My mother made these for us when we were kids and I loved them. This is one of the fifty or so very special recipes that I took with me when I moved out on my own.

I’m not sure I made these myself, ever. I’ve thought about them, and looked at the recipe card in my recipe file box. But on close inspection, I made several crucial typos, so I doubt I’ve made them.

Then I ran across the very original of the recipe in one of my 250 cookbooks (1964 Pillsbury’s Bake-Off). It is noted with my mother’s “Good” written next to it. I think it’s time to make them again!

The recipe below has two options for serving: the original, and an updated, lighter option. For us, I’ll make the light version. But I guarantee that the original recipe is very, very good!

Recipe: Angel Squares
three and a half stars

You can bake a half-recipe in an 8″x8″ pan for 35 minutes. Use 4 egg whites in a half-recipe.

Stir together:

• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

Blend in:

• 1 cup hot milk (hot milk helps dissolve the sugar faster)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat 2 minutes at medium speed (or 300 strokes with a spoon).

Beat:

• 7 egg whites (1 cup)
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter

Beat until soft peaks form. Fold into batter, gently but thoroughly.

Turn into 13″x9″ inch pan, greased and floured on bottom. (I lined the bottom of the pan with parchment, sprayed with Pam, and dusted with flour.)

Bake for 35-40 minutes, until cake springs back when touched lightly in center. Cool.

Two options for serving:

Original: Cut the cake into 3×2-inch rectangles. Frost top and sides. Roll in 1 1/2 to 2 cups cashews or salted peanuts, finely chopped. (Peanuts were what my mother used.) Drizzle with chocolate glaze.

• Butter frosting: In mixer, beat 1/4 cup butter, about 4 cups powdered sugar (1 pound), and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Blend in 5-6 tablespoons milk until spreadable. Add more powdered sugar if you get it too thin.
• Chocolate glaze: Melt 2 5¢ Nestle’s Milk Chocolate Candy Bars, 2 tablespoons milk and 1 tablespoon butter over hot water. (I have no idea how big a 5¢ chocolate bar is compared to today’s chocolate bars. Sorry.)

Light version: Cut the cake into serving-size portions, and split in half through the middle. Top with softened frozen yogurt and fruit (such as sliced strawberries or peaches, or blueberries). Drizzle with a tiny bit of your favorite chocolate sauce if you want. Or use fruit and lite frozen topping (like Cool Whip). One-eighth of an 8″x8″ cake has about 200 calories and essentially no fat.

Recipe Comments

This is good for a non-fat cake. It tastes, predictably, quite sweet. I remember it as being a lighter, fluffier cake. That may be because I didn’t make any adjustments for high-altitude (we live at 5000 feet), or it may just be that I remember wrong. We had it both with strawberries and the next night, with sliced bananas and chocolate. Great!