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
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (91 g) Swerve Granular
- 1/2 cup (91 g) powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1 3/4 cups (175 g) almond flour, (about 175g)
- 1/2 cup (40 g) egg white protein powder, (about 40g)
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) salt
- 10 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) cream of tartar
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) 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.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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Thank you for sharing this. Angel Food Cake is one of my husband’s favorites. Can’t wait to try it! ❤
Back to share the results of my second angel food cake attempt. This time I made the cakes on a clear day, so humidity didn’t interfere; I used 1/2 cup + 2 T powdered egg whites and about 13 oz water in place of fresh egg whites; I split the batter between my two 5×9” loaf pans; and the standard bake button on my oven worked randomly today* so I got to bake them like the recipe actually instructs! They took about 40 minutes total, and sank just the slightest bit in the center. They’re excellent regardless, and I will make the recipe with these adjustments again and again. I really like not having to worry about 10 egg yolks, because I usually end up forgetting about them.
*I am getting my oven fixed soon. ???? My amazing husband is going to fix it as soon as the parts arrive.
Can you share how I should adjust the recipe if I use coconut flour instead of almond flour? Thank you!
Sorry, this is not something that will work with coconut flour. Too dense and heavy.
This makes me so happy! My daughter and I love angel food cake. For her birthday, I always make a lemon angel food cake. (Just fold in lemon zest and serve with lemon curd.) It’s exciting to be able to make a healthier version. The other variation that I’ve made over the years is Paul Newman’s: fold in his grated chocolate orange bar. Now I can use your recipe, and fold in orange zest and grated Lily’s sugar free chocolate bar. Yeah! You’ve made my day!
Use can use the egg yokes from this dish to make keto lemon curd. There are recipes on the net.
Can I use a springform pan instead of an angel food cake pan, I’d lime to try using two 6” springform pans?
Hi Dianne, I think that would work okay but it may still be too much batter for those two small pans.
Are there any alternatives for that special pan? Storage space is very limited in my kitchen, and I am not willing to buy a special pan for one thing but I LOVE Angel Food Cake!
The tube pan is best because the centre tube helps it rise properly. But I do know some people make it in a springform pan… the centre may sink a bit more after baking, because it doesn’t have the metal to help cook it through. Worth a shot, though! I also think one commenter said she split the batter between two loaf pans.
Thanks for the tips!
You can put a glass a round tin or some thing similar in the middle of your spring form to simulate a tube pan.
Hi, Angela. I used two 5×9” loaf pans (ungreased, uncoated, parchment on the bottom) and they worked well. My cakes did sink a bit after they came out of the oven, but I can’t say for sure that it was the fault of the pans (see my comment above yours for an explanation). The finished cakes aren’t the prettiest, but I also don’t want to buy another pan, and I’m not an Instagrammer, so these pans produce perfectly adequate angel food cake for us. ????
Thank you, I will have to give that a try!
Can you use a Bundt pan instead?
I dont have the right pan so I placed a ramekin in the centre of a normal cake tin. Worked fine.
Good to know!
Thank you, Carolyn! My husband and I loved the finished cake. I made it on a whim, because I couldn’t get it out of my mind after you posted it.
I sheepishly admit that I can’t rate the recipe, because I made a ridiculous number of changes…I didn’t want to use fresh egg whites, so I used reconstituted powdered whites (about 3/4 cup powder and 15 oz water); I used a combination of sweeteners in place of the Swerve; I don’t own a tube pan, so I split the batter between two ungreased uncoated loaf pans; and because the button panel on my oven is still broken, I had to select a setting from one of the two working buttons: convection roast and pizza. Not wanting to intermittently broil the tops of my cakes, I decided that pizza was the best choice. (And because it makes the oven emit extra heat from the bottom, I left the rack closer to the center to compensate.) So at this point, my angel food cake was a mishmash of experiments and multiple variables. I figured it would come out edible at least, but I was amazed at just how edible it was. It’s fantastic—just a little too dense, almost certainly because I ended up with too much meringue (I’ll decrease the egg white powder and water when I make the meringue next time), but otherwise it’s really good. My husband said it was one of the best low-carb imitations I’d ever made. All of that to say…if my crazy version came out that good, I can only imagine how great your recipe is when made properly. ???? Thank you!
