hay and they're French pleated cups in a semi transparent stiff glassine-like paper. I have something like 500 cupcake cups in my cupboards so I didn't really need these but I figured when they're so chic and they're 100 for $7.95, what's an extra 100 or so? The best part was that they fit my cupcake baking tray perfectly and quite honestly, no cupcake cups ever have before.

However beware if you are using these cups, they will discolour slightly when baked so best to pop them in a new cup once you're ready to ice if you are not storing in the fridge or just before serving. A big downfall is if you store them in the fridge in the second outer cup, the second cup becomes wet and loose and does not hold its shape at all. So ideally you'd make the cupcakes on the day you want to eat them and then slide them in new cups just before icing and serving them. Or you can refrigerate them iced and then before serving pop them in a new cup. They are ridiculously chic though so all is forgiven with the minor fiddlyness.

Angel Food Cake

An original recipe by Not Quite Nigella

• 5 egg whites at room temperature

• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

• 3/4 cup pure icing sugar

• 1/2 cup plain flour

• 600ml cream whipped with 1-2 tablespoons of caster sugar

• Silver cachous, butterflies or white chocolate shavings to decorate

Step 1 - Lay out cupcake pans in tray

Step 2 - Ensure beaters and bowl are very clean. Beat egg whites and lemon juice in a bowl until frothy. Add vanilla and cream of tartar. Beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in icing sugar until firm peaks form.

Step 3 - Sift flour 3 times. Gently fold flour into egg white mixture until just combined. Spoon mixture into pan using metal spoon and spread top evenly using a spatula. These will not rise so fill them up to where you want the cake to go.

Step 4 - Cook in moderate oven 170c for about 15 mins until cooked. Allow to cool in pan.

Step 5 - Decorate with sweetened whipped cream, cachous and butterflies/angel wings