Red Velvet is devilishly good cake

2/6/2013 Cook’s Corner

Betty Kaiser

Growing up, my southern grandmother baked a deep, dark chocolate Devil’s Food Cake with boiled frosting on special occasions. And now it’s back with a new ingredient under a different name. Devil’s Food Cake has morphed into the popular new Red Velvet Cake

This Valentine’s Day you might consider becoming a family rock star and whip up this latest rage in desserts. Modernists believe that it originated on the menu of New York City’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel. There’s even a rumor that their recipe was sold to a customer for $150 and that’s how it got out into the public domain.

That, however, is an urban legend. Cookbooks from as early as 1900 were publishing recipes for a dark chocolate cake that eventually became known as devil’s food cake. No one seems to know how the devil entered into this but it may have something to do with the fact that the cakes were rich and moist and devilishly good!

The primary flavor in a devil’s food cake is chocolate. The famous cook Fannie Farmer (1923) used two ounces of chocolate in a regular chocolate cake but doubled that amount in her devil’s food cake. And Irma S. Rombauer said, "When the larger amount of chocolate is used, it is a black, rich Devil's Food." (Joy of Cooking, 1931 p. 236)

The really red color came later in a post WWII version of the cake. Chocolate was scarce. Bakers sometimes used boiled beets to enhance the color of their cakes. The chemical reaction of mixing cocoa and baking soda together resulted in an interesting reddish brown color and thus the red devil’s food cake was born. Today, these cakes are redder than ever and I wondered why.

The answer, of course, was the addition of red food coloring. In the 1970s James Beard’s (3) recipes used red food coloring with an acidic combination of vinegar and buttermilk that brightened up the color and kept the cake moist, light and fluffy. The following cupcake recipe is from the McCormick Spice people. Cocoa powder (not chocolate) flavors this rich, sweet cake. Their secret ingredient to a bright Red Velvet Cake is red food coloring—an entire bottle!

The recipe says it makes 30 cupcakes but I think it’s more like 24. They are frosted with cream cheese frosting and decorated with red sugar. Devil’s food cakes were originally frosted with a boiled frosting that is simply to die for. So if you’re short on time, bake a box cake and frost it with the 7-Minute Frosting that follows for a special treat.

Enjoy Valentine’s Day!

RED VELVET CREAM-FILLED CUPCAKES

Gale Gand, McCormick

2 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

2 cups granulated sugar

4 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup milk

1 bottle (1 ounce) McCormick’s red food color

2 teaspoons McCormick vanilla (

Red Colored Sugar (recipe below)

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. Beat butter and granulated sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat. Spoon batter into 30 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.

Bake 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely.

3. Meanwhile, prepare the Red Colored Sugar and Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting.

4. Make an indentation in the center of each cupcake using the handle of a wooden spoon or a straw, making sure not to break through bottom of cupcake. Spoon about 3/4 cup frosting into resealable plastic bag. Cut a small piece off one of the bottom corners of bag. Pipe about 1 teaspoon Frosting into each cupcake. Spread top of cupcakes with remaining Frosting. Sprinkle with Red Colored Sugar.

RED COLORED SUGAR

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon red food coloring

Place sugar in large resealable plastic bag. Add red food color. Seal bag. Knead sugar until the color is evenly distributed. Spread colored sugar on large rimmed baking sheet. Let stand 25 to 30 minutes or until sugar is dried. Store in airtight container.

VANILLA CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened

2 tablespoons sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 box (16 ounces) powdered sugar

Beat cream cheese, butter, sour cream and vanilla in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in sifted powdered sugar until smooth.

SEVEN-MINUTE FROSTING

Combine in top of double boiler:

2 egg whites (or 1/4 cup)

1-1/2 cups sugar

1/4  teaspoon cream of tartar

2/3 cup water

Place over boiling water and beat with rotary beater until mixture stands in stiff peaks. Scrape bottom and sides of pan often. Fold in 1 teaspoon vanilla and frost.

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal! 

Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 

that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare. 

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 bchatty@bettykaiser.com