Well after all that, I am glad it worked out so well!
Oh, and I forgot to mention, it was raining outside while I made it. So, pretty much the most unlikely-to-succeed angel food cake ever. ???? Still enjoying it today.
Loved your story! Thanks for the laugh!!!
This recipe is fantastic! I used unflavored whey protein isolate and it has a fantastic texture. I will definitely make this again ????
Thanks for posting bout the whey powder. I don’t have egg white but I do have whey and I was hoping to make it tonight.
Is there anything I can substitute for the egg white protein? And, by the way, please keep sending out recipes because now that I am home all day I need things to do!
Well, as I say in the blog post, I *think* that whey protein will work but I am not positive.
I may have to try it with the whey protein, since our dog got hold of my container of egg white powder. And of course, she had to chew it open on the carpet, making a real mess when she licked it up.
I’m definitely getting an angel food cake pan for this! Thanks for putting in the weight in grams. I’d love it if you would do that for all your recipes. So much easier than measuring cups!! Thank you for all your delicious recipes! I recommend your website often.
Not everyone has a kitchen scale and to be honest, cups are usually just fine for most recipes. But for your info if you are interested: almond flour is usually right around 100g per cup and coconut flour is 110g.
Forgot to mention, my grandmother always made custard to serve with her angel cakes, that used up a lot of those egg yolks. It was delicious. : )
Saw your recipe and dug out my grandmother’s angel food pan that I had put away years ago. Now I can have angel food cake again. Just the recipe for now, when I have plenty of time at home. I am self isolating because the rest of my household works in the medical profession and we are all at greater risk. We decided on this course to avoid spreading the virus. Please keep posting your recipes, we all enjoy them and you. Good luck
Timely and too funny…today I was organizing my cupboards and had put my unused for YEARS Angle Food Cake Pan aside to be donated! I’m putting that puppy back to work! The recipe looks yummy. Thanks for all you do and share with us Carolyn 🙂
I noticed that the brand of egg white powder you linked to also has sunflower lecithin in it. If I have egg white powder and sunflower lecithin separately should I add the lecithin to the recipe? If yes, how much? Thank you!
I honestly don’t think you will need the lecithin. It’s the protein powder that really is key here. But if you do choose to add it, try only about 1/2 tsp.
Do you have a cup measurement for the egg whites? In some recipes I’ve found that the amount varies by brand of egg as well as size. (For example, in your multipurpose bread recipe, you called for 8-10 egg whites, or 1-1/2 c. For me, that’s a full dozen eggs, so the cup reference was helpful).
Hiya! Can I use egg whites from a carton or must I break eggs? Thanks in advance for everything you do.
Unfortunately, carton egg whites won’t work here as they don’t whip very well.
I’ve been making angel food cake for special occasions during my pre-keto days and it was always a hit. So when I stumbled upon your recipe I thought I should give it a go and make it for Christmas (today). I was so amazed that it tasted the same as the four-based one I used to make. The meringue texture at the top made it extra special. Thank you for this great recipe! No one would think this is a low carb cake!
Maria Emmerich has a great recipe for creme brulee using all thos egg yoks
I used egg whites in a carton before I read this comment and I think the cake turned out great!
Can we use dried egg whites?
As long as it’s a powder you can mix into the almond flour and sift, you can! It’s essentially the same thing.
Is that the same as Meringue powder that you put into royal icing? I have some whey protein powder, but have never seen the egg white powder. Keep posting recipes. Many of us are stuck at home for a few weeks and have time to try your new recipes out-as long as we have the ingredients already on hand!
Hi Faith, meringue powder is usually sweetened with a large amount of sugar, and wouldn’t be suitable for low-carb baking. Egg white powder is (usually) available on Amazon.com.
Egg White Protein Powder is also available at Trader Joe’s (maybe Aldi, too, but I haven’t looked there), if you have one and prefer to shop locally.
The recipe calls for egg white protein powder and it has also sunflower lecithin. Egg whites powder doesn’t I wonder if it will affect the Ed results? Or how much sunflower lecithin can we add to the egg white powder?
I don’t think you need the lecithin. I’ve used several egg white proteins and never had an issue at all.