Okay I am SO EXCITED to finally be sharing my red velvet cake recipe! This red velvet cake is so incredibly soft, full of flavor and is topped with the most delicious cream cheese buttercream. It has a super velvety texture and slightly tart, yet sweet and creamy frosting – making it the best red velvet cake recipe I’ve tried!
What exactly is a red velvet cake?!
A red velvet cake is a combination of a vanilla and chocolate cake, with a distinct tangy taste. This is due to the buttermilk and vinegar (which are common ingredients in a red velvet cake).
Traditionally, red velvet cakes didn’t have any red food coloring, and were a more brownish, reddy colour. This natural red colour was due to the chemical reaction between non-dutched cocoa powder and the acidic ingredients (white vinegar and buttermilk).
Red velvet cake is often paired with cream cheese frosting (which I have done for this cake) or ermine frosting.
How to make red velvet cake
This cake comes together really easily! Just be sure to follow the steps exactly as stated.
Begin by preheating your oven to 160°C fan forced, and grease and/or line two 8 inch cake pans (I like to use my homemade cake release). If your oven doesn’t have a fan option, then you will need to increase the baking temperature to 175°C/350°F.
For the cake batter, start off by sifting together flour, cornstarch, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. By premixing our dry ingredients, it helps ensure that everything is mixed well, preventing us from overmixing our batter when we come to combining our wet ingredients with the dry, later on in the recipe.
Set your dry ingredients aside and in another bowl cream together butter, oil and sugar with a hand mixer (or stand mixer) for 2-3 minutes on a medium-high speed. This is going to incorporate air into our batter, which will give us a fluffier cake!
Next add in eggs one by one, mixing well in between each addition. Eggs add structure and moisture to our cake.
Next add in vanilla extract or essence, white vinegar and red liquid food coloring and mix until well combined.
Now the last step is to fold in our dry ingredients while alternating with 3/4s of a cup buttermilk. So to do this, add in half of your flour mixture and fold it into the wet mixture until just combined. Then add in your buttermilk, and fold that through until just combined. Lastly, add in your remaining dry ingredients and fold through until just combined.
It’s important to do this step by hand as this will prevent us from overmixing our batter and developing too much gluten. Gluten is what gives bread great structure, and although we want SOME structure for cakes, we don’t want too much otherwise it’ll make our cake tough and dense.
Once the batter is done, evenly distribute it into the two 8 inch cake tins and cook for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the cake tins for 20 minutes, before turning them out onto a cooling rack. Allow to completely cool before frosting.
How to decorate your cake
There’s no particular way to decorate a red velvet cake, but here’s how I did mine using my cream cheese frosting recipe 🙂
Now usually I would trim (or torte) the tops of my cake layers with a serrated knife to make them flat, but these red velvet layers bake up really nice and flat so no trimming was required. So I went ahead and added a generous amount of frosting to my first cake layer and smoothed it out with my offset spatula. I then placed the next cake layer on top.
I then placed some frosting on my top cake layer and spread it out with my offset spatula. I then used the excess frosting on the sides to cover the entire cake. I only did a thin layer of frosting and didn’t worry about a crumb coat because I was piping rosettes all around the cake. If you also want to pipe rosettes, then you will need to make 1.5x my cream cheese frosting recipe to ensure you have enough frosting.
I then used a 1M piping tip to pipe rosettes all around the cake! If you’re new to piping check out my beginner’s piping tutorial or 1M piping tip tutorial.
Once your cake is decorated, pop it into the fridge to allow everything to firm up. This will make it easier to cut. We don’t want cold cake though, so bring it out of the fridge about an hour or so before it’s going to be cut. If it’s still cold when you cut through it, then let it come to room temperature before eating. Trust me, it is worth the wait 😀
Commonly Asked Questions
Can I use gel food coloring instead of liquid color for this recipe?
