Red Velvet Cake

February Recipe: Red or Chocolate

So, I said, why not Red AND Chocolate?! Two birds with one stone, right?! My cousin, Biz, had told me about this Red Velvet Cake that her mom makes that is to die for. So, I emailed Aunt Jo and asked if I could have the recipe. She found it on the NY Times website and wanted to know when she was going to be invited over for it! (Note: Picture on left was found online.)

Here is the recipe:

Red Velvet Cake

Published: February 14, 2007
Adapted from "The Confetti Cakes Cookbook" by Elisa Strauss (Little, Brown, to be published in May).

Time: 90 minutes, plus cooling
Yield: 3 cake layers.

INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3½ cups cake flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa (not Dutch process)
1½ teaspoons salt
2 cups canola oil
2¼ cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) red food coloring
1½ teaspoons vanilla
1¼ cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons baking soda
2½ teaspoons white vinegar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place teaspoon of butter in each of 3 round 9-inch layer cake pans and place pans in oven for a few minutes until butter melts. Remove pans from oven, brush interior bottom and sides of each with butter and line bottoms with parchment.

2. Whisk cake flour, cocoa and salt in a bowl.

3. Place oil and sugar in bowl of an electric mixer and beat at medium speed until well-blended. Beat in eggs one at a time. With machine on low, very slowly add red food coloring. (Take care: it may splash.) Add vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk in two batches. Scrape down bowl and beat just long enough to combine.

4. Place baking soda in a small dish, stir in vinegar and add to batter with machine running. Beat for 10 seconds.

5. Divide batter among pans, place in oven and bake until a cake tester comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool in pans 20 minutes. Then remove from pans, flip layers over and peel off parchment. Cool completely before frosting.


Red Velvet Cake Icing

Published: February 14, 2007
Adapted from “The Waldorf-Astoria Cookbook,” by John Doherty with John Harrisson (Bulfinch, 2006)

Time: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups heavy cream, cold
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
12 ounces mascarpone
½ teaspoon vanilla
1½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

DIRECTIONS:
1. Softly whip cream by hand, in electric mixer or in food processor. Cover in bowl and refrigerate.

2. Blend cream cheese and mascarpone in food processor or electric mixer until smooth. Add vanilla, pulse briefly, and add confectioners’ sugar. Blend well.

3. Transfer cream cheese mixture to bowl; fold in whipped cream. Refrigerate until needed.

Yield: Icing for top and sides of 3-layer cake.

Review: So, I only had two cake pans available and made only two layers. The cake was so tall with two layers, I can only imagine the height with 3 layers! Because I made two layers, the cakes needed longer to bake (about 55-60 minutes). The cake itself was good (not my fav), but the icing was delicious! Wow! If it weren't for the calories (I can only imagine with the heavy cream, mascarpone, AND cream cheese!), I would use it for some other kind of cake. It tastes the best when first made. I refridgerated the cake due to the icing, but would suggest taking it out at least an hour before you are going to serve it - tastes better at room temperature.