A moist, classic Red Velvet Cake!! Made from scratch, and surprisingly easy when a few specific, simple steps are followed. This iconic cake has a soft “velvet” texture, just like what you get from the best top end fine bakeries, and is topped with soft, cream cheese frosting.
After Red Velvet Cupcakes? Here they are! UK readers: Please read note 7.
Red Velvet Cake recipe – tried and tested favourite!
This Red Velvet Cake has been taste tested and given a big thumbs up by many people because it’s a rather large cake and I’ve made it 5 times in the last two weeks.
“FIVE TIMES??!!”, I hear you exclaim (out loud or in your head). “You’re MAD!!”
If getting this cake exactly to my taste, as close as I can get it to the cakes you get from posh bakeries, and ensuring it works using both US and metric (i.e. rest of the world!!) measures means that I’m a mad baker, I’ll take that title. 😉
Besides, I’m really enjoying baking at the moment. There is something so satisfying about making something as pretty as Red Velvet Cake.
To tell you the honest truth, the reason I made it so many times in recent weeks is because my original recipe got a “so-so” response from the two toughest taste-testers I know: my mother and brother.
“The sponge is zara-zara”, my mother declared on first bite.
What the….?? Zara-zara? What on earth does that mean??
“Zara-zara” means “rough” in Japanese. The Japanese language has a handful of words which sound like what it means. “Zara-zara” being a perfect example. Usually it cracks me up. Not that day.
I gasped, indignant, and grabbed a spoon to shovel a bite into my mouth, ready to argue. And I realised – she was right. It was not as velvety as it could be. As it should be.
NOT HAPPY.
So I improved it. 🙂
What is Red Velvet Cake?
Red Velvet Cake is not just a chocolate cake with red food colouring added. This cake is softer than most, “velvet-like”, and the chocolate taste is actually quite mild. It’s more like a cross between a vanilla and chocolate cake with a very subtle tang from buttermilk. And it is generously smothered in a fluffy cream cheese frosting.
It’s wildly popular in America and there’s a cult following in Australia. Give it a few years, it will become a firm favourite soon!
The cake tastes buttery and moist, because it has butter in it for flavour, and oil for moisture. Yes, you need both, I promise you. It is not the same if you use only one of them.
Why should you use THIS Red Velvet Cake!
There are 3 more specific things about this recipe which might be a bit different to other Red Velvet recipes you have seen, but there’s a reason for it.
1. Cake flour – it’s a must! It’s key to achieving that soft silky sponge, just like what you get from posh bakeries. However, if you really can’t find it, please see the notes for a substitute;
2. Only 2 eggs – I’ve seen some recipes call for up to 5 eggs. I only use 2. It’s enough to hold the cake together just fine – any more than 2, and find the cake begins to start tasting “eggy”; and
3. Buttermilk – For almost every other baking recipe that I make using buttermilk, I say that you can substitute with lemon juice + milk which, when left for 5 minutes, curdles to have the same effect as using buttermilk. Not for this recipe – sorry! It is just not the same – part of the reason mine was “zara zara”. 😂
Oh, and one more rule. There is no substitute for Philadelphia Cream Cheese for the frosting. I’ve tried better value store-brand cream cheese before. It is never the same. Promise. ❤
I bake the layers in 2 separate tins, but if you don’t have two tins, you can make one big one and cut the cake in half. And to make the layers nice and neat, I cut the dome top off.
I like to crumble the off cuts and use it to decorate the cake. I think it looks pretty, don’t you? But that’s purely optional!
I promise you, there is nothing tricky about this cake. All you have to do is ensure you measure the ingredients properly, rather than just eye-balling it. 😉 As long as you do that, it’s actually easy to make, no more difficult than an ordinary sponge cake.
Putting aside fiddly fancy decorated cakes, Red Velvet Cake is surely one of the most striking and stunning cakes around. If you’ve never tried it before, you’re in for a real treat! – Nagi x
Red Velvet Cake
Watch how to make it
How to make Red Velvet Cake – quick tutorial video! Red Velvet Cake for UK readers – please ensure you read Notes 7 and 9.
