Recipe for Red Velvet Cake

On our menu today is a soft, rich, delicious cake. I call the red velvet cake the lovers cake because it comes dressed in red and white, the colour of love. Some people consider this cake a great alternative to chocolate cake. While this may be because of the cocoa content of this cake, I feel both cakes are different as they bring different kinds of joy to me. The ingredients for making this cake are familiar to those who are into baking. However, it must be mentioned that buttermilk is an essential ingredient for red velvet cake and if substituted with regular milk, the result won’t be quite the same. Therefore, buy buttermilk in any supermarket or baking shop close to you, if the correct red velvet cake is your goal. Having said that, let’s go make the cake.

Ingredients for Red Velvet Cake 

2 & 2/3 cups of flour 1 & 1/2 cups of granulated sugar 1 cup of buttermilk 1/2 cup of unsalted, melted butter 1 & 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda 1 cup of vegetable oil 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder 2 large eggs 1 teaspoons of vanilla extract 1 teaspoon of salt 1 & 1/4 teaspoon of distilled vinegar 3 tablespoons of Red food colouring For the Icing 5 tablespoons of all-purpose flour 1 cup of milk 1 cup of white sugar 1 cup to butter softened to room temperature 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Method of Preparation

Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a clean, sizeable bowl. Add baking soda and salt to it. Mix all dry ingredients together. Set aside for later use. Pour sugar into a separate bowl. Add the vegetable oil and use a mixer to cream both ingredients for at least 5 minutes. Break and add one egg to the batter then mix. When it’s well combined, add the second egg and mix. Add the vanilla extract and mix the wet ingredients until they are light and fluffy. Grease two clean 9 inch pans lightly. Dust with flour and set aside for later use. Now, preheat the oven to 350F. Get a cup or bowl. Measure out the buttermilk and add the food colouring to it. Add a little of the flour mix to the wet ingredients then add a little bit of buttermilk colour mix to the batter as well. Repeat this addition of flour mix then buttermilk mix until all are fully incorporated into the batter. Mix soda and vinegar in a clean bowl and gently fold into cake batter. Don’t beat or stir the batter once this is done. Just pour it into the greased pans and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. When the time has elapsed, insert a toothpick in the middle of the cake, if it comes out clean, the cake is ready. Bring it out and allow it to cool. While the cake is cooling, make the icing by cooking 5 tablespoons of flour and milk over low heat. Stir continuously till the milk and flour mixture thickens. Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to cool completely. While it is cooling, beat the sugar, butter and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the cooled flour and milk mix to it and beat until you achieve a frosting with good spreading consistency. Frost cake layers when completely cooled.   References  Grated Nutmeg All Recipes Featured Image Source: Betty Crocker