Chocolate Pudding Cake

• Butter, room temperature, for baking dish
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus more for baking dish
• 6 large eggs, room temperature, separated
• 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and set a kettle of water to boil. Butter a shallow 2-quart baking dish; coat with granulated sugar, tapping out excess.

In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks with granulated sugar until lightened in color. Whisk in melted chocolate; set aside.

In a large, clean bowl, using an electric mixer on high, beat egg whites with salt until soft peaks form. Whisk 1/3 of whites into chocolate mixture. Add remaining whites, and gently fold with a rubber spatula just until combined (do not overmix).

Transfer batter to prepared baking dish. Set dish in a roasting pan, and pour enough boiling water into pan to come about 1 inch up side of dish. Bake until puffed and just set (center of cake should barely move when jiggled), 25 to 35 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes; dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

** Do not freak out if your egg whites don't seem to fully mix into the chocolate. It will bake just fine.

~Amy Huff

Angel Food Cake

1 cup cake flour, sifted
1 1/2 cups sugar
9 egg whites
1/4 tsp. salt
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Sift together the flour and 1/2 cup of the sugar. Repeat.
3. Beat the egg whites until foamy. Add the salt an cream of tartar and continue to beat until they hold soft peaks; the tops of the whites should droop a little bit when you remove the beaters. Beat in the remaining sugar and vanilla and almond extracts and continue to beat until the soft peaks become a little stiffer.
4. Gradually and gently fold in the flour mixture, using a rubber spatula or your hand. Turn the batter into an ungreased 9- or 10-inch tube pan (not one with ridged sides) and bake 45 minutes to one hour, until the cake is firm, resilient, and nicely browned.
5. Invert the cake onto a rack and let cool for about an hour. Cut carefully around the sides of the cake and remove. Cool completely before slicing with a serrated knife or pulling apart with two forks. Angle Food Cake is best the day it's made; it becomes stale quickly, but is wonderful toasted. Recipe from How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman.

Nutrition info: CALORIES: 126; FAT: 0.1g; PROTEIN: 3.5g; CARB:27.6g; FIBER: 0.3g; CHOLESTEROL: 0mg; IRON: 0.6mg; SODIUM: 70mg; CALCIUM: 3mg.