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Red Velvet Cake Help

post #1 of 27
9/6/11 at 7:02pm
Thread Starter 
I've never made a red velvet cake before. My sister's MIL has asked her to ask me if I would bake a cake for her husband's 80th birthday on Sept. 27th, but celebrating it on the 25th. She wants red velvet. I've heard all kinds of negative stories about red velvet, so haven't decided yet if I'll do it or not. First off, I'm a hobby baker, so she's going to supply the ingredients and I am not receiving pay for this cake as I know I can't here in CA. She saw a cake I did for my niece's birthday recently and she really liked the texture, flavor and decor of the cake, but it was a marble cake, not red velvet.

I'm kind of afraid to tackle this flavor due to the negative comments I've seen about the dryness and the taste, so would appreciate any pointers that anyone can give and/or any failproof recipes. Also, what kind of filling and frosting would you use? I still haven't decided if I'm going to do this cake or not, but would like the info in case I do. I prefer baking from scratch, but for this first try, scratch or box recipes will work. I don't have much time to decide as it's coming up soon. Thanks for your assistance!
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post #2 of 27
9/6/11 at 7:08pm
The biggest thing I can think of is to ask her if she prefers classic red velvet or a more chocolatey red velvet. RV is just one of those flavors that people have very certain ideas about. Some people expect it to essentially be a chocolate cake dyed red (Which is not RV, BTW, but whatever). icon_wink.gif

I haven't made it yet, but I have heard good things about Cakeman Raven's recipe. HTH!
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Before you ask- I'm licensed, inspected, insured, and all that jazz.
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post #3 of 27
9/6/11 at 7:29pm
I really don't understand all the fuss about red velvet myself. It's really just a mild chocolate flavored cake with a color anywhere from bright red(food coloring) to a mild earthy red(beets coloring). My advice is that if you choose to do the cake, find a recipe that calls for either buttermilk or yogurt. They are what I use to keep my baking moist when there is any chance of it drying out. I've read a lot of recipes for RV but have yet to try it. If you decide to do it, let us know which one you try and how it turns out.
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post #4 of 27
9/6/11 at 7:35pm
I make a scratch red velvet that is amazing. Therecipe calls forall butter, but I do half butter and half oil, so it has the butter flavor but moistness mouthfeel from the oil. Mine is NOT a choc cake, either. It has 1 T of cocoa in it. If you'd like my recipe send me a pm. I'd have to go get off the couch to get it now and I don't wanna at this moment. icon_wink.gif
I homeschool because I don't believe in the mass production of human beings.
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I homeschool because I don't believe in the mass production of human beings.
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post #5 of 27
9/6/11 at 7:36pm
I can't quite get the appeal either - 1st off, all that red dye just eeks me out...secondly it doesn't really taste like anything specifically. Its def. not chocolate but its not vanilla/almond/yellow/white either. Very 'meh' IMO.
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post #6 of 27
9/6/11 at 7:36pm
Here is a pretty awesome recipe for Red Velvet cake. I have made it several times. It has received the stamp of approval from the 2 most important types of people: the Red Velvet lover and the Red Velvet hater. icon_smile.gif

http://cakecentral.com/recipes/7054/southern-red-velvet-ii

The only changes I make is that I use 1 Tbsp cocoa powder (instead of 1 tsp) and I only use 1 Tbsp of Wilton's "No-Taste Red" food coloring. I find when I added more cocoa powder I didn't need as much food color to achieve the red I wanted.

I top it with this cream cheese frosting:

http://cakecentral.com/recipes/4183/decorator-cream-cheese
"Cake or death?" "Eh, cake please." "Very well! Give him cake!" "Oh, thanks very much. It's very nice."
"You! Cake or death?" "Uh, cake for me, too, please." "Very well! Give him cake, too! We're gonna run out of cake at this rate."
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"Cake or death?" "Eh, cake please." "Very well! Give him cake!" "Oh, thanks very much. It's very nice."
"You! Cake or death?" "Uh, cake for me, too, please." "Very well! Give him cake, too! We're gonna run out of cake at this rate."
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post #7 of 27
9/6/11 at 7:43pm
I just did a wedding cake for 300 this past weekend. the groom is from the south so I did a grooms cake in red velvet. I had never made a red velvet cake before so I did some test cakes before hand. I baked that cake four times and it came out differently each time. I happened to be a guest at this recent wedding so also cut the cakes. The Red velvet was dry and had no taste, I threw it in the garbage after I finally tasted it. YUCKO never again
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post #8 of 27
9/6/11 at 8:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by maryj