Yes, you can use gel food coloring in replacement of liquid coloring, however you will need to dilute the gel colour with just under 3 1/2 tablespoons of water or milk to make up for the liquid lost when using gel colors. This recipe requires 3 1/2 tablespoons of liquid colour, however if using gel colours you won’t need that much as gel colours are concentrated. Additional liquid helps to thin out the batter and results in a fluffier, more velvety texture in your final cake.
Can I use this recipe to make red velvet cupcakes?
For a cupcake version of this cake, check out my red velvet cupcake recipe. It’s basically a smaller quantity of this recipe – just enough to make 12 cupcakes!
Can I use a buttermilk substitute?
A buttermilk substitute will work fine for this recipe. Check out how to make your own buttermilk substitute here.
Soft Red Velvet Cake
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Red Velvet Cake
- 2¼ cups (275 g) flour - regular all purpose (see note 3 if you want to use cake flour)
- 3 tbsp (18 g) cornflour - also known as cornstarch
- 3 tbsp (14 g) cocoa powder - unsweetened
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
- 6 tbsp (86 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- ¾ cup (141 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola
- 1¾ cups (344 g) white granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs - room temperature
- 1 tbsp (12 g) vanilla essence/extract
- 1½ tsp white vinegar
- 3½ tbsp (38 g) red liquid food colouring
- ¾ cup (158 g) buttermilk - room temperature
Cream Cheese Buttercream
- 1 batch of my cream cheese buttercream frosting recipe - see note 4 if piping rosettes around the cake like I have
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 160 °C (320°F) with the fan on (see note 7 if you don't have a fan function) and grease and/or line two 8 inch cake tins (I use my homemade cake release).
- In a bowl, sift together your flour, cornflour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside.
- In another bowl, add in your butter, vegetable oil and sugar. Using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer are both fine - see note 6), cream together for 2-3 minutes until light and creamy.
- Add in eggs one by one, mixing well in between each addition (about 10-15 seconds between eggs).
- Add in your vanilla, vinegar and red liquid food colour, and mix until well combined. Now set your mixer aside as the remainder of the batter will be finished by hand.
- Finish off by adding in half of your premixed dry ingredients to your wet mixture, and gently fold it in with a spatula until just combined. Then add in all of your buttermilk, and fold it in until just combined. Lastly, add in the remaining dry ingredients and gently fold it into the mixture until just combined. Do not overmix (see note 1).
- Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8 inch cake tins, and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Be careful not to open the oven door too early otherwise this can cause the cake layers to sink (see note 2). Also avoid overbaking the cake layers otherwise they will dry out.
- Once baked, allow them to cool in the cake tins for about 15-20 minutes, and then turn them out onto a wire rack to completely cool before frosting with my cream cheese buttercream frosting. For tips on how to frost your cake, check out the blog post above where I walk you through how I decorated mine with pictures, or watch my YouTube video below 🙂
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
558 Comments
MK,
I am new to the baking world and always looking for “easy but home made” recipes. This was a really fun to make with my daughter and easy for someone new to the baking world. I do have 2 questions that maybe you could help me with. My cake had a bit of a dip in the center after baking. I used springform pans and have a fan oven so what did I do wrong? Second, I made my own cream cheese icing and therefore kept the cake in the fridge so after a day it did become dry. Any tips on how to store it better?
Looking forward to trying more of your recipes!
Hi Heather 🙂 So glad you and your daughter enjoyed making the cake together, that makes me so happy to hear!
A dip in the center can be caused by a few things, I recommend checking out this blog post for more info: https://cakesbymk.com/recipe/why-did-my-cake-sink-in-the-middle/
As for the dryness, cakes can dry out in the fridge, especially if they’re not stored properly. To keep it fresher, I recommend storing the cake in an airtight container 🙂
You could also let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving to help soften the texture. For more baking tips, check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRy1KuFMdOo
Hope that helps and I can’t wait for you to try more recipes Heather! 😀
Hi! I’m not a baker, but love red velvet. I’ve attempted your recipe twice and it was an epic fail. I keep getting stuck on incorporating the oil, butter, and sugar; it never gets to a fluffy state. It stays watery. What am I doing wrong? To note, one of the my hand mixer tools broke, so I was left using only one. Could that be it?
