After much experimenting, I have finally perfected Keto Angel Food Cake! It’s light and airy, with the perfect angel food texture. It’s completely grain-free and dairy-free.
This keto angel food cake represents an absolute triumph for keto baking. Perfectly light and airy, sweet and delicious, just as real angel food cake should be.
I have to be very honest and say I was on the fence about publishing this recipe right now, given the current state of the world. But so many of you have written, asking me to keep doing what I do best, baking and sharing recipes. We need these little bright spots, perhaps now more than ever.
I am committed to bringing you other great keto recipes that help you make healthy and easy keto meals during this time of uncertainty as well. It won’t be all cakes and cookies and butterflies over here, I promise. Be sure to check out this collection of easy keto dinners if you need a little inspiration.
The perfect keto angel food cake
It took me a long time to get this right, my friends. A lot of attempts, a lot of failures, and a lot of research. And a lot of sunken, overly dense keto angel food cake.
It all tasted good, so rest assured that it was not wasted. We found good homes for the failed cakes. Most notably, in our bellies!
I have to admit, I was very close to giving up. But I then I had a major breakthrough when I made the Chiffon Cake in The Ultimate Guide to Keto Baking. After a few attempts on that cake, I got the proportions of flour and protein powder JUST right.
And I knew I had to give keto angel food cake one more try.
This cake truly is keto-friendly!
When I was doing research on how to make angel food cake, I came across a number of cakes that called themselves keto.
I have to admit, was aghast that they all took either arrowroot starch or tapioca starch. And not just a little, either. One recipe took a full cup of starch.
I knew it had to be possible to make it without any starch whatsoever. And turns out I was right!
How to make keto angel food cake
Even conventional angel food cake takes some effort to make properly. This is a good baking project when you have some time on your hands and are up for a challenge! A few important do’s and dont’s:
Don’t grease the pan
Angel food cake needs to “climb” the sides of the pan and greasing the sides interferes with this.
Do line the bottom with parchment
This is critical for the easy release of the cake once it has cooled. I have clear instructions about how to line a tube pan with parchment in the recipe notes.
Do consider weighing your dry ingredients
Accuracy is crucial for angel food cake recipes, which is why I provided the exact weights for my almond flour and protein powder.
Do use protein powder
Protein powder is part of what allows keto angel food cake to rise and have the proper structure. You will need it for this recipe and I recommend egg white protein. Whey protein should also work but I haven’t tested that out properly.
Do sift your flour mixture properly
Sifting the flour thoroughly helps the cake be lighter and fluffier. If you don’t have a good sieve for sifting, then spend some time fluffing up the flour mixture with a fork.
Don’t invert the cake pan right away
Traditional angel food cake has you inverting the pan the minute it comes out of the oven, to avoid heaviness at the bottom of the cake. But I found it was important to let the cake cool for 20 minutes before inverting it.
How to store keto angel food cake
One of the great parts about this cake is that it can be made ahead and frozen! Just be sure to wrap it up tightly. I have half of my last cake in there as I write this.
If you aren’t planning on freezing it, it’s fine on the counter for 4 days, covered. Place plastic wrap over any cut ends to keep them from drying out.
What to do with leftover egg yolks
I have many answers for that! Check out these 35 great keto recipes for leftover egg yolks.
You can also simply add a few extra yolks to an omelet or to my Easy Taco Pie. The yolks will keep in your fridge for 3 days or so. I store mine in glass jars.
Bon appetit! I hope you enjoy this recipe.
Keto Angel Food Cake
Equipment
- Angel Food Pan
Ingredients
- ½ cup Swerve Granular
- ½ cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1 ¾ cups almond flour (about 175g)
- ½ cup egg white protein powder (about 40g)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 10 large egg whites room temperature
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place an oven rack in the second lowest position and preheat the oven to 325F. Line the bottom with parchment paper (see recipe notes). Do not grease the pan.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the granular and powdered sweeteners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, protein powder, half the sweetener mixture, and the salt. Use a sieve or strainer to sift the flour mixture into another large bowl. Do this back and forth between the bowls 3 times.
- If you do not have a sieve, simply use a fork to fluff up the mixture for several minutes, to break up clumps and make it lighter and airier.
- In another large bowl, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until frothy. With the beaters running, slowly add the remaining sweetener until the whites hold medium peaks (the tips should flop over slightly when the beaters are lifted).
- Add the extracts and continue to beat until the whites hold stiff peaks (tips should stand up straight when beaters are lifted).
- In four separate additions, carefully fold the flour mixture into the egg whites until well combined (a large silicone spatula works best for this). Be sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl well to mix in any ingredients that may have settled there.
- Spread the batter in the prepared pan and smooth the top. Wipe off any drops of batter from the sides, and lightly tap the pan on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles.
- Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking, until the top is uniformly golden and springs back when lightly pressed.
- Remove and let cool in the pan 20 minutes, then turn the pan upside down and let cool completely.
- Run a sharp knife around the inside of the pan, and around the tube in the center, to loosen the cake. If the pan has a removable bottom, you can simply push up to release the cake. Otherwise, invert the pan over a cake plate and tap the bottom to release the cake.
