Egg Whites Be sure to use fresh egg whites you’ve separated. Store bought egg whites that are previously separated won’t be as fresh and can affect the texture. Separate the egg whites individually. We don’t want a drop of fat (yolk) in the egg whites because it will prevent the whites from forming peaks at all.  Whip to soft/medium peaks. A big secret to getting the fluffy angel food cake is the egg whites. The egg whites are mixed until soft/medium peaks form. Be careful not to over whip the egg whites (soft/medium peaks, not stiff). If you over whip the egg whites, the dry ingredients will require extra mixing, which will result in the batter losing some of its precious volume. Soft Peaks Soft peaks don’t hold a firm shape, instead they wilt back into themselves after a few seconds. When beaters are lifted, medium peaks hold their shape fairly well except the tip of the peak folds over onto itself (think of a curved bird's peak). Stiff peaks stand straight up when the beaters are lifted without any movement after — no bent peaks, just stiff peaks.  Soft/medium peaks will continue to expand in the oven (allowing our cake to grow and get nice and fluffy, whereas stiff peaks are generally classified as over whipped for angel food cake and will most likely collapse in the oven. If you can get a happy-medium between soft and medium peaks, your cake will turn out fabulous! Dry Ingredients Using a lighter flour such as cake flour, aids in the light and airy texture. If in a pinch, you can use homemade cake flour.  Sift the dry ingredients over the egg whites in several additions. Do not pour the dry ingredients over the egg whites all at once, doing so will quickly deflate the egg whites. Our goal in making a fluffy angel food cake is to keep as much volume in those egg whites as possible. Tube Pan Do not grease the tube pan! The batter needs to stick and cling to the edges of the pan in order to remain tall. You must use an angel food cake pan (aka tube pan). Do not use a bundt pan. If you can find a tube pan with “feet” this will make cooling the cake upside down much easier.  Cool the angel food cake upside down in the cake pan. This prevents the cake from falling in on itself in the pan. Use a serrated knife to slice the cake. Storing Store the angel food cake covered at room temperature for 3-4 days. If you forget to cover it, the cake will become hard and lose its iconic soft texture. Recipe Source: Adapted from Food Network