I came up with the SOFTEST RED VELVET CAKE recipe you will ever eat

buttermilk

🥗Healthier: low-fat yogurt

💰Cheaper: milk + vinegar

Low-fat yogurt provides tanginess with fewer calories.

cream cheese

🥗Healthier: Greek yogurt

💰Cheaper: ricotta cheese

Greek yogurt offers creaminess with lower fat.

red food coloring

🥗Healthier: beet juice

💰Cheaper: none

Beet juice is a natural alternative for color.

butter

🥗Healthier: coconut oil

💰Cheaper: margarine

Coconut oil is plant-based and dairy-free.

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius (fan forced).

Grease or line two 8-inch cake tins using homemade cake release.

Sift together 2.25 cups of all-purpose flour, 3 tablespoons of corn flour, 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder, 0.5 teaspoon of baking soda, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, and 0.5 teaspoon of salt in a bowl until well combined.

In another bowl, cream together 6 tablespoons of unsalted butter, 0.75 cup of vegetable oil, and 1.75 cups of sugar using a hand or stand mixer until light and creamy (about 2-3 minutes).

Add 3 eggs one at a time, mixing well for about 10-15 seconds between each addition, and scrape down the bowl to ensure everything is incorporated.

Mix in 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract, 1.5 teaspoons of white vinegar, and 3-3.5 tablespoons of red food coloring until well combined.

Fold in half of the sifted dry ingredients into the wet mixture, followed by adding buttermilk and folding until just combined, then add the remaining dry ingredients and fold until just combined to avoid overmixing.

Distribute the batter evenly into the two prepared cake tins, smoothing out the tops and banging the tins to remove air bubbles.

Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let the cake layers cool in the tins for about 20 minutes, then run a knife around the edges and turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the cream cheese frosting, whip 1 cup of room temperature unsalted butter until light and creamy (about 3-4 minutes).

Gradually add in 4.5 cups of icing sugar in three batches, mixing on low speed until combined, scraping down the bowl as necessary.

Add 1.5 cups of cold cream cheese, 1.5 teaspoons of vanilla extract, and 1.5 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, mixing until smooth and creamy.

Assemble the cake by placing the first layer on a cake stand, frosting it generously with cream cheese frosting, and then placing the second layer on top.

Frost the top and sides of the cake with a thin layer of frosting, smoothing it out with an offset spatula and a cake scraper.

Fill a piping bag with cream cheese frosting using a 1M star tip to pipe rosettes on top of the cake, noting that an extra half batch of frosting may be needed for this design.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens