Recipe of the Week - Heavenly Angel Food Cake

I'm in love with Southern Living recipes lately--apparently I'm embracing (finally) the inner Southern Belle. Here's a dessert from a couple of months ago that is fabulous! It's a perfectly light summer cake...perfect for humid Tennessee days!

Heavenly Angel Food Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups egg whites

1 teaspoon cream of tarter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 375°. Line bottom and sides of a 13- x 9-inch pan with aluminum foil, allowing 2 to 3 inches to extend over sides of pan. (Do not grease pan or foil.) Sift together first 3 ingredients.

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar at high speed until stiff peaks form. Gradually fold in sugar mixture, 1/3 cup at a time, folding just until blended after each addition. Fold in vanilla and lemon juice. Spoon batter into prepared pan. (Pan will be very full. The batter will reach almost to the top of the pan.)

Bake at 375° on an oven rack one-third up from bottom of oven 30 to 35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Invert cake onto a lightly greased wire rack; let cool, with pan over cake, 1 hour or until completely cool. Remove pan; peel foil off cake. Transfer cake to a serving platter. Spread Lemon-Cream Cheese Frosting evenly over top of cake. Garnish, if desired.

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

1 1/2 packages softened cream cheese

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 (16 oz) pkg powdered sugar

2 teaspoons lemon zest

Beat cream cheese and butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; add lemon juice, beating just until blended. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended; stir in lemon zest.