In honor of Jo's birthday I'm posting a special recipe. I first tasted this cake when I was 13 at my friend Sher's. It became a favorite for my family, and is the traditional birthday cake at our house. It always requires a trip to the store, (because who has 2 bottles of red food coloring on hand?) and it takes a little extra time but it is well worth the effort. It is absolutely the best cake in the world!
Red Velvet Cake
2 oz. red food coloring
1/2 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 T. cocoa
1 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
2 and 1/2 cups flour
1 T. vinegar
1 t. soda
1/2 cup butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 T. cocoa
1 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
2 and 1/2 cups flour
1 T. vinegar
1 t. soda
Cream sugar, butter and eggs. Make paste of cocoa and food coloring and add to creamed mixture. Mix salt and vanilla with buttermilk and add alternately with flour to creamed mixture. Mix soda and vinegar, and fold gently into mixture. (Do not beat.)
Bake in 2 9" round pans, or a 9" x 13" pan. Grease pan, and sprinkle with granulated sugar (rather than flour) so the cake won't stick.
Bake 30 min at 350 degrees. Check it towards the end so it won't over bake. When it stops sizzling and is springy to the touch it's done. Don't let it get so done it pulls away from the sides, or it will be dry.
Cool. Frost.
Frosting
Mix flour and a little of the milk in a saucepan. Blend in the rest of the milk with a whisk so it won't be lumpy. Cook over medium heat until it's thick. It will resemble play dough. Cool completely.
Cream butter, vanilla and sugar. Add the flour mixture and beat until it is the consistency of whipped cream. Spread on cake.
(A word of warning: the food coloring might scare you the next morning. You don't have colon cancer.)
5 T. flour
1 cup milk
1 cup butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 cup milk
1 cup butter
1 cup powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
Mix flour and a little of the milk in a saucepan. Blend in the rest of the milk with a whisk so it won't be lumpy. Cook over medium heat until it's thick. It will resemble play dough. Cool completely.
Cream butter, vanilla and sugar. Add the flour mixture and beat until it is the consistency of whipped cream. Spread on cake.
(A word of warning: the food coloring might scare you the next morning. You don't have colon cancer.)
That cake is sooooo yummy and still the preferred birthday cake in our family too. I should let you in on a little secret... there is a "cheater version" -- a Duncan Hines cake mix. I do use the cake mix for the cake (and add a box of white chocolate or just chocolate pudding mix) but I NEVER cheat on the frosting! It is ALWAYS the original recipe. Since we have two July birthdays (mine being one of them), it is always a challenge to get the cake frosted before all that butter melts down the sides of the cake! It is always a winner cake for Christmas, Valentines or the 4th of July... any of those "red" holidays! Enjoy!
ReplyDeletePS I just noticed that in the frosting recipe you use powdered sugar; actually the original recipe calls for granulated sugar which is really weird for frosting but it is the best.
ReplyDeleteOh, that cake sounds like just what I need right now. Would you like to come over and make it for me? Yum!
ReplyDeleteBut what if I dooo have colon cancer? Can I sue you for giving me a false diagnosis?
ReplyDeleteKidding. Cancer is never funny.
every time I make this cake, it turns out gross...I think I do the frosting wrong and don't add enough sugar. Help!
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've ever had Red Velvet cake in my life, tho I've come across the recipe here and there thru the years. The cake recipe I wish I could find was for one called "Mayonnaise Cake". It sounds absolutely DISGUSTING but was it ever delicious!!! It had mayo and vinegar and Hershey's Baking Cocoa in it. A neighbor lady who had 10 kids used to make it and we'd all scarf it down before it was even cool, ha! I've never come across a more moist and delicious cake! You wouldn't have THAT one tucked away somewhere, would you?
ReplyDeleteI used to have a recipe for Mayonnaise Cake, but it's long gone. I remember it was really good.
ReplyDeletefabulous. I made my first red velvet cake for peter on his birthday. I didn't use oma's recipe, but it still tasted fantastic! I made the cake again on easter and we decided the frosting is a little too much in my recipe... so I'm excited to try this one out. this cake is quite the delight!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds DEADLY. Just the kind I LOVE...Yikes!
ReplyDelete