Home HolidaysChristmas Indulge in the Festive Delight of Red Velvet Cake: A Holiday Favorite!

Indulge in the Festive Delight of Red Velvet Cake: A Holiday Favorite!

Red velvet cake is a vibrant and delicious dessert that brings a touch of elegance to any holiday dessert table. With its rich flavor and eye-catching appearance, this cake is a traditional favorite for festive gatherings and celebrations!

The Allure of Red Velvet Cake: A Perfect Dessert for Any Occasion

Red velvet cake is an ideal dessert for special occasions, thanks to its rich, deep color that captures everyone’s attention. Its irresistible flavor is a delightful blend of subtle cocoa and a hint of tanginess from buttermilk, offering a unique taste that appeals to a wide range of palates. Commonly associated with celebrations, red velvet cake is elegantly topped with a pale cream cheese frosting that beautifully contrasts with the vibrant red cake. Whether featured at birthday parties, weddings, or holiday gatherings, this cake is always a crowd-pleaser and takes center stage!

Red Velvet Cake

The Role of Buttermilk in Creating a Light and Fluffy Red Velvet Cake

Buttermilk is crucial in making red velvet cake rise and achieve its signature light and fluffy texture. Its acidity helps to activate baking soda, a leavening agent commonly used in cake recipes and cake mixes. This reaction produces carbon dioxide bubbles, which cause the batter to rise during baking. Additionally, buttermilk contributes moisture to the cake, ensuring it remains tender and soft. The tangy flavor of buttermilk also enhances the overall taste, balancing the sweetness and adding depth to the cake’s flavor.

Use Sour Cream for Moisture and Texture in Red Velvet Cake

Sour cream contributes moisture and richness to the batter. Its creamy texture helps to create a tender crumb, ensuring the cake remains soft. Similar to buttermilk, sour cream is acidic, which aids in tenderizing the gluten in the flour while also activating baking soda to provide leavening.

Red Velvet Cake

Red Velvet Cake’s Iconic Color

The striking red hue of red velvet cake comes from a combination of ingredients and chemical reactions. Traditionally, the vibrant color was achieved using cocoa powder, containing anthocyanins—natural pigments that can produce a reddish tint when reacted with acidic ingredients such as buttermilk or vinegar. Later, during World War II, when cocoa powder was scarce, bakers used beet juice to give the cake a red hue.

In most modern recipes, food coloring is added to enhance the cake’s visual appeal and create a more intense red color. However, beetroot powder can also be used to tint a scratch-made cake, thus avoiding food coloring.

Red Velvet Cake: Distinct from Chocolate Cake

While red velvet cake contains cocoa powder, it is fundamentally different from chocolate cake. The amount of cocoa used in red velvet cake is typically much less than that in a traditional chocolate cake with its deep chocolate flavor from a higher cocoa content. The primary purpose of cocoa in red velvet cake is to provide a subtle flavor and to enhance the cake’s rich color rather than dominate the taste. Additionally, the unique combination of ingredients like buttermilk or vinegar contributes to its distinct tanginess and moist texture, setting it apart from the sweeter, typical flavor of chocolate cakes.

Red Velvet Cake

How to Sugar Cranberries for Cake Garnish

Garnish the top of your cake with sugared cranberries for an easy and beautiful way to dress your red velvet cake. The red berries make a striking presentation on the white cream cheese frosting. To begin, follow these steps:

  1. Select fresh, hard cranberries and rinse them under cold water.
  2. Drain them in a strainer.
  3. Roll them in a bowl of granulated sugar to thoroughly coat them.
  4. Shake off any excess sugar.
  5. Spread the sugared cranberries on a baking sheet lined with wax paper and let dry for about 30 minutes.

Once dried, these glistening, sweet-tart cranberries make a beautiful and festive garnish, adding a pop of color and a touch of elegance to your cake.

Red Velvet Cake

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Red Velvet Cake

Buttermilk red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 12
Calories 571 kcal

Equipment

  • parchment paper

Ingredients
  

Ingredients for Red Velvet Cake
  • 3 large eggs
  • ¾ cup whole buttermilk, shaken
  • cup sour cream
  • cup vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 box Duncan Hines Red Velvet cake mix
Ingredients for Almond Cream Cheese Frosting
  • (1) 8-ounce block cream cheese, softened
  • 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • Pinch of salt
  • 3 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 4-6 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Garnish
  • sugared cranberries (optional)
  • mint leaves (optional)

Instructions
 

Directions for Cake
  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8-inch round cake pans and set aside. Cut two parchment paper rounds and place in the bottom of the greased and floured cake pans.
  • Whisk the eggs, buttermilk, sour cream, oil, and vanilla in a large bowl until thoroughly mixed.
  • Sift the cake mix into the liquid mixture and stir until just combined. (Do not overmix, and do not skip the sifting step.) The batter will be thick.
  • Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans. Lightly tap the filled baking pans on the counter to force any air bubbles to the surface before baking. Then, bake for 25-27 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean or with crumbs. Another way to tell if the layers are done is if the cake centers spring back when touched.
  • Remove from the oven, let cool for a couple of minutes, and then turn onto a wire rack to cool. Remove the parchment rounds.
Directions for Cream Cheese Frosting
  • Use a mixer to combine the cream cheese and butter until well blended and creamy.
  • Add in the extracts and salt and blend to combine, scraping down the sides of the bowl.
  • Add the heavy cream and 1 cup of sugar. Blend. Continue adding the sugar one cup at a time until you reach 4 cups. Blend after each addition.
  • Do not add more sugar if you like the consistency after adding 4 cups of sugar. If you want the frosting thicker, add sugar in 1/2 cup increments, blend, and check after each addition. If the frosting becomes too thick, add more heavy cream.
Garnish
  • Sugar cranberries for garnish. Wash and drain cranberries, removing the soft ones. Roll the wet cranberries in granulated sugar and place on a platter for 30 minutes to dry.
  • Place the sugared cranberries and mint leaves in patterns on the cake.

Notes

Baking Strips

For flat layers, use wet baking strips around the cake pans. You may have to add a few minutes of cooking time to set the middle of the cake because wet strips slow the baking process.

Food Thermometer

Another way to tell if your red velvet cake is done is to use a food thermometer. It is done when a red velvet cake reaches 205 degrees Fahrenheit in the middle.

Soft Frosting

Cream cheese frosting is soft and doesn’t pipe into shapes, as well as a stiff buttercream. Be careful adding enough sugar to stiffen it, as it can alter the flavor.

Naked Cake

This cake works well decorated as a naked cake. It is “naked” when some of the red cake shows through. After lightly frosting the cake, use a spatula to scrape off some of the frosting. Heavily frost between the layers and on top of the cake.

Recipe Source

This recipe is adapted from the book Cake Confidence by Mandy Merriman.

Nutrition

Calories: 571kcalCarbohydrates: 68gProtein: 5gFat: 33gSaturated Fat: 15gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gMonounsaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 101mgSodium: 458mgPotassium: 185mgFiber: 1gSugar: 55gVitamin A: 701IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 99mgIron: 2mg
Keyword Red Velvet Cake, Red Velvet Cake Recipe
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