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RED VELVET CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Red Velvet cake first appeared at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York in the 1920s but has experienced a huge resurgence in popularity over the last decade or so. This cake contains a bit of cocoa, but it’s there to enhance the red colour, not to provide any chocolaty flavour. We ice this cake with a traditional Cream Cheese Frosting.

Yield: Serves 10.

July 02, 2019

RED VELVET CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Ingredients

  • Unsweetened cocoa powder (for dusting pans)
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
  • 1 bottle (28 mL) liquid red food colouring
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 3 cups sifted cake flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup salted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tsp pure white vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • Cream Cheese Frosting

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Whisk together sour cream, 1/4 cup cocoa, red food colouring and vanilla until blended; set aside.
  3. Combine cake flour and salt; set aside.
  4. Using medium speed of an electric mixer, beat together butter, oil and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in sour cream mixture until blended. Mixing by hand with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon and beginning and ending with cake flour mixture, add cake flour mixture alternately with buttermilk to butter mixture, stirring just until blended.
  5. Combine vinegar and baking soda. Add vinegar mixture to batter, stirring just until blended.
  6. Pour batter into two greased 9 inch round baking pans lined with greased parchment paper and dusted with cocoa.
  7. Bake until a cake tester inserted in centres comes out clean, about 30 - 35 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks for 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto racks, remove parchment paper and cool completely.
  8. Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Spread with some of the Cream Cheese Frosting. Place second cake layer on top. Spread remaining Cream Cheese Frosting over top and sides of cake. Refrigerate until serving.
Nutritional analysis per serving:

430 calories, 23.9 g fat, 5.4 g protein, 57 g carbohydrate, 1.3 g fibre, 430 mg sodium

*Ingredient not included in nutritional analysis.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

  • 8 oz (250 g) softened cream cheese
  • 1/4 cup softened butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 4 cups icing sugar

Directions

  1. Using medium speed of an electric mixer, beat together softened cream cheese, softened butter and vanilla until smooth.
  2. Gradually beat in icing sugar until fluffy.