This Caramel Apple Angel Food Cake is a light, fluffy apple angel food cake drizzled with a caramel glaze and homemade salted caramel sauce, then topped with cinnamon apple chips!
Preheat oven to 350° F. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse the sugar and freeze-dried apples (see note) until thoroughly combined.
Sift flour and ½ cup apple/sugar mixture into a medium bowl. Set aside.
Combine egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar in a mixer bowl. Using the whisk attachment, beat mixture on medium-high until firm peaks form.
Reduce mixer to medium and gradually add remaining apple/sugar mixture and ground cinnamon. Beat on high speed until thick and shiny.
Sift ¼ of flour mixture into mixer bowl and carefully fold in, being cautious not to deflate the egg white mixture. Once fully combined, repeat with the remaining flour mixture in three more additions. Ensure that the mixture is completely combined, with no unmixed dry ingredients.
Pour batter into an *ungreased* 10-inch tube pan, preferably an angel food cake pan with small feet (see notes). Smooth top of the batter.
Bake 30-35 minutes, or until top of cake springs back when touched. Invert pan on counter or cooling rack (see note), and allow to cool completely. Run a thin knife around the cake to remove it from the pan.
For Glaze:
In a medium saucepan, combine brown sugar, cream, butter, and salt. Warm over medium heat until butter has melted and sugar has dissolved.
Add powdered sugar and stir until smooth. Even when using sifted powdered sugar you may end up with some lumps. If desired, you can strain the glaze through a fine-mesh strainer at this point to remove any lumps.
Pour the glaze over top of the cooled angel food cake. The glaze will set, and will not make the cake soggy. If desired, drizzle some salted caramel sauce (see note) over the top of the glaze.
For Apple Chips:
Preheat oven to 200° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Cut apples into thin slices, about ⅛" thick, and lay in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
Bake apples for about an hour. Turn the pan around, then bake another 1-1½ hours, or until apples are crisp.
Place apple chips on top of the glazed cake. Cake will keep, covered, at room temperature for several days.Enjoy!
Notes
Note on freeze-dried apples: Make sure to use *freeze-dried* apples, as they are free of moisture and will process into a powder along with the sugar. If you don’t see them at your local store, you can find them here.Note on cake flour: Cake flour is a must for this recipe! The texture of the cake won’t be right (or could collapse completely) if you use another type of flour. If you can’t find it at your local store, you can find some here.Note on angel food cake pan: Angel food cakes are so light, they must be cooled upside down to prevent collapse after baking. Angel food cake pans have small feet on them that allow you to invert the pan (see here). If you don’t have an angel food cake pan, you can try using a regular tube pan, then inverting the cake pan on a wire rack to cool. (I’ve honestly never done this, but it seems like it should work).Note on pan prep: There is no need to grease the pan! Greasing the pan for an angel food cake will make it more difficult for the cake to rise in the pan, and your cake will likely collapse!Note on salted caramel sauce: If desired, you can drizzle some salted caramel sauce over top of the glaze after it sets. If you'd like to make the salted caramel sauce from scratch, you can find a recipe included in my post for my Blondie Brownies.