Baking Delights: Baking breads and treats for your family

Red for Valentine’s Day: Red Velvet Cake

by Marye on February 13th, 2008

If you have never heard of red velvet cake you probably live on another planet, or something. At the very least you have never watched Steel Magnolias.

Red Velvet cake is a southern thing, I think, but rapidly gaining favor across the country. Apparently the red color was a natural reaction between the acid in the buttermilk, and the cocoa that was made in the early part of the 1900s. During the depression bakers also used beets to add color to the cakes that lacked color due to butter and egg rationing (never mind the scarcity of chocolate).

It happens to be my oldest son’s favorite cake, or it was when he left home to join the Air Force 4 years ago. At this point he is a health food freak so probably power bars are what he likes the best.

It always seemed a Christmas Cake to me, but lately I have seen it turn up around Valentine’s Day, and it makes sense. Most of the time the red color is created by adding a bottle of red food color. If you have issues with food dyes then consider the second recipe, a traditional one, made with beets.

The picture is from Swiss Colony . I just didn’t get time to make one. You can do it in several layers (more traditional and very impressive) or just two. The frosting is most often cream cheese, and that is what I am using because it is my favorite. This page licensed to B5 media, for exclusive use on Baking Delights, (http://bakingdelights.com), written by Marye Audet. Any other use constitutes fraud. If you are reading this on another website, the material is stolen content.

Red Velvet Cake Recipe (made with red food coloring)

5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
3 ounces red food coloring
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon white vinegar
Grease and flour two 9 inch round pans.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees .

Make a paste of cocoa and food coloring. Set aside.
Combine the buttermilk, salt and vanilla.

In a large bowl, cream together the oil and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Stir in the cocoa mixture. Beat until well mixed and batter is evenly colored.

Beat in the buttermilk mixture alternately with the flour, mixing just until incorporated. Stir together baking soda and vinegar, then gently fold into the cake batter.
Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Traditional Red Velvet Cake Recipe ( made with beets)

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 c pureed cooked beets
2 1/4 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2/3 cup buttermilk
2 tsp. cider vinegar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees .

Butter and flour two 9 inch cake pans.

Melt chocolate in double boiler and set aside .

Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

In a bowl beat butter, sugars, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in chocolate. In four steps, alternately beat in flour mixture and buttermilk mixed with vinegar , beginning and ending with flour. Beat until incorporated. Add pureed beets and mix until well blended.
Divide the batter between the pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean and top of cake springs back when lightly pressed.

Cool cakes in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes and invert onto racks to cool completely.

To Make 4 layers:

Carefully slice each layer in half when cool.

Cream Cheese Frosting

16 oz cold cream cheese
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened
1 Tbs vanilla
Confectioners sugar (about 6-8 cups)
Beat cream cheese with softened butter and vanilla until combined. Gradually add 2 c. powdered sugar . Continue to add more powdered sugar until you reach a good consistency for spreading.

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POSTED IN: Cakes