Red Velvet Cake

The Red Velvet Cupcake seems to be one of the most frequently requested type of cupcake we get from friends and family, no matter what time of year. We think the classic combination of the tender and slightly sour cake with the sweet flavor and smooth texture of the cream cheese icing is irresistible for most.

After trying several Red Velvet Cupcake recipes, the one that we like the best, is from the blog: www.pinchmysalt.com. This is a lovely blog that we both really enjoy. Perhaps you might want to check it out as well! We love how specific she is with her directions.

This cake turns out tender and moist every time we make it. It really is important to be sure the ingredients are at room temperature as noted.

Red Velvet Cupcakes (a.k.a. Waldorf Astoria Cake)

2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour*
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder (unsweetened)
2 oz. red food coloring
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.

2. Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl; set aside. In a small bowl, mix food coloring and cocoa powder to form a thin paste without lumps; set aside.

3. In a large bowl, using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then beat in vanilla and the red cocoa paste, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as you go. Add one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beat well, then beat in half of the buttermilk. Beat in another third of flour mixture, then second half of buttermilk. End with the last third of the flour mixture, beat until well combined, making sure to scrape down the bowl with a spatula.

4. In a small bowl, mix vinegar and baking soda. Yes, it will fizz! Add vinegar mixture to the cake batter and stir well to combine. Using an ice cream scoop, fill cupcake cups with cake batter (they should be 2/3 – 3/4 full). Place muffin tins on the middle rack of a preheated 350 degree oven. Bake for approximately 20-22 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Check early and don’t overbake!

5. Cool the cupcakes in their tins on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove and allow to cool completely before frosting. Frost cupcakes with cream cheese icing (recipe below).
Recipe Notes: *Sift cake flour once before measuring, then sift again with the other dry ingredients per recipe instructions. As you’re mixing the cake batter, use a spatula to scrape down the bowl frequently throughout the entire process.

Cream Cheese Frosting

16 oz. cream cheese (2 packages), softened
1/2 cup unsalted butter (one stick), softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
pinch of salt

With an electric mixer, blend together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Turn mixer to low speed and blend in powdered sugar, salt and vanilla extract. Turn mixer on high and beat until light and fluffy. Use immediately or refrigerate, covered, until ready to use. If refrigerated, the frosting will need to be brought to room temperature before using (after frosting softens up, beat with mixer until smooth).

Recipe Notes: If you prefer a sweeter and/or stiffer frosting, more powdered sugar can be added (up to four cups). But remember, the more sugar you add, the less you’ll be able to taste the tangy cream cheese!

Chocolate Stout Cake with Frangelico (Hazelnut) Mousse

I once dated someone who was obsessed with Stout beer. After mentioning this to a friend, they passed along the below recipe to me. For Valentine’s day that year, I made this cake and layered and covered it with chocolate ganache. This is a very rich combination that usually gets excellent reviews. It is also a great cake for a birthday as well.

As you may have read in previous posts, the plain chocolate cake recipe has been eluding us as far as chocolate flavor and moisture come into play.

A friend asked me to make her wedding cake and mentioned that she wanted a chocolate cake. This put me into a panic as I still don’t have a chocolate cake recipe that I love. I mentioned that the chocolate stout cake recipe that I have is very moist and has a nice crumb that would hold up well with the Frangelico (hazelnut) mousse that she wanted me to pair with the chocolate cake. We decided to pair it with buttercream icing and the combination turned out to be absolutely magical! Since the wedding, I have had several requests for this cake including a Valentine’s Day replica request from the bride and groom themselves!

This Frangelico Mouuse recipe was found in a cooking magazine. I really like the consistency and think that it adds a very minimal hazelnut flavor to this combination. An added benefit is that it isn’t overpowering. This recipe will usually leave me with some mousse left over, so I like to fill some cups, add some whipped cream, and serve as a little bonus treat.

Chocolate Stout Cake

2/3 cup stout, such as chocolate or oatmeal stout
10 Tbs. unsalted butter (1 stick plus 2 Tbs.)
½ cup cocoa powder
1 1/3 cups cake flour, sifted
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 large whole egg plus 1 yolk
2/3 cup sour cream

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment paper. Butter paper.
2. Bring stout and butter to a simmer in heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa; whisk until smooth. Cool slightly.
3. Sift flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl to blend; set aside.
4. Beat egg, yolk and sour cream with electric mixer in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture, and beat just to combine.
5. Add flour mixture and beat 30 seconds on slowest speed. Fold batter using rubber spatula until completely combined; pour into prepared pan.
6. Bake about 20 to 25 minutes, or until tester inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Transfer to rack; cool 10 minutes. Run small sharp knife around edge of cake to loosen and turn cake out onto rack; cool completely.


Frangelico (Hazelