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There’s just something about Red Velvet Cake Recipe that everybody loves. It may be its rich red color or the fact that it looks red but it tastes like chocolate. No matter what it is, this cake always takes the prize! Serve it on special occasions like Valentine’s day, when entertaining, for a birthday party, or just as a snack, everybody will love you for it!
Ingredients for Red Velvet Cake Recipe
- Cake flour
- Baking soda
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Salt
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Avocado oil
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- White vinegar
- Red food coloring
- Buttermilk
- Cream cheese
- Powdered sugar
- Milk
How to Make Red Velvet Cake
1. Line two 8-inch cake pans with a round of parchment paper on the bottom, and preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt)
3. Using a hand-held or stand mixer, beat the sugar and butter together until creamy. Beat in the oil, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl.
4. Add the vanilla extract and eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until combined.
5. Carefully and on low speed, alternately add the dry ingredients with the buttermilk in 2-3 additions mixing just until combined. Remember to always scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl after each addition.
6. Transfer half of the batter into each of the prepared pans, and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs. Remove from the oven and cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then unmold and transfer to a cooling rack to cool down completely.
7. Make the cream cheese frosting by beating together the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and beat until well combined. If needed, add 1-2 tbsp of milk until the frosting reaches the desired consistency.
8. Using a serrated knife, level the cakes’ tops and save the crumbs for garnishing.
9. Place one of the cakes on a plate and spread some frosting on the top.
10. Top with the other cake and frost the entire cake. Garnish with the reserved crumbs, if desired.
Can I Use Baking Powder Instead of Baking Soda?
Whenever you bake with acidic ingredients like buttermilk or vinegar, you need to use baking soda. The chemical reaction between a base like baking powder, and an acid like vinegar or buttermilk produces bubbles that are necessary to leaven the batter. Baking powder is not able to do that.
How to Store Red Velvet Cake Recipe
Since this cake has a cream cheese frosting, you need to be refrigerated if kept for more than a few hours. Place the whole cake or cake slices in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days. You can also freeze this cake prior to frosting it. Just let it cool down completely before wrapping it twice with plastic wrap and once with foil. You can freeze it for up to 3 months, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight, and frost when completely thawed out.
What’s the Difference Between Red Velvet and Chocolate Cake? Is It Just Chocolate Cake?
Red velvet isn’t just a chocolate cake with food coloring—it’s quite different! It’s much lighter in texture and has a slight tang, especially from the cream cheese frosting. While there is some cocoa in the batter, it’s subtle. In fact, many people now reduce the amount of cocoa to preserve that vibrant red color.
Traditionally, the red hue came from a reaction between cocoa and acidic ingredients like vinegar and buttermilk, creating more of a deep maroon shade. Over time, red food coloring was added to make the color pop. One thing that really sets red velvet apart from regular chocolate cake is the vinegar—it reacts with the leavening agents to make the cake extra soft and fluffy.
What Does Red Velvet Cake Actually Taste Like?
It’s not a strong chocolate cake! Red velvet has a very gentle blend of chocolate and vanilla flavors with a slightly tangy twist, thanks to the buttermilk, vinegar, and that creamy cream cheese frosting.
But what people love most is the texture—it’s super moist and tender, and when paired with the smooth frosting, every bite melts in your mouth.
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Best Red Velvet Cake Recipe
There’s just something about Red Velvet Cake Recipe that everybody loves. It may be its rich red color or the fact that it looks red but it tastes like chocolate
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 3 cups cake flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 8 tbsp (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup avocado oil (or vegetable oil)
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp white vinegar
- 2 tbsp red food coloring
- 1 cup buttermilk
For the frosting:
- 16 oz cream cheese, softened
- 8 tbsp (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp milk (or as needed)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Line two 8-inch cake pans with a round of parchment paper on the bottom, spray them with cooking spray, and preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt).
- Using a hand-held or stand mixer, beat the sugar and butter together until creamy. Beat in the oil, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Add the vanilla extract and eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until combined. Pour in the food coloring and vinegar.
- Carefully and on low speed, alternately add the dry ingredients with the buttermilk in 2-3 additions mixing just until combined. Remember to always scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl after each addition.
- Transfer half of the batter into each of the prepared pans, and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs. Remove from the oven and cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then unmold and transfer to a cooling rack to cool down completely.
- Make the cream cheese frosting by beating together the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and beat until well combined. If needed, add 1-2 tbsp of milk until the frosting reaches the desired consistency.
- Using a serrated knife, level the cakes’ tops and save the crumbs for garnishing.
- Place one of the cakes on a plate and spread some frosting on the top.
- Top with the other cake and frost the entire cake. Garnish with the reserved crumbs, if desired.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 645Total Fat: 36gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 95mgCarbohydrates: 76gFiber: 1gSugar: 54gProtein: 6g
Sos Recipes is not staffed by nutritionists or dietitians, and any provided nutritional information is an approximation. If calorie count and nutritional value are crucial to you, we suggest inputting the ingredients into your preferred online nutritional calculator. The actual calorie and nutritional content may differ based on the brands used.