Anne says
Can you use a regular cheesecake baking pan?
Carolyn says
Angel food cakes need to “climb” the sides of the pan and the center column helps that. You can certainly try it but I think the center may fall a bit.
Elizabeth says
We really loved this cake. Unable to find egg white protein, we tried it with whey protein as per the suggestion (untried by the author of this recipe). The whey protein worked beautifully. The cake was fab. We also couldn’t find powdered “keto sugar” so put the entire 1 cup of sugar in to the food processor and ground it. Our sugar was a no-name sugar substitute from the Bulk Barn. That too worked perfectly. Altogether, this was a delight. We served it with whip cream and, for our non-keto guests, with strawberries. Accolades all around.
Carolyn says
So glad to hear it!
Joy says
Can you use allose Instead of swerve?
Carolyn says
Do you mean allulose? I honestly can’t say but allulose tends to make things softer so I worry that it wouldn’t have the right texture.
Martine says
I want to try this!. A couple of questions, do you think using egg whites from a carton would work? Also, I wonder if reducing the amount of sweetener would impact the texture of the cake.
Thank you for all that you do! I am finally taking diabetes seriously and you are the difference between a life of deprivation and one where I can eat ice cream and cakes.
Carolyn says
Carton egg whites don’t whip as well so your cake will end up heavy. Not sure about the sweetener, I think it does add to the structure somewhat so I worry that again it will be heavy. Or it will fall after baking.
martine says
Thank you, I’ll try it with eggs whites. I have a feeling I’ll collect quite a bit from making your chocolate ice cream. I’m freezing them in an ice cube tray. I’ll also use the full amount of sweetener suggestion at least for the first time so I know how it’s supposed to be.
Carolyn says
I read from America’s Test Kitchen that freezing egg whites actually improves how well they whip. Something about already breaking down the proteins a bit. Good luck!
Nancy Zelazny says
I love your recipes, and want to make this. I am wondering if I could make them into cups with liners?
Carolyn says
I have tried and not been successful. Angel food cake needs to climb the sides of an ungreased metal baking pan.
Charlotte A Mahin says
Can I use Splenda instead of the Swerve sugars? The Swerve powdered sugar has 3 carbs per teaspoon and there are 24 tsps. in the recipe. The regular Swerve has 4 carbs per tsp. Thanks.
Carolyn says
So I think you must be new to keto or low carb, if you are not aware that erythritol has zero carb impact. The “carbs” in Swerve have no affect on blood sugar (and I can verify this as I test my blood sugar daily).
Splenda, on the other hand, is a man-made chemical… in my opinion, it’s not a great choice for a healthy lifestyle.
Sandy says
OMG!! This cake is wonderful! I had it for breakfast with strawberries and SF Cool Whip. I can’t eat the SF store bought cake because it upsets my stomach. I bought the egg white protein powder just to make this and because I see you reference it on other recipes. I took the advice of another post and used a springform pan with a cylinder lump of tin foil for the center. It worked great! Just because your website is my go to for all desserts and am never let down I am purchasing one of your cookbooks. I am now looking for LC recipes using powdered almond butter. Any ideas or maybe you could point me in the right direction? Recipes with this ingredient are hard to find.
Carolyn says
I haven’t seen powdered almond butter, but I bet you can use it for my peanut butter bars and make an almond butter version!
Kim says
Will an 8″ angel food cake pan work? The one I have is not as tall on the sides (3″) and I just wanted to make sure it would be big enough for this recipe. Can’t wait to make this!
Carolyn says
I don’t think it will be big enough. You will want to cut back on the recipe… Mine is 9.5 inches in diameter, which means it has an area of 70 inches. Yours is 8 inches, which means it has an area of 50 inches. But because yours it’s not that tall, I’d be cutting the recipe in half.
sabrina Castermans says
Can I halve the recipe and make it in a small loafpan? What would baking time be? Thank you for your gorgeous recipes
Lori Huhn says
Very tasty. I will defiantly make this again. You are my go to for keto desserts
Patrice says
Can you use Bocha Sweet in place of Swerve granular?
Carolyn says
To be honest, I am not sure. BochaSweet makes things a lot softer and I can’t be sure of the results without trying it myself. It’s usually okay in cakes but again, no guarantees. You may just have to experiment.
Cheryl R Taylor says
I’m so excited to have this recipe! I am so grateful that you take the time, met the challenges, to figure these things out for us! We used to make Angel Food at Easter as our strawberries were starting to be “perfect” about that time! I remember my favorite thing to do is to get a piece, squash it down flat, put some cut up strawberries in the middle with some whipped cream and roll it up! It was a “kid” thing! Thank you for all you do for the Ketoers!
Anita Walters says
First of all, I love your recipes! You are my go to for keto. However, I had to chuckle when I read the first instruction. The way it is written makes it sound like you line the bottom of the oven with parchment paper. I had read your notes so I knew what you meant. Unfortunately, some people don’t read the entire post and I can see someone doing exactly that and then wondering why their oven is on fire.
Your recipes are comprehensive, relatively easy and well thought out. Thank you for all of your effort to provide great recipes. My husband is excited for me to bake this!