I just did a wedding cake for 300 this past weekend. the groom is from the south so I did a grooms cake in red velvet. I had never made a red velvet cake before so I did some test cakes before hand. I baked that cake four times and it came out differently each time. I happened to be a guest at this recent wedding so also cut the cakes. The Red velvet was dry and had no taste, I threw it in the garbage after I finally tasted it. YUCKO never again



Then you had a bad recipe!! Mine isn't a bit dry, and everyone including me who makes cake every week, is now addicted to red velvet. It tastes like nothin g else, but it certainly doesn't taste like nothing. icon_smile.gif
I homeschool because I don't believe in the mass production of human beings.
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I homeschool because I don't believe in the mass production of human beings.
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post #9 of 27
9/6/11 at 8:03pm
I make a doctored mix and it gets rave reviews:

http://cakecentral.com/recipes/7573/red-velvet-redux-easy-durable

HTH
Rae
I love you, but your emergency is not my crisis!

They say that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it is not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.--Terry Pratchett (b.194
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I love you, but your emergency is not my crisis!

They say that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it is not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance.--Terry Pratchett (b.194
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post #10 of 27
9/6/11 at 8:16pm
I'll sure to be hazed for this, but here goes.....

I'm not a scratch baker for a couple of reasons.....
1) I don't have the time to experiment with dozens of different recipes just to find a decent recipe. And when you do find a recipe it's rare for that recipe to be exactly the same each and every time you make it.
2) I've heard more complaints about scratch cake recipes being dry.


These are the reasons I stick with box mixes....
1)Whether I use them as is or doctor them, they come out the same each time.
2) No guessing....Moist.....texture is consistent....tastes good.

Duncan Hines Red Velvet is moist and tastes wonderful.

Just my opinion....
Gayle
"The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do."
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Gayle
"The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do."
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post #11 of 27
9/6/11 at 8:20pm
I love RV because it is really just a moist buttermilk cake with a hint of cocoa powder. I hate chocolate, so this is a great flavor for me. RV should be moist. Mine is close to being too moist. And I use very little food coloring. And since I have started developing vegan recipes, I am seeing what great flavor that vinegar brings to cake. That is another depth of flavor in this cake that makes it unique. So for me RV is a winner. I find that it is my most requested flavor.
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post #12 of 27
9/6/11 at 8:22pm
I make RV all the time and people love it. Couple it with cream cheese icing. The recipe above (Southern RV II) is the same as Chef Stefs and Cakeman Raven's (Food Network).

I'm about to make a 1/2 sheet of it to make 2 stacked books. My problem is that the last time mine turned out crumbly. It was super moist and tasted great, just crumbly. (Probably my fault for using cake flour instead of all purpose as in the recipe). I made Chef Stefs. I think it may actually need 1 more egg. 2 just doesn't seem like it's enough for the amount of batter this recipe makes. Any thoughts from others who use this recipe? I also cut the red food coloring in half. I think it's enough.

I say go ahead and try it.
Some things in life just require cake.
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Some things in life just require cake.
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post #13 of 27
9/6/11 at 10:47pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks to everyone for your responses so far. There are some good sounding recipes to try. Since I've never tried RV before, I'll be making a practice cake and trying it to see how I feel about it. Hopefully my family will try it, too.
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post #14 of 27
9/7/11 at 12:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by scp1127

I love RV because it is really just a moist buttermilk cake with a hint of cocoa powder. I hate chocolate, so this is a great flavor for me. RV should be moist. Mine is close to being too moist. And I use very little food coloring. And since I have started developing vegan recipes, I am seeing what great flavor that vinegar brings to cake. That is another depth of flavor in this cake that makes it unique. So for me RV is a winner. I find that it is my most requested flavor.



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"Cake or death?" "Eh, cake please." "Very well! Give him cake!" "Oh, thanks very much. It's very nice."
"You! Cake or death?" "Uh, cake for me, too, please." "Very well! Give him cake, too! We're gonna run out of cake at this rate."
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"Cake or death?" "Eh, cake please." "Very well! Give him cake!" "Oh, thanks very much. It's very nice."
"You! Cake or death?" "Uh, cake for me, too, please." "Very well! Give him cake, too! We're gonna run out of cake at this rate."
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post #15 of 27
9/8/11 at 5:42pm
Thread Starter 
Ok....really stupid question here..... Can I use the gel coloring, or do I have to use the liquid food coloring sold in most grocery stores? I was planning on using the gel, but since this is the first time making RV, I figured I better make sure I use the right kind. I'm hoping for a quick answer because I'm getting ready to make this cake now. Thanks for answering such a stupid question!!
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