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Red Velvet Cake
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 2/3 cups (400 g) plain cake flour (Note 1)
- 2 tbsp (10 g) cocoa powder , unsweetened
- 1 tsp (5 g) baking soda / bi-carb soda , NOT baking powder (Note 2)
- Pinch of salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (115 g) unsalted butter , softened (1 US stick)
- 1 1/2 cups (330 g) caster / superfine white sugar (Note 3a)
- 2 eggs , at room temperature (around 2 oz / 60g each)
- 1 cup (250ml) vegetable oil
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract (or essence)
- 1 cup (250 ml) buttermilk , at room temperature (Note 4)
- 2 1/2 tbsp red food colouring liquid (UK: use Gel, Note 7)
Frosting (Note 10)
- 14 oz (400 g) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, block , softened but not too soft (UK see Note 9)
- 1/2 cup (115 g) unsalted butter , softened (but not too soft)
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 cups (450 g) soft icing sugar / powdered sugar sifted (Note 3b)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F (all oven types). Butter 2 x 21cm / 8″ round cake pans (sides and base) and dust with cocoa powder.
- Sift the Dry Ingredients and whisk to combine in a bowl.
- Place butter and sugar in a bowl and beat with electric beater or in stand mixer until smooth and well combined (use paddle attachment if using stand mixer).
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating in between to combine. At first it will look curdle – keep beating until it’s smooth.
- Add vegetable oil, vinegar, vanilla, buttermilk and red food colouring. Beat until combined and smooth (Note 5).
- Add Dry Ingredients. Beat until just combined – some small lumps is ok, that’s better than over mixing.
- Divide batter between cake pans. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes on the same shelf, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. (Note 6)
- Rest for 10 minutes in the pan then turn out onto a cooling rack and allow to cool.
Frosting
- Beat together cream cheese, butter and vanilla for 3 minutes (this makes it really smooth and changes from yellow to almost white). Add icing sugar and beat for 2 minutes or until frosting is light and fluffy to your taste. If your frosting seems too runny (depends on quality of cream cheese/ if the cream cheese was too soft), just add more icing sugar.
Frost Cake
- Cut the top off the cake using a serrated knife (to make the layers neat).
- Spread one cake with 1 1/2 cups of frosting. Top with the other cake. Spread top and sides with remaining frosting.
- Optional: Crumble offcuts and use to decorate the top rim and base of the cake.
Recipe Notes:
Let them eat cake! 10 more classic cakes
.Life of Dozer
This is how he starts every day: assessing the surf. 😉
Priscilla says
Hello Nagi,
I am planning to bake this cake for my son’s bday and go as per your recipe.
Can I make it one day in advance and be kept in the fridge?I hope it wouldn’t impact much in terms of flavour and texture.
I love how you make food.It has soul to it.I just love going through your videos and recipes.n ofcourse Dozer.He is so beautiful.
Love,
Priscilla
Nagi says
Yes definitely Priscilla! I hope he has a great birthday!! N x
Priscilla says
♥️
Thank you
Priscilla says
The cake turned out gorgeous and delicious…the birthday boy and the rest were happy to take more than a second serving.
Thank you to YOU.
Sarah R says
Hi Nagi, thanks for being so in depth with your recipe, its greatly appreciated. Im in need of a red velvet recipe for a decorated cake – does this recipe have a strong structure? Also, i only have gel food colouring given that liquid just isn’t the same, i live in Canada, should that be fine?
Nagi says
Hi Sarah, you can definitely decorate this cake and gel colouring is fine here. N x
Sarah says
Hi Nagi,
Is it ok if I bake this in a 9-inch round cake pan instead of 8-inch?
Nagi says
Hi Sarah, that’s fine – it will just be a shorter cake. N x
LEANNE says
Hi Nagi,
Is it possible to use normal milk in this cake as my husband doesn’t like the taste of buttermilk?
