Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

I like surprises and I also like planning them. This Red velvet cake was a surprise for Agnel’s birthday. When I was deciding on what to bake for his birthday, it finally struck me that he had mentioned having red velvet cake at work and loving it. Agnel’s birthday falls a week after Valentines day and I remember going to Walmart and finding that they were out of red food color. All they had was multiple color packs and so I ended up getting couple of packs instead of one.  The very 1st time I made red velvet cake, I used liquid color. Later on, I realized gel color works best for cakes and frosting. Since then, I have been using Wilton gel colors.
Apparently, red velvet cake originated during the 2nd world war when food was rationed and people used beet juice to enhance the color and texture of cakes. It is said that once red velvet cake was commercialized, everyone started using red food color. The baking science behind this cake is that the reaction of vinegar and buttermilk reveals the red anthocyanin in the cocoa and keeps the cake moist and fluffy.

To be very honest, I have had red velvet cakes from different famous bakeries from around the world and I am still not quite sure how it should really taste like. Some cake was velvety but lacked flavor. Some tasted just like the vanilla cake with red color. Most of them tasted good but just that they all tasted different.

Some of the recipes on the internet used only oil, and some only butter. Substituting 100% butter in baking, with oil tends to make the texture of baked goods a little dense, I feel. Since butter gives the cake a good texture, adding a tablespoon or two of oil to butter based cake makes the cake very moist.
This Red velvet recipe yields a very moist cake and uses both butter and oil.
When it comes to chocolate, from my experience, oil-based chocolate cake generally turns out better than a butter based cake. The best chocolate cake uses only oil.

Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 3 hours
Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients

•     3 cups (345g) cake flour (spoon & leveled)
•     1/2 teaspoon salt
•     2 Tablespoons (10g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
•     1 teaspoon baking soda
•     1/2 cup (115g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
•     4 large eggs, room temperature and separated
•     1 cup (240ml) canola or vegetable oil
•     2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
•     liquid or gel red food coloring
•     1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
•     1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
•     1 cup (240ml) buttermilk, at room temperature

Cream Cheese Frosting

•     16 ounces (450g) full-fat block cream cheese, softened to room temperature
•     1 Tablespoon (15ml) heavy cream or milk
•     4 and 1/2 cups (540g) confectioners’ sugar
•     1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
•     1/2 cup (115g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
•     pinch of salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease two 9-inch cake pans, line with parchment paper, then grease the parchment paper. Parchment paper helps the cakes seamlessly release from the pans.
2. Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
3. Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the oil, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and vinegar and beat on high for 2 minutes. (Set the egg whites aside.) Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
4. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in 2-3 additions alternating with the buttermilk. Beat in your desired amount of food coloring just until combined. I use 1-2 teaspoons gel food coloring. Vigorously whisk or beat the 4 egg whites on high speed until fluffy peaks form as pictured above, about 3 minutes. Gently fold into cake batter. The batter will be silky and slightly thick.
5. Divide batter between cake pans. Bake for 30-32 minutes or until the tops of the cakes spring back when gently touched and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If the cakes need a little longer as determined by wet crumbs on the toothpick, bake for longer. However, careful not to overbake as the cakes may dry out. Remove cakes from the oven and cool completely in the pans set on a wire rack. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.
6. Make the frosting: In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on medium-high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the confectioners’ sugar, cream/milk, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for 3 minutes until completely combined and creamy. Add more confectioners’ sugar if frosting is too thin, more milk if frosting is too thick, or an extra pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. Frosting should be soft, but not runny.
7. Assemble and frost: Using a large serrated knife, slice a thin layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Discard or crumble over finished cake. Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with frosting. Top with 2nd layer and spread remaining frosting all over the top and sides. I always use an icing spatula and bench scraper for the frosting. I used Wilton piping tip #12 for decoration around the top.
8. Refrigerate cake for at least 30-60 minutes before slicing. This helps the cake hold its shape when cutting.
9. Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days. Frosted cake or unfrosted cake layers can be frozen up to 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before decorating/serving.

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