How do I describe the taste of Red Velvet cake? Well, it’s not vanilla cake, but it’s certainly not all chocolate. Red Velvet cake, for lack of a more creative vocabulary, tastes like sweet red cake. Without rich and decadent frosting, this cake is light, moist, quite tasty and yes, red. My favorite Red Velvet cake is relentlessly smothered in brown sugar cream cheese frosting. The recipe for both just a jump away.
Buttermilk Red Velvet
adapted from Demolition Desserts
8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temp
1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temp
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups cake flour
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup buttermilk
scant 2 Tablespoons Red Food coloring
1. Preheat the oen to 325. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda. Add the kosher salt after sifting and set aside. Measure out the buttermilk and red rood coloring. Add the die to the buttermilk for easier incorporation later.
2. Cream the butter and the sugar using an electric mixer, until the mixture is pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, letting the eggs beat for 1 mintue in between additions. Scrape down the bowl in between additions.
3. Add the dry ingredients alternately with the wet ingredients. Start by adding one third of the flour mixture. Mix just to incorporate. Add half of the buttermilk. Add another one third of the flour mixture. Mix to incorporate. Add the last half of buttermilk, followed by the last third of flour.
4. Spoon into paper lined cupcake pans. Check the cupcakes after 12 minutes. Makes 12 cupcakes.
The cupcake recipe should be doubled for the amount of frosting the below recipe produces. The make 24 cupcakes, or a two layer 8-inch or 9-inch round cake, double the cake recipe above, and use the frosting recipe below as is.
Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
8oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-4 tablespoons milk
4-6 cups powdered sugar
depending on desired consistency
Cream the butter and cream cheese together in an electric mixer. (Be sure that the two are at room temperature. Cold cream cheese or butter can make your frosting lumpy.) Add the brown sugar and vanilla extract, and beat for about 2 minutes. Turn off mixer and add 2 cups of powdered sugar. Turn the mixer on a low speed so the sugar doesn’t fly out of the bowl. Slowly add more sugar alternately with the milk until you reach your desired consistency. I like my cupcake frosting to be slightly more thick than cake frosting, so it can hold its shape on the cupcake.
{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
I not only put cocoa in my red velvet cake, but I have started adding shaved chocolate, and it is the best red velvet cake ever. I probably put about 1/4 c cocoa.
My sister has requested red velvet cupcakes for her birthday in a couple weeks. I can’t wait to see your recipe!
I never had red velvet cake :-( That cupcake is a work of art!!
So adorable! I put cocoa in my red velvet, but I’m not really a red velvet fan so I don’t know that my opinion is valid. I feel for red velvet like I do for pancakes … I want to like them so bad, but I just don’t like them.
I’m with Kate! I do both the cocoa and shaved chocolate and it’s delicious! I usually put 1/4 cup of cocoa and shave about 4 or so ounces of chocolate. Hands down my favorite cake!
Red velvet cake isn’t something we have in NZ. I would love to try your recipe. Do you use paste food colouring or liquid? I would imagine that the paste is a bit thick?
Nikki- I can understand you now being a big fan of Red Velvet… but pancakes!? Now that’s just crazy!!
Stephanie and Kate- I love the idea of shaved chocolate in Red Velvet! I’ve never tried it, so I didn’t include it in this recipe, but what a great idea! It must be just delicious! Thanks for the suggestion!
Deborah- I would definitely do what Kate and Stephanie suggested and use cocoa powder and shaved chocolate together in the batter! Yum!
Tammy- I use liquid food coloring. I think a paste would be a bit too think, like you said.
you know…. i’ve never had a red velvet cake (or cupcake) before! your cuppie is just too cute!
i love the halvsies swirled frosting! makes me think of the smurfs! and the brown sugar in it is a great touch.
have you ever had cream cheese frosting split while making it? this happens to me every once and awhile, and i can’t figure out why.
What did you think of this recipe Joy? I have wanted to try it since I have been disappointed in the past with some other red velvet recipes, but I would love to know your opinion before I do. Thanks!
I’m glad someone else has discovered the shaved chocolate. I probably use about as much as Stephanie- I actually just coarsely chop squares of semisweet chocolate and it shatters into bits- you want to be able to see them in the cake but not feel them when you eat it. I tried chocolate chips once and they were too big. You want that delicious chocolate flavor without affecting the texture. I do a pretty standard cream cheese frosting which gets whipped a LONG time. (maybe 6 minutes in my kitchenaid?) This is definitely my go-to cake and always get devoured at parties.
