50 of the Best Red Velvet Recipes! (2024)

FAQs

What flavors go best with red velvet? ›

Red Velvet often comes paired with a Cream Cheese Frosting. However, there are so many other pairings that work perfectly with Red Velvet, such as: Classic Vanilla, Bourbon Vanilla, Chai, White Chocolate, and Cookies + Cream.

It is very easy to improve a boxed cake mix. Replace the oil with the same amount of melted butter. Add one extra egg and use milk in place of water if you have it. Add a box of instant chocolate pudding, and because we're speaking of red velvet, add 1/2 tsp red food coloring.

What flavor is red velvet? While there are cocoa undertones, red velvet is not chocolate cake because it balances both chocolate and vanilla flavors. It contains cocoa but not the same quantity as traditional chocolate cake, resulting in a more subtle cocoa flavor and tanginess due to the buttermilk and vinegar.

Many years ago, the red color came from the presence of vinegar and buttermilk reacting with the anthocyanins in traditional cocoa powder. But for most of the last few decades, the red color has been supplied by Red #40 dye, in part because cocoa powder used now is alkalized to neutralize its acidity.

Due to the fact that it uses cocoa powder rather than chocolate, red velvet cake is more subtle in chocolate flavor than a chocolate cake. In terms of the cocoa flavor concentration, we like to think of red velvet cake as somewhere between a vanilla/white cake and a chocolate cake.

In my opinion, cream cheese frosting pairs best with red velvet's flavor and this frosting recipe is really simple. You need brick-style cream cheese, butter, confectioners' sugar, a splash of milk, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt to offset the sweetness.

Upgrade for Texture

For a richer flavor, substitute equal quantities of melted butter for the oil. Adding an extra egg is one way to add density. Substitute the water with equal parts milk, or in the case of red velvet cake, buttermilk. Or substitute half parts water and half parts sour cream.

The buttermilk and vinegar give the cake that tender, light, and fluffy texture. Red velvet cake is also usually paired with white cream-cheese frosting.

Boxed cake mixes can take on a lot of extra flavor and a little more liquid, so don't be afraid to add a splash of vanilla or almond extract to a white cake or a little coffee extract to a chocolate cake. Fresh lemon or orange zest is wonderful in a lemon cake and also divine in a yellow or white cake.

Chocolate cake is flavored with cocoa powder, chocolate chips, or melted chocolate. On the other hand, though red velvet cake has cocoa powder that gives it a slightly chocolatey flavor, the buttermilk and vinegar add a tart edge making it different between the two.

Why is red velvet so expensive? ›

Nothing makes this cake costly except for the hype. The batter contains typical cake ingredients with the inclusion of an ungodly amount of red food coloring. The icing is usually made with powdered sugar, cream cheese, butter and vanilla extract.

Red velvet cake is traditionally a red, crimson, or scarlet-colored layer cake, layered with ermine icing. Traditional recipes do not use food coloring, with the red color possibly due to non-Dutched, anthocyanin-rich cocoa, and possibly due to the usage of brown sugar, formerly called red sugar.

The red food colouring makes the cake batter prone to splitting, and turns everything it touches red; a couple of grams over on the cocoa powder and the cake goes brown instead of a rich red; the cream cheese frosting has a tendency to turn to gloop at the very last minute for no apparent reason; and the list goes on.

The Best Cocoa for Red Velvet Cake Is Natural Cocoa

Natural cocoa is the best cocoa for red velvet cake for two reasons. With a higher acidity, natural cocoa works with the cake's baking soda and buttermilk to leaven the cake to a tight, tender crumb. The results are an almost melt-in-your-mouth tender cake.

In recent history, red velvet cake has become synonymous with Juneteenth celebrations. Not only does the color red symbolize the bloodshed of the enslaved people who never experienced freedom, but it's also a symbol of strength and spiritual transformation in West African cultures.

Red velvet cake and cheesecake ice cream

Although it can be dense to eat on its own, pairing the cake with a mildly flavored ice cream, like a cheesecake, will bring out some of the softer notes and complement the bite of the red velvet cake's signature cream cheese icing.

For a richer flavor, substitute equal quantities of melted butter for the oil. Adding an extra egg is one way to add density. Substitute the water with equal parts milk, or in the case of red velvet cake, buttermilk. Or substitute half parts water and half parts sour cream.

ALWAYS cream cheese with a hint of lemon! I know certain people that love buttercream with red velvet too, however, I'm not one of them. For me, Red Velvet and cream cheese frosting go hand in hand. Creamcheese frosting is my favourite pairing for red velvet cake/cupcakes.