Mini Vanilla Bean Angel Food Cakes with Orange Blossom Strawberry Sauce

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Add large cupcake liners to jumbo muffin pans, and lightly grease them with a small amount of butter, canola oil or cooking spray.

Sift confectioners’ sugar cake flour three times. Set aside.

Add cream of tartar, vanilla, Amaretto and salt to the egg whites. Beat on high speed until foamy.

Gradually add granulated sugar to the egg whites while beating on high, until stiff peaks form and sugar dissolves (be careful not to over beat—the whites should still be shiny).

Gently fold in the flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, making sure it is incorporated before adding each 1/4 cup.

Using a spoon or ice cream scoop, gently add batter to the cupcake pan, filling each one 3/4 full. After the pan is filled, gently cut through the batter with a knife a few times to remove any air pockets.

Bake on a rack in the lower 1/3 of your oven for about 20 minutes, until cake springs back when you lightly touch it.

Remove from the oven and place on a baking rack. After 5 minutes, remove cakes from the cupcake pan and cool completely on the baking rack. If you are not using your cakes right away, cover tightly with plastic wrap. They’ll keep at room temperature for 1 day.

For the orange blossom strawberry sauce, place half of the cut strawberries in food processor, along with half of the superfine sugar, all of the lemon zest and the orange blossom water. Process until a smooth sauce forms. If you want your sauce a little sweeter, add a little more superfine sugar to taste. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine remaining strawberries and superfine sugar. Let macerate until strawberries begin to release their juices.

To serve, place 2 or 3 cupcakes upside down on serving plate (they’re more stable this way). Spoon strawberries over the top of each plate, and then drizzle sauce over the strawberries and cake.

Notes:

Serve with a dollop of fresh whipped cream on top. You can make it by simply whipping heavy cream with a little superfine sugar and vanilla extract (the real thing please!) until it is stiff.

Make your own superfine sugar by whirling it in the food processor until it is very finely ground—finer than regular sugar but not as finely ground as confectioners’ sugar.

Orange blossom water can be found at specialty/gourmet cooking stores.