Red Velvet Cake

Where This Goes Wrong

Cold cream cheese, soft butter. This combination is the key to a frosting that holds its shape.

Gel colouring gives a deeper red with far less liquid than the bottled kind.

Level the domed tops with a serrated knife and eat the offcuts. That is the baker's fee.

Making Red Velvet Cake

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1. Line and grease two 20 cm cake tins. Heat the oven to 175°C / 345°F.

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2. Whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda and salt together thoroughly.

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3. In a jug, whisk the eggs, buttermilk, oil, vanilla, vinegar and food colouring until uniform.

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4. Pour the wet into the dry and whisk for 45 seconds until smooth. Oil-based batters tolerate mixing better than butter cakes, but do not go beyond smooth.

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5. Divide between the tins and bake for 28 to 32 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean and the tops spring back.

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6. Cool in the tins 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool completely — at least 2 hours.

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7. For the frosting, beat the butter alone for 3 minutes until pale, then add the icing sugar in two additions and beat smooth.

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8. Add the cold cream cheese and beat on low for no more than 60 seconds. Over-beating cream cheese frosting makes it soupy.

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9. Level the cakes, sandwich with a third of the frosting, and cover the top and sides with the rest. Chill 30 minutes before slicing.

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Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.

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Why It Works

The acid from buttermilk and vinegar reacts with bicarbonate of soda for lift, and also keeps the crumb tender by limiting gluten development. Originally that same acid reddened the anthocyanins in unprocessed cocoa; modern Dutched cocoa does not react, which is why colouring is now added.

Storage and Reheating

Refrigerate 4 days in a covered container, bringing slices to room temperature 30 minutes before serving. Unfrosted layers freeze 3 months.

Common Substitutions & Variations

• Out of buttermilk? The usual stand-in is a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar stirred into 250 ml of ordinary milk and left five minutes; it is thinner than cultured buttermilk, so a batter may need a little less of it.

What to Serve Alongside

• Coffee or a glass of cold milk
• Serve at celebrations; it slices beautifully
• Follow a light dinner

Still Wondering?

What's in a Serving

Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.

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