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. 😉
Made this today using grams….40mins baking in 2 tins gas mark 5 still not cooked….
Hi Nicki, I’m afraid to say that it sounds like your oven is very weak, at gas mark 5 it should cook per the recipe 🙂
I’m in Australia too and checked that 1 cup measurement of cake flour is only around 110-115g…. I’m hesitant to use the grams measurement as it would be quite different to 2 and 3/4 cup. (also have barely used a 400g flour recipe for any cakes…) which one did you go with cups or grams?
Thanks
Can I asked whether you used Grams or cups for the flour measurement? 1 cup cake flour is approx 110grams….. so if it really was 400g it’ll be close to 4 cups of cake flour (big difference to 2 and 3/4 cups*)
thanks
Finally a recipe that was easy to make in the UK but reminds me of good red velvet I’ve had in the States. Briliant! I will be lining the tins next time though; the proper red velvet structure didnt quite come out whole….
I’m so glad to hear that BJR! What do you mean by “the proper red velvet structure didn’t quite come out whole???”
I love the texture (ie falls apart differently to other cakes due to the cornflour) but it felt like it made it a bit more fragile, so that it came out in 3 pieces from the tin. Nothing that couldnt be put back together and covered with the delicious frosting, but when I make it again (today 🤗) I’m going to line the tins and hope that it’ll then come out in one piece! Very very excited about eating it again….
That’s so great BJR! When you say it fell apart….. did you butter and dust the tins??
Yes I did. It fell apart as I tried to get it out of the tin after about 15-20mins I think. Making it for the third time today:-)
Excellent recipe! Noticed the difference with cake flour. Made it yesterday and was a hit. Will be making it again for my daughters birthday next month 😀
I’m so pleased to hear that Helen! Thank you for trying my recipe! N xx ❤️
How long will cupcakes take at 350? Thanks for the guidance.
About 20 minutes 🙂 N x
Can this be made into cupcakes instead?
Hi Wendy, sure thing! 🙂
I tried to find buttermilk at the supermarket, but there wasn’t any available. Would lactose-free milk work instead?
I’m sorry I don’t know Tara, but you can use milk + lemon, please see the notes 🙂
Hi Nagi,
Is it okay to use the Lighthouse brand ‘Biscuit, Cake and Pastry Flour’ from Coles for this?
Thanks 🙂
Yes! That’s what I use! 🙂 N x
I made this red velvet cake for a occasion and turn out very well.Every one said how delicious ,light and moist it is.I did like you said mix plain flour with cornflour.l like to says big Thank you.
I have been baking for years and I tried this recipe today and I would have to say ;it’s the best cake I ever made thanks to the direction of a lovely chef and an awesome recipe. Thank you again
I’m so pleased to hear that Yvonne! Thank you for trying my recipe! N xx ❤️
Whoot! So pleased to hear that Sue, thanks for taking the time to leave a review! N xx
Hi there, is the oven temp for a fan forced oven or conventional oven? My oven only has fan forced, thanks!
Hi Sam! I use the same temp for fan and standard 🙂 You’ll probably just find it’s done at 25 minutes using fan.
Can I use self- raising flour for this cake, I live in Scotland. Jo Jo x
Hi Joan, I’m sorry, I don’t recommend that 🙁 N x
This recipe is fantastic and the cake turned out so light and delicious! It was a big hit!
So pleased to hear that Saffron! Thank you! N xx
Hi Nahi! But worried as got my cake in the oven, 40 mins and it’s still wobbly (not solidified yet). Any ideas?
Oh dear sounds like your oven runs weak, keep it in there until a skewer comes out clean! 🙂 N xx
Thanks so much. I made this for my daughter’s birthday today and it was a huge hit. The cake was ridiculously good. I ended up using nearly twice the amount of powdered sugar for the icing, though. If I didn’t it would have been a (delicious) runny mess. I’m not sure what I did wrong, but I’m certain the icing wouldn’t have held up without more sugar. But who said more sugar is a bad thing?
So glad you enjoyed this Steve! With the frosting, it sounds like your cream cheese was too soft, if it’s borderline melting when you start beating, then the heat from the beating will make it “melt”. Next time try bringing the cream cheese just to room temp so it’s beatable to smooth, then you won’t need as much sugar! N x
Hello Nagi 🙂 I am very excited to try this recipe however I see that you are from Australia. I live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Any chance you know how to adjust this recipe to fit a different altitude?? Or could refer me to a resource that could do that for me? Or even should I adjust it?
Hi Jennifer! Where in Calgary are you? What altitude? 🙂 N xx PS I was there last month for Stampede!
Hi Nagi
I am making this cake tomorrow for a friend’s birthday, and am going to be using King Arthur Gluten Free all purpose flour. It is the best GF flour I have found in California for baking with, as the baked texture resembles that of regular flour. Do you still recommend substituting some cornstarch in for texture? I am used to Australian cornflour, which is actually made from wheat, and am not sure about American cornstarch, made from corn!
I know this question might be out of your realm of knowledge. I’ll let you know how it goes!
Cheers
Megan
Hi Megan – I”m sorry to say that I can’t comment on whether this works with GF flour. I am a bit worried it won’t work! Cakes and biscuits really do need to be made per recipe, at least in my experience….. Sorry I can’t be of help! N x
I’m so glad you enjoyed this!! It’s strange you say the cake didn’t rise though, as you can see in the photos, the cake is very fluffy! As for the grease, I wouldn’t say this cake is greasy. I definitely wouldn’t say my hand is super greasy when I touch the cake. I am a bit concerned that your batter wasn’t made correctly if it did not rise and was very greasy? 🙂 N x
Hi Nagi,
I’m so excited to try this cake especially with all this amazing feedback .
I do have a predicament. I need this cake to feed about 20 people but I don’t want to comprise the cakes moisture and I often have cakes not work out as well when doubled for example.
Any tips?
Thanks
Hi Emma! For this cake I really urge you to stick to the recipe and make multiple cakes. i.e. 2 🙂 Doubling this cake is not recommended. Sorry!
Hi,
Just to clarify above question, I am planning to make a birthday cake for my daughter (Big 1) and planning to do 4 layer of this cake. So can I not just double the ingredients and put it in four 8” cake pans . I am planning to bake 2 pan at a time. I will follow the recipe strictly as i did with two layer one. Will this work? So nervous as this is only like 3rd time I am baking.
Thanks,
Hi Krstha – yes you can do that, but just cautioning that it will be a very TALL cake! Is that what you are after??
Yes. 8” four layered cake. I will level the cake too, so hopefully it will look okay. Do you this won’t work?
Oh it will work, I am just letting you know it will be very tall! 🙂
Hi, just wondered if this cake freezes well without the frosting? I’d like to make this for my husband’s birthday but would only have time to decorate on the day.
Hi Alison! Yes it freezes well, defrost naturally (not microwave) then frost 🙂