<P> Angel food cake, or angel cake, is a type of sponge cake made with egg whites, flour, and sugar . A whipping agent, such as cream of tartar is commonly added . It differs from other cakes because it uses no butter . Its structure comes from whipped egg whites known as a protein foam . Angel food cake originated in the United States and first became popular in the late 19th century . It gained its unique reputation along with its name due to its light and fluffy texture, said to resemble the "food of the angels". </P> <P> Angel food cake requires egg whites whipped until they are stiff; cream of tartar is added to the mixture to stabilize the egg whites . Remaining ingredients are gently folded into the egg white mixture . For this method of leavening to work well, it is useful to have flour that has been made of softer wheat; cake flour is generally used because of its light texture . The softer wheat and the lack of fat causes angel food cake to have a very light texture and taste . </P> <P> Angel food cake should be cut with a serrated knife, as a straight - edged blade tends to compress the cake rather than slice it . Forks, electric serrated knives, special tined cutters or a strong thread should be used instead . </P> <P> Angel food cake is usually baked in a tube pan, a tall, round pan with a tube up the center that leaves a hole in the middle of the cake . A bundt pan may also be used, but the fluted sides can make releasing the cake more difficult . The center tube allows the cake batter to rise higher by' clinging' to all sides of the pan . The angel food cake pan should not be greased, unlike pans used to prepare other cakes, this allows the cake to have a surface upon which to crawl up helping it to rise . After baking, the cake pan is inverted while cooling to prevent the cake from falling in on itself . Angel food cake is sometimes frosted but more often has some sort of sauce, such as a sweet fruit sauce, drizzled over it . A simple glaze is also popular . Recently, many chefs (Alton Brown in particular) have popularized the idea of adding aromatic spices such as mace and cloves to the cake . </P>

What is angel food cake called in australia