Foil packets arranged inside a slow cooker
Foil packets arranged inside a slow cooker
Cover the slow cooker with its lid and cook on HIGH for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the cakes feel set and springy when you gently press the tops through the foil. Cooking time can vary a bit by slow cooker, so start checking around the 1 1/2-hour mark.
When done, turn off the slow cooker and let the packets sit, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes. This short rest helps the cakes finish steaming and makes them easier to handle.
Using tongs or a spatula, carefully lift the foil packets out of the slow cooker and place them directly back into the empty, warm crock if you’d like to serve from there, or onto a platter. Open the top seam of each packet just enough to expose the cake surface while leaving most of the foil wrapped around the sides and bottom.
Freshly cooked foil cakes being opened after steaming
Freshly cooked foil cakes being opened after steaming
Lightly sift additional powdered sugar over the tops of the warm cakes right in their foil pouches. Close the lid of the slow cooker again for a couple of minutes if you’d like the sugar to melt just slightly into the tops, or serve immediately so the sugar stays visible and pretty.
To serve, keep the cakes nestled in their foil inside the slow cooker on the WARM setting. Guests can lift out a packet, peel back the foil, and enjoy their own little fluffy, fruit-filled cake straight from the wrap.
Finished angel food cakes dusted with powdered sugar in foil
Finished angel food cakes dusted with powdered sugar in foil
Variations & Tips
You can change the character of these little cakes just by swapping the fruit filling. Blueberry, strawberry, raspberry, or apple pie filling all work nicely; in the fall, try apple or cherry with a pinch of cinnamon sprinkled over the fruit before adding the batter.
For a citrus twist, spoon a teaspoon of lemon curd over the fruit or use lemon pie filling and finish the warm cakes with a light squeeze of fresh lemon juice before dusting with powdered sugar. If your slow cooker runs hot, check early so the cakes don’t overcook and dry out; if it runs cooler, give them an extra 15 to 20 minutes.
Different fruit-filled angel food cake variations on a platter
Different fruit-filled angel food cake variations on a platter
To make smaller bites for a big crowd, use less batter and fruit per packet and shorten the cooking time slightly, checking early. You can also line the bottom of the slow cooker with a layer of crumpled foil to lift the packets slightly if you’re worried about hot spots. Leftover cakes (if you’re lucky enough to have any) can be cooled in their foil, then stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator and gently rewarmed in the slow cooker or oven the next day.
