What would red velvet cake be without a generous slathering of fluffy icing? Most people swear by cream cheese, insisting that its rich and tangy flavor is the perfect balance for the delicate cake (this is what our recipe holds). However, there are those who will only use 7-minute frosting or confectioners’ sugar icing. No matter what frosting camp you fall into, it should be laid on so thick that you can’t tell what glorious surprise is in store until slicing into that first piece.
Red Velvet Cake
2014-10-31 17:53:45
Yield: 1 (9-inch) 3-layer cake
Ingredients
- 1 1⁄2 cups unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1⁄3 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup whole buttermilk
- 1 (1-ounce) bottle red food coloring
- 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray 3 (9-inch) round cake pans with nonstick baking spray with flour. Line bottoms of pans with parchment paper; spray with nonstick baking spray with flour. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture in thirds, alternating with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Stir in food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla. Beat until well combined, stopping occasionally to scrape sides of bowl. Divide batter evenly among prepared pans.
- Bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, approximately 25 minutes. Let cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and let cool completely on wire racks.
- Spread Cream Cheese Frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake. Store, covered, in refrigerator up to 2 days.
Taste of the South https://tasteofthesouthmagazine.com/
Cream Cheese Frosting
2014-10-31 17:56:13
Yield: approximately 6 cups
Ingredients
- 2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 8 cups confectioners’ sugar
- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar, beating until smooth.
- Red Velvet Scones
- Yield: 8 scones
- 2 cups self-rising flour
- 1⁄2 cup sugar
- 1⁄4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 3⁄4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 teaspoons red food coloring
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon sanding sugar
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 1⁄4 cup confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and cocoa powder. Using a pastry blender, cut butter into flour mixture until butter is the size of small peas. In a small bowl, whisk together cream, food coloring, and vanilla. Make a well in center of dry ingredients; add cream mixture, stirring until almost combined.
- Using your hands, press dough into a ball. Place dough on prepared pan; press into a 7-inch circle. Cut dough into 8 wedges. (Do not separate.) Sprinkle with sanding sugar.
- Bake until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, approximately 23 minutes. Let cool on pan on a wire rack at least 30 minutes before slicing into wedges.
- In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Serve scones with cream cheese mixture. Scones can be stored in an airtight container up to 2 days.
Taste of the South https://tasteofthesouthmagazine.com/
