Red Velvet Cake

An American classic – a cake that is as striking as it is delicious. Red Velvet cake gets its intense red colour from artificial food colouring (I wouldn’t recommend replacing it with natural beetroot colouring – I tried, and the cake turned out a rather rusty colour). Buttermilk is essential, as together with the oil it gives the cake its characteristic moist, rich texture. Red Velvet cake is often compared with Devil’s Food cake, but it is considerably less chocolatey. The best frosting is made with Philadelphia-style cream cheese. Although it has a slightly salty taste, don’t leave it out – it gives the cake its distinctive character. This is my favourite Red Velvet cake recipe! No mixer is needed for the cake itself; overmixing can cause it to sink after baking, so everything can simply be combined with a whisk :). Highly recommended!

Ingredients for the Red Velvet cake:

• 2½ cups plain flour
• 1¼ cups caster sugar
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1½ cups sunflower oil
• 1 cup buttermilk or kefir
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp wine vinegar
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 60 ml liquid red food colouring

All ingredients should be at room temperature.

Prepare two 24 cm springform tins*: line the bases with baking paper.

In a large bowl, lightly whisk the eggs, then add the sugar, oil, buttermilk, food colouring and vanilla extract. Whisk just until combined. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and salt directly into the bowl. Mix with a whisk just until combined – do not overmix.

Pour the vinegar into a small glass, add the bicarbonate of soda and stir. It will foam. From this point, work quickly: pour the foaming mixture into the cake batter and mix briefly. Divide the batter evenly between the two tins.

Bake at 180°C for about 30 minutes, or longer if necessary, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave the cakes to cool in their tins, then remove and cool completely.

Ingredients for the cream cheese frosting:

• 600 g Philadelphia-style cream cheese
• 200 g butter, at room temperature
• 1¼–1½ cups icing sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Place the butter and icing sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until pale and fluffy. Add the vanilla and cream cheese and beat briefly, just until combined. It is a good idea to refrigerate the frosting for about 30 minutes, or until slightly firmer.

To assemble:

Spread a generous layer of frosting between the cooled cake layers. Cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. You can also decorate the top with cake crumbs. To make them, before assembling the cake, trim a very thin layer from the tops of the cake layers and crumble it finely.

Store Red Velvet cake in the refrigerator.

* If you only have one springform tin, bake the layers one at a time. It is best to prepare the batter and divide it into two portions and, importantly, add the bicarbonate of soda to each portion immediately before baking.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Bakarella.