Red Velvet Cake
At home, there’s just the two of us, David and I. We don’t have any children (well, define child, lol 😄) so when we entertain, that is when I roll up my sleeves to make desserts like Chocolate Éclairs, Tiramisu, Coconut Cream Pie, Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake, Crêpes Suzette, Cheesecake and so on.
Besides using our dinner parties as an excuse, I also take advantage of events like Halloween 🎃, Holidays 🎄 and birthdays to make nice sweets… that way, the guilt is more bearable! Cakes are always a favorite! I think of Pavlova, Torta delle Nonna, Lamington, Dacquoise, Chocolate Lava Cake, Hummingbird, Panettone, etc.
There’s a classic one I like baking and it’s Red Velvet Cake! With its bright red layers and a decadent cream cheese frosting, this is a fancy American dessert to serve at any special event. It’s also a blank canvas to allow decorations to suit the occasion.
Sift or not to sift, that is the question… 🤔
I can’t stand sifting but if I want a light and fluffy dessert, I can’t skip it. Most cakes such as chiffon, Black Forest Cake, sponge, angel food cake or in this case, Red Velvet Cake really need to have the dry ingredients sifted. It breaks up the lumps and aerates the ingredients which in return creates that lightness as an end result.
On rare occasions, like in this recipe, I use gel coloring instead of my natural food ones. To bring that bright red, gel is a better choice 😉. As it’s more concentrated, a little goes a long way therefore it doesn’t need as much as the liquid color plus it won’t alter the taste.
Just like my Carrot Cake 🥕, this one is extremely moist due to the added grapeseed oil although canola can be substituted. However, after the cakes have cooled completely, I highly suggest you chill the cake for at least 5 hours or overnight.
Depending if your kitchen is hot or the weather is very warm, the cream cheese frosting should be chilled as well until it stiffens up… I would say 1 hour max 🕐. This will help spread it out easily without running down the sides.
When it’s time to assemble, use a large serrated knife 🔪 and level the tops of the cakes. Keep the remains and reuse them to decorate the cake. Place a cake on a stand and spread about 1 ½ cups of the cream cheese frosting evenly before placing the other one on top; repeat with the remaining frosting by covering the top and sides as well.
To smooth out the frosting, you can either use an angle spatula or a bench scraper. In the video, you’ll see my “fancy” stand. Since then, I invested in a cake turntable… money 💰 well spent I have to say, lol! Cover the leftover cake at room temperature for a couple days or in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Tasty, colorful and fluffy, this moist Red Velvet Cake is a classic you simply have to try 👩🍳👨🍳! With a nice cream cheese frosting, this is a delicious blank canvas to be creative with decorating depending on the occasion.
Bon Appétit! 🍽
Here are more scrumptious cake recipes for you to try… 😀
– Tropical Pineapple Upside Down Cake
– Blueberry Cake
– Holiday Fruitcake
– Coffee Cake
– Biscoff Icebox Cake
– Chocolate Raspberry Cake with a Mirror Glaze
and for even more dessert recipes, click on this link… Recipe Category • Dessert
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Red Velvet Cake
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Ingredients
CAKE
- 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, sifted plus more for cake pans
- 3 tbsp. good quality cocoa powder, sifted
- 1 tsp. baking soda, sifted
- 3/4 tsp. ground Himalayan pink salt, sifted
- 1 cup buttermilk tips & tricks
- 1 tsp. white distilled vinegar
- 1-2 tsp. red gel food coloring
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened plus more to grease cake pans
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large free-range eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup grapeseed oil tips & tricks
- 5 1/2 cups Cream Cheese Frosting see Recipe
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
Directions
CAKE
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour 2 8x3-inch round cake pans; set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk well and set aside.
- In a measuring cup, add buttermilk, vinegar, and gel coloring; stir to combine and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping the sides and the bottom of the bowl.
- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition.
- While the machine is running, add vanilla extract and process for 30 seconds. Gradually pour in grapeseed oil and process until blended.
- Add half dry ingredients and half buttermilk mixture. Process on low speed until just combined before adding the remaining dry and wet ingredients. Process until smooth and just combined; clean the sides and the bottom of the bowl.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans and gently tap them on the counter to dislodge any trapped air bubbles.
- Transfer to the preheated oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, rotating halfway through cooking.
- Remove from the heat and run a knife around the edges to loosen the sides. Let them sit in the pans for 15 minutes before inverting them onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Chill the cakes in the fridge for 5 hours or overnight.
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- Make cream cheese frosting.
TO ASSEMBLE
- If needed, use a large serrated knife to slice a thin layer off the tops of cakes so the surfaces are flat; set aside the remains.
- Place a cake on a stand and spread the top with frosting, about 1 ½ cups.
- Place the second cake on top and repeat with the remaining frosting covering top and sides.
- Smooth out the frosting evenly with an angle spatula or bench scraper.
- Crumble the cake remains and use them to decorate the cake.
- Chill cake for 1 hour before slicing.
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