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I keep thinking this over and I don't have any better answers either. I guess what I wonder though is -- how does angel food cake mix get its volume? You only have to mix it for a minute or so, and the batter itself never gets fluffy the way from-scratch angel food cake gets. But it rises just as high when it bakes, so is there something extra in the mix? (I don't have any mixes right now or I'd check.) Any other leavenings?

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Aha - yes, there is. In addition to flour, wheat starch(?), egg whites, and cornstarch, there is also an ingredient referred to as "Leavening", consisting of Monocalcium Phosphate, Baking Soda, and Cream of Tartar. From what I can tell, Monocalcium Phosphate is an anti-caking agent/preservative and Cream of Tartar is in the from-scratch recipe. Baking Soda, however, is probably what makes the angel food cake rise. Ta-da.

Unfortunately, this means, bottom line, that if you don't whip those whites in the from-scratch recipe, you'll probably end up with a really flat cake.

On a different note, if there's such a thing as pineapple extract, maybe you could skip the vanilla and almond ones in the from-scratch recipe and substitute the pineapple one instead. Then just make the cake as specified in the recipe, including using liquid egg whites, and add drained pineapple at the end. Unfortunately, we've now wandered far afield from a really yummy dessert that takes 2 minutes to make.

Oh, heck. I'm going to the grocery store today. I'll cruise the angel food cake aisle and hope for one that doesn't contain dairy.

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[Research tells us fourteen out of any ten individuals likes chocolate. - Sandra Boynton]

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