Red Velvet Cake

Yield: 16 servings

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 32 minutes

Additional Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour

Two layer red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting on a plate.

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Red Velvet Cake is a beautiful two-layer cake that's soft and moist and topped with a delectable, rich cream cheese frosting. It makes for a stunning and delicious dessert!

Ingredients

For the cake

1 ¼ cup vegetable oil
1 ¼ cup buttermilk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white vinegar
½ teaspoon red gel food coloring
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

For the frosting

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
8 ounce cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper circles. Spray pans with non-stick baking spray. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, blend oil, buttermilk, eggs, vanilla, vinegar and food coloring until combined. Slowly add in dry ingredients.
Pour cake batter into prepared pans. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 32-34 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.
Remove cakes from pans and cool completely on wire rack until ready to frost.
After the cakes have cooled, prepare the frosting. For the frosting, beat butter and cream cheese for several minutes. Add in vanilla, powdered sugar, and heavy cream. Beat for 3-4 minutes until fluffy.
Place one cooled layer of cake on a cake plate. Spread ⅓ of the frosting on top of the layer of cake. Top with second layer of cake. Spread remaining frosting on top and sides of cake.

Notes

Purchase this Americolor Super Red Gel Food Coloring. I use all gel food colorings because one drop goes a long way. I used only ½ teaspoon of red food coloring to get this bright red color, unlike many other red velvet cakes that need tablespoons of coloring!
Add the dry ingredients very slowly. If you add the dry ingredients to the mixed wet ingredients too quickly, you’ll have to mix the batter more. Over mixing the batter results in a tougher cake.
Line the cake pans with parchment paper (cut into a circle to fit the bottom of the pan) AND spray the pans with non-stick baking spray. This will ensure your cake layers will release easily.
Let the butter and cream cheese soften. Be sure to pull your butter and cream cheese out of the fridge before you go to make the frosting, so they can soften a bit. use our tips and tricks on how to soften butter quickly.
Make sure you let the cake layers cool completely before you try to stack and frost them. Otherwise, the frosting will get runny.
Frosting: Change up the frosting and try our vanilla sour cream frosting. Pairs wonderfully with today's cake. Or enhance the chocolate flavor and whip up some chocolate cream cheese frosting to ice the cake.
See blog post for recipe tips and tricks, including storage and freezing tips.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1 slice
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 586Total Fat: 36gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 21gCholesterol: 73mgSodium: 251mgCarbohydrates: 63gFiber: 1gSugar: 47gProtein: 5g

*Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietitian for special diet advice.