Hi Leilani! 🙂
So sorry to hear you’re having trouble with the red velvet cake. The step where you cream the butter, oil, and sugar should result in a light and slightly fluffy mixture, but if you’re only using one hand mixer attachment, that could definitely be affecting the outcome. With only one beater, you’re not incorporating as much air, which is key for that creamy texture.
Also, make sure your butter is at room temperature and not too cold or melted as that can also affect how it blends with the oil and sugar. If things still look watery, try beating the mixture for a bit longer with both beaters (once replaced), and you should notice a difference!
Hope that helps for next time 🙂
Hello MK thank you for your recipes I love love love them. Do you recommend freezing your cakes and then decorating them at a later like say freeze for 4 days then take out over night and decorate
Hi Faith! Aww thank you so much, so glad you’re enjoying the recipes 😀
Yes I do recommend freezing cakes if you’re prepping ahead. Just make sure the cake layers are completely cool, then wrap them well in cling film and foil or place in an airtight container. When you’re ready, take them out the night before and let them thaw (still wrapped) at room temp, then decorate as usual the next day. Hope that helps 🙂
Can you bake this in a sheet pan ?
Hi Karen! Yes 1x this recipe should bake well in a 9×13 inch pan, you may just need to reduce the cook time slightly to ensure it doesn’t overbake. Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Hi loved it , may I know the total weight of the sponge that this recipe yield ?
Awesome! So glad you loved the recipe Prathiba 😀
Unfortunately I don’t weigh my cakes so I’m not too sure about that sorry!
How would you adjust the baking time/temp if using this recipe for cupcakes?
Hi Elizabeth! 🙂
Simply reduce the cook time to around the 18 min mark – baking temp will stay the same.
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Can I substitute apple cider vinegar or lemon juice for the white vinegar in this recipe?
Hi Nel 🙂
I haven’t tried that myself so I’m not too sure if it would impact the taste – sorry about that! I have heard of people using apple cider in the past which seems to work okay, so you could maybe give that a try, I just can’t say for sure sorry!
Hi, this is my first time making this cake, I live about 910ft above sea level, do I have to make any modification or Am I good to go?
Hi Marcela! 🙂
Hmm I am not too sure about the necessary adjustments sorry as I don’t have experience baking at high altitudes. I’m so sorry about that, but would love to hear how you go if you decide to try it out with any adjustments you may have made 🙂
Hi I have made this for the first time . For some reason my cake has really sunk in the middle and the edges look burnt what have I done wrong.? I followed it exactly .
Hi Lynne! Sorry to hear you’ve had some trouble with the cake. My best tips would be to make sure you’re using two 8-inch tins and try not opening the oven door too early while baking, as that can cause the middle to sink. Oven temperatures can also vary, so keeping an eye on it can help. Check out this blog post for more tips – https://cakesbymk.com/recipe/why-did-my-cake-sink-in-the-middle/
Hope that helps for next time 🙂
Awesomeness. My cakes turned out super flat, moist, yum and rich in flavour. I went straight on to the recipe. Best red velvet version I have tried so far. Thank you.
Awesome! So so happy to hear you loved the recipe Fairy! 😀
The most delicious red velvet cake I’ve ever made! It is a tradition in our family to have homemade red velvet cake for Christmas so this year I decided to give your recipe a go and oh my goodness your cake took the cake!!!! My family loves the cake saying it is the best red velvet cake that I ever made so THANK YOU for sharing your recipe. Your recipe will become our family’s recipe for many years to come!!!! Happy Holidays to you and your family.
Aww yay! This makes me so so happy Connie 😀
So glad you and your family loved the recipe and what an honor that your family thought it’s the best red velvet cake you’ve made to date!
Really appreciate the wonderful feedback 🙂