Nagi says
Hi Leanne, yes – substitutes are listed in the recipe notes. N x
Vip says
Hi Nagi, I made this cake and this came out super yummy and soft. My friends who tasted were over the moon with the deliciousness of this cake.
but I made 1 mistake, I put Gel food coloring ( 2 1/2 tbs) I’m in Australia. So after eaten red stain leaves in the tongue until wash it thoroughly many times. 🙁
So my question is if I use the liquid red food coloring ( Queens brand ) would I get the same color in the cake and also would there will be a stain in the tongue after eat ?
Also I have used self raising flour for this recipe just coles brand but the cake came out perfectly moist and tasty.
Susie Ireland says
Oh dear I bought SR cake flour instead of plain !
I have normal Healthy Baker Plain flour should I use that Nagi?
Jennifer says
Hi Nagi, could you tell me whether the 180 degrees is for fan forced or standard ? I think on other recipes there seem to be a clear distinction
Thank you
Susie Ireland says
Oh dear I bought SR cake flour instead of plain !
I have normal Healthy Baker Plain flour should I use that Nagi?
Jennifer says
Is the oven temperature 180 fan forced ?
Nagi says
Hi Jennifer – yes all oven types as mentioned in step 1 🙂 N x
Siva says
Hi Nagi, I have tried your red velvet cake recipe and it turned out amazing.
Please share more cake recipes
Rachel says
Will this un iced cake keep well for 2 days? Should I keep in fridge or freeze?
Thanks so much
Penny says
Hi Nagi,
Can I use self raising cake flour and omit the bi carb???
Looking forward to making it!
Nagi says
Hi Penny, I haven’t tried sorry – normally I’d say yes for recipes with baking powder and regular flour – but this one is slightly different. Would love to know if you try! N x
Penny says
I chickened out!! I had to hunt around due to people going crazy with panic buying again but I finally found some plain cake flour!!!
AASTHA MADAAN says
Hi, Nagi
It was my first ever cake, and it came out so so good, everyone loved it. tasted amazing, moist and just delicious.
Thanks!
Aastha
megan says
Can I make this gluten free?
Nagi says
I haven’t tried with a gluten free sub sorry Megan! N x
Sabrina says
Hi Nagi! I was wondering if I could use less icing sugar for the frosting since I’m making this for my big family (with lots of elderly) and I don’t want the frosting to be too sweet. I previously used another recipe, the cake came out a bit dry while the frosting turns out too sweet for some of my family members. Thanks a lot!x
Alison Bisset says
Made this for my daughter’s 28th birthday (special request). Although I bake a lot I had never done a Red Velvet Cake. Your instructions are fantastic and I followed them to a T – hence a brilliant result. Am in the UK and your substitutions worked just great. Thank you so much
Nagi says
That’s so great to hear Alison, thanks so much!! N x
Gwendolyn De Vink says
Would you be able to tell me how many cups of batter this recipe yields? Can’t wait to make this!
Gurjinder Kaur says
Hi can the cake be left outside? Also can it be refrigerated once made?
Nagi says
Hi Gurjinder, I refrigerate mine then bring it to room temp before serving. N x
Jacqueline says
Baked these twice in two days because the first batch was eaten too quickly haha! Thank you so much for this amazingly moist and scrummy recipe, I made them as cupcakes so it was easier to share around with everyone 🙂
Anissa Loades says
I made this cake using a different recipe and it was horrible. So then I made this one the next morning and it was amazing!
I think the Cake flour and half butter/half oil made all the difference.
Anitha says
Hi Nagi!can I use an 8 inch square pan instead of the round pan?
Nagi says
Sure can Anitha, the cakes will just be slightly shorter in height. N x
Wei says
Lovely detailed recipe! I substitute the red food computing using beetroot juice mmmmm the cake didn’t turn out red :(. But the texture was excellent! I need to get a proper red food colluding.
Nagi says
Hi Wei, yes the food colouring is the best way to get the red colour unfortunately! N x
Ditta says
Hi Nagi, I made this cake for my daughter’s birthday. You are so right about the liquid colouring in the UK. It doesn’t work but still tastes great!! We all enjoyed it. And also, 250g of Philadelphia cream cheese works too. Thank you for the recipe 🙂