Red Velvet Cake

I have been having love affair with Red Velvet Cake for about 5 years now.  I discovered the wonderful that is the red velvet cake when I was visiting family in Florida.  And now, I love anything red velvet (except for this red velvet latte I tried last Christmas...lets just say that my taste buds were offended by it...).   There is something so deliciously perfect about the combination of red velvet cake and cream cheese icing.  It's not often that we find red velvet cakes in the supermarket or bakeries here in Canada (it's just not as popular here as it is in the USA) so I have been on a mission to spread the 'Red Velvet Word' ever since.

After discovering red velvet, I also set out on a quest to find the perfect red velvet cake recipe.  There were so many out there that I had a problem finding one that was (1) A rich deep red colour - not brown-ish red (2) Had a hint of cocoa that was not overwhelming (3) Perfectly moist, because really, who likes a dry cake?!?  I used a recipe I found here and here as a base and adapted it to my liking. 

So, I am not a cake decorator (can't be good at everything).  I took a cake decorating class with my best friend a couple of years ago and I failed miserably.  I have always had a *very slight* tremor in my hand.  It's not noticeable, but has meant that I would never have had a career as a surgeon...and apparently also meant I would never be able to write well with icing on a cake - the instructor couldn't understand why my 'Happy Birthday' looked like a font out of a 1950's horror movie.  But one day I stumbled across this rosette icing technique on 'I am Baker'.  I found it super easy and not incredibly time consuming.  I love the look of the rosettes clustered on cakes and cupcakes.  I used a 2D tip instead of the suggested 1M (because that's what I had from the cake decorating class) and it worked fine. 

These are not roses...they are cupcakes!!!

(I have only made this cake using a scale to measure out the ingredients.  The next time I make it, I will convert the measurements to cups and update... )

Red Velvet Cake

Makes 2 9"cakes or 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

5 1/2 ounces all purpose flour

4 ounces cake flour

1/2 ounce natural cocoa

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup low fat buttermilk

1 fluid ounce red food colouring

1 tbsp white vinegar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

10 1/2 ounces dark brown sugar

4 ounces of unsalted butter, room temperature

2 whole eggs, room temperature

Cream cheese frosting (recipe follows)

Directions:

(1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees

(2) Line the bottom of two 9" pans with parchment paper, rub the sides of the pan and the parchment paper down with butter or line 2 standard muffin tins with paper liners, set aside

(3) In a small mixing bowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside

Flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda & salt...

(4) In a separate bowl, whisk buttermilk, vinegar, vanilla extract, almond extract and red food colouring; set aside

Buttermilk, vinegar, vanilla, almond & red food colouring...

(5) With an electric mixer on medium speed, combine butter and sugar and mix until light and fluffy

(6) Add the eggs one at a time, mix until combined

(7) Turn the speed on the mixer to low, add the flour mixture in 3 instalments, alternating with the buttermilk mixture; mix on low speed until smooth (about 30-45 seconds)

(8) Divide the batter between the two 9" pans or two muffin pans

I love the deep red colour of this batter....

(9) Bake 9" pans for 30-35 minutes or muffin pans for 18-20 minutes, until the center of the cake springs back when pressed

-Cupcakes will take less time to bake then a full cake. 

(10) Remove the pans from the oven and let sit for about 10 minutes before removing the cake from the pans. 

(11) Let the cakes cool completely ( at least 1-2 hours) before frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

1 pound icing sugar

12 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)

3 ounces unsalted butter (room temperature)

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract

Pinch of salt

Directions:

(1) Combine the cream cheese and butter on medium speed until just blended

(2) Add the vanilla and salt, mix until combined

(3) Turn the speed of the electric mixer to low (or you will have a big powder-y mess) add the powdered sugar in 4 batches beating until smooth. 

***If icing is not stiff enough to decorate with, place in fridge for 1/2 hour or add more powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached.  (I do this 1/2 cup at a time if needed)

***Alternately, if icing is too stiff, add a tiny touch of water until desired consistency is reached. 

Sometimes I double the recipe for the icing depending on how elaborate I am going to be with the icing of the cake.  The extra icing can always be refrigerated and frozen, for the next time....

Happy Cooking!