Red Velvet Cake

After months of putting it off, I finally grit my teeth, hitched up my apron and went for it: The Red Velvet cake. Don't get me wrong, I love red velvet, I love the texture, taste and colour, but my only issue with this recipe is that it's getting FAR too much airtime.

It is currently The Reason by Hoobastank of cake recipes. Though Macarons are fast becoming the Rebecca Black of baking blogs too.

The recipe's been around for ages, but it only recently gained popularity in Malaysia and ever since... EVERYONE's been making red velvet. It's everywhere, and most of them aren't even that good! That's another thing: people, red velvet is only as good as the cream cheese frosting you pair with it.

Ugh, I bet I'm coming across as some hipster baker at the moment (yea, so mainstream, yada yada, I prefer zucchini bread LOL) but please allow me my follies.

Anyway, enough whinging, I'll get on with it...

I googled red velvet recipe last week and lo-and-behold, got about 30 different recipes. Most people seem to believe that red velvet cake is simply cake with some cocoa and lots of colouring. WRONG *slams the buzzer*. It's SO much more than that, and it's just genius! I never knew there were so many ways to make one cake, but then I found this blog entry of a comparison study of EIGHT recipes. She'd gone through all that trouble, who am I to dispute a sample of 25 cake tasters?

Cakeman Raven's Red Velvet Cake recipe it is then:

• Butter for the pans
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups caster sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
• 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 1 oz red food colouring (zomg!)
• 1 tsp distilled white vinegar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180C, line or grease your pans

In a medium sized bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder

In a larger bowl, beat the vegetable oil, buttermilk, eggs, colouring, vinegar and vanilla on medium speed

Gradually add the flour mixture, one cup at a time to the wet mixture until just combined and a smooth consistency is achieved

Divide the batter evenly into your pans, bake at 180C for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted at an angle comes out clean

Then, of course you have to cover red velvet with cream cheese frosting. Click here for my trusted recipe.

Yes, I made another batch for cupcakes!

And then go crazy with the camera before indulging in some soft, sinful cake.

Look at that, the most perfect little cupcake.

I only managed this one slice, went out to watch the Rugby (GO ALL BLACKS!), came home and the cake was gone. Which explains the cupcakes :D

I'm quite happy with this recipe, though in future I might try a butter based one for cupcakes. Give this one a shot, just for the wow factor over Christmas or Valentines. I think I may do one for Halloween in the shape of an animal or body part.

BUHAHAHA

x Nabs