Steph- Your cream cheese frosting question is a great one! I used to have that problem until I figured out what was going on. I’ll write a whole post about it tonight!
Melody- I must admit that Red Velvet isn’t my favorite flavor cake. This recipe is good- not great, not horrible. I think to make is close to great I would add the shaved chocolate that kate and stephanie talk about, and I would also use sour cream along with the mil. Maybe 1/4 cup sour cream, and 1/2 cup milk (plain, not buttermilk). I really like the way that sour cream tenderizes a cake. Good luck with yours!
I know! I’ve tried pancakes every time they’re around my whole life because I want to like them sooo badly, but it just hasn’t happened. Don’t worry, I know it’s just wrong :)
I made these for Valentine’s this year for the first time. I agree… it’s tough to pin a flavor on them. I personally enjoyed the cupcakes with frosting much more than without. Yours look very pretty :)
Your cupcake has been chosen for ATC’s Weekly Cupcake Collection! Click the link to see more. Looking forward to your next cupcake creation!
http://tinyurl.com/34tnpr
Those are just gorgeous! And I feel quite sure that they’re as yummy as they look. :)
Ack! You have Demolition Desserts! It’s my new favorite cookbook. Do you just LURVE it or what?!?!
Ok, and the smurf comment totally had me cracking. The cupcakes are absolutely beautiful.
This recipe looks easy; I’ll have to try it. I usually am not a fan of red velvet, but your cake looks so pretty on the website!
I love that absolute SCREAM of blue–beautiful!! And clearly I must get this book!
Fabulous…had to nip back here to check it out Joy! Gonna try these out soon! There’s a lot of ‘red velvet talk’ in blogland these days…tempting!!
Red Velvet is a favorite in my family. I like to make my Great Grandmother’s recipe. I even had a red velvet cake at my wedding. Maybe it is an Appalachian thing. Anyway, I can’t wait to try these cupcakes. I’ll try the shaved chocolate in them, too. What a great idea.
I love red velvet cake just for the frosting…:) Looks fantastic!
Anything with red velvet has my name on it. Plus, this dessert not only looks fun, but I imagine eating it would be even moreso :). Brown sugar and cream cheese sounds pretty tasty to me :D.
Red Velvet Cake is my all time favorite. And so is anything brown sugar. I am so excited to try this recipe! I’ve tried quite a few and they’ve always been lacking something but I’ve never been sure as to what that was. I absolutely adore your blog. Cupcakes are the one thing I could live with baking every single day of my life. Keep em coming!
I just had my first Red velvet cup cake for the first time……Soooooo Good!
I’m spreading the word!
YUM!
I love red velvet cake! my all time fav! but it’s even better when you add a scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream on the side!
Would you recommend using the milk and sour cream combo in lieu of the buttermilk?
Are the shavings in the cake batter or on the outside of the cake?
Does increasing the cocoa to 1/4 cup make the cake dry?
Thanks!
made this today.. got the color right and the cake is so smooth and yummy. thanks for the inspiration.
i just made this recipe and doubled it in order to make 24 cupcakes… it made 36 plus enough batter for 1+ more… yum, extra cupcakes :)
I was wondering what to do with soured cream, beetroot juice & a bit of buttermilk in my fridge and finally decided on an eggless & dye-free red velvet cake (my son’s got food allergies, you see). Somehow my search took me to your site; so glad I found it–Superb blog, beautiful cakes & good-enough-to eat photos! Will try your recipes next time; I’ll have to live with my mutant, sunken mauve velvet cupcakes (that are cooling as I type) for now. I’ve noticed you bake vegan/eggless cakes, any advice on how to prevent sunken cakes? My son may also be allergic to soy so I can’t use egg replacer. Been using gelatin to keep cake from crumbling. Would love your input. Thanks.
Awesome recipe! Haven’t made the frosting yet….is that 1 1/2 cups as in 3 sticks, to one 8 oz package of cream cheese? I LOVE butter so I’m not complainin’ but most cream cheese frostings I’ve made have used a lot less. I’m down to give it a whirl though :)
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