I've been asked so often for red velvet cake, that I thought I ought to give it a go.  It's still relatively new to the UK...  it's been around for a couple of years, but it's certainly not a staple, as far as cake flavours go.

I don't "get" it....

...  it's not a lovely chocolatey chocolate cake.

...  it's not a light, fragrant vanilla sponge.

It's just 'meh', really.

Buttermilk...  that's just a thin natural yoghurt, as far as I can make out.  I know it's used in things like scones.  Not by me, personally...  it's new to me.  But certainly NOT a new ingredient, I grant you.  But there wasn't enough of it to make a difference to flavour or texture.

All I could taste was the cream cheese frosting (and I DO like a little bit of cake with my frosting!!! LOL!!)

So...  help me understand red velvet cake.

Suzanne x

AI make a version of the recipe you can find here, called Sarah's red velvet. It is probably the most well behaved and consistent recipe I use. Always bakes up high, and fluffy, and I like the taste. I think people just like rv in general for the nostalgia. I eat hot dogs and don't give a rat's furry butt about ingesting the coloring in one slice of cake, once in a blue moon.

AOh, and I've worked buttermilk into every recipe I use, save for carrot and mud cake. Yum to buttermilk cake recipes!

I tried looking for that recipe from Sarah a while back and she posted in another forum that she removed it because everyone was making changes and complaining that it didn't turn out right. I wish I had found it earlier...

AMmm, I'll find it.

Ahttp://cakecentral.com/a/sarahs-red-velvet-cake-tweaked

Here, this is the one I'm talking about. Guess it's not actually the original, but all drama aside, whatever it is, you can read in the comments about all that kerflooey.

AIt's just perfect as written, really.

Thank you, AZCouture. 

That's the thing, I guess....  there isn't nostalgia surrounding it here in the UK because it's "new" (ish) to us! LOL!  I actually think people have seen it on tv cake shows from the US and think it's so new and different that they HAVE to have it!

Maybe I need to try another recipe?  This just doesn't taste of *anything*....  will give the one you recommended a go!

Suzanne x

AI can see it now. "I substituted the food coloring with beet juice, and used applesauce instead of buttermilk, and it came out HORRID, this recipe is not good!!" Gimme a break, maybe try it as written and you might get good results. People are straaaaaaange ducks. ;-)

AZCouture - what size pans do I need for the recipe as shown, please?

Thanks.

Suzanne x

A

I think it's a yummy tasting cake, but can I nail down why it is, specifically describe a flavor component that makes it stand out? Nope. Truth be told, it's probably the red dye...ha ha!

Thank you AZ! I can't wait to try it.

I feel the same way! LOL And I hate washing up afterwards, red dye every where!

The place I work at uses buttermilk in almost all of their layer cakes, and sour cream as well...

Red Velvet is not traditional here in Spain either, well, neither are sponge cakes that are 4" tall, but RV is my bestseller. People ask what it tastes of, and I explain that it's a bit of chocolate, and bit of vanilla, and tastes like neither. When asked why it's red, I sheepishly explain that it's food colouring. After all that, they STILL buy it either in cupcake form or wedding cake form, saying that if it's my bestseller it must be good...blind leading the blind??!

I might start saying that Vanilla Bean is my best seller - it would be easier!!

AI totally agree. Can't stand it. It's such a nothing cake and all that colouring. Bleugh!

AYucky cream cheese icing.

ARed velvet is a traditional southern American cake. It isn't chocolate cake dyed red. It's supposed to be dense and kind of heavy, with a slightly tangy flavor that has just a hint of chocolate. It's not for everyone, that's for sure. I make Martha Stewart's recipe but modify it a bit. It's very similar to Cakeman Raven's but I do cut the oil back. It's actually really good if you can get past the red food coloring (I use a no-taste but it still grosses me out).

Cream cheese icing is far from yucky! Mine tastes like cheesecake. It's awesome. To each his own, I guess!

ABy the way, cream cheese isn't the only icing used for red velvet. You can look up recipes for cooked flour icing which is also used.

AI think RV is quite horrid. The idea of all that red dye. . . yuck.

if you didn't put the red dye in it, would anyone eat it for the flavor?

AI don't think so. To me it doesn't have much flavor at all.

so it's really eye candy, people are eating with their eyes.  The original cakes must have only had a slight hint of red in them.

AI have always found red velvet to be meh too, and I am a southern gal. I think it sounds sumptuous and therefore gives the consumer a feeling of decadence.

ARed velvet cake is a recipe made popular by the Adams spice and food coloring company during the great depression. The story goes that people were scrimping on things like food coloring, so Adams came up with this recipe containing a whole bunch of food coloring and started printing it on the packaging.

AMy understanding of red velvet is a cake that is flavoured with coco and beetroot. I have never used red colouring because it does not give the right texture. I have a fantastic recipe that always works well and is a family favourite. Happy to supply it here if requested.

ABeet juice is a natural alternative to the ghastly amount of food coloring. I only eat it about once every three years, lol.