Torn Angel Food Cake Recipe with Strawberries
Preview: Make this Torn Angel Food Cake Recipe with Strawberries when you have a leftover angel food cake or an angel food cake fail. It is the perfect make-over solution. Must be made in advance, then chilled.
Making an angel food cake from scratch is an exercise in anxiety management for me. Will it rise to the top of the pan? Will the volume hold after I pull it out of the oven?
If your angel food cake didn’t rise very high, this Torn Angel Food Cake Recipe with Strawberries is the perfect make-over solution.
This Torn Angel Food Cake Recipe (aka Snowball Cake–not to be confused with the pink fluffy concoctions you see next to the Twinkies at the grocery store) is a light and summery dessert full of fresh fruit, angel food cake torn into bite-sized pieces, and whipped cream. I’ve been making it for years, for several good reasons.
Please note that this dessert must be made in advance, then chilled.
6 things you should know before you make this Torn Angel Food Cake
- This dessert can be, and actually must be made ahead, then chilled before serving.
- In addition to pineapple, you can try adding different fresh fruits. My favorite is strawberries, but I can imagine that blueberries, peaches, or cherries would be tasty and colorful.
- Use a store-bought angel food cake, a mix, leftover angel food cake, or make a cake from scratch.
- Although delicious with real whipped cream, whipped topping sold in the freezer section holds up better overnight.
- Coconut on the outside is not required, but then it won’t look like a snowball if that is your goal.
- This recipe is easy to cut in half–and I recommend it. Use a smaller mixing bowl when assembling. The cake you see in the pictures is a half-batch that will easily feed eight people.
Are you an Angel Food Cake lover?
If you have questions or suggestions, email me privately to Paula at saladinajar.com. Hope to see you again soon! Paula
Snowball Cake with Strawberries Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 small packages unflavored gelatin - 2 tablespoons total
- 4 tablespoons cold water
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 cup pineapple juice drained from a 20-ounce can crushed pineapple - add water to make 1 cup if necessary
- Crushed pineapple from a 20-ounce can
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 cup fresh strawberries - chopped
- 2 8-ounce containers whipped topping
- 1 angel food cake - baked
- Whole strawberries for garnish
Instructions
- Sprinkle gelatin over cold water and allow to dissolve.
- Add boiling water, pineapple juice, sugar, lemon juice, and strawberries and stir to combine.
- Refrigerate until slightly jelled and gently fold in whipped topping.
- Tear angel food cake into bite-sized pieces.
- Line a 4-quart mixing bowl with plastic wrap or criss-cross 2 long and narrow pieces of wax paper over the bottom of the bowl.
- Then start with a handful of angel food cake pieces as your first layer. Now add a layer of the gelatin/fruit mixture, then another layer of angel food cake. Alternate layers until all is used. It’s a good idea to push the cake pieces against the side as you build your cake so it will hold together and have a firm base for the whipped topping later on.
- Refrigerate overnight.
- The next day, turn the cake out onto a cake plate with the help of plastic wrap or wax paper. Remove the wrap and frost with the second container of whipped topping. Decorate with flaked coconut for a "snowball" effect.
Nutrition
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Paula Rhodes, author
I’m a retired home economist, wife, mother, grandmother, and creator of Saladinajar.com. I believe you don’t have to be a chef to find joy in creating homemade food worth sharing. Here you’ll find time-saving tips, troubleshooting advice, and confidence-inspiring recipes to make life in the kitchen more fun, appetizing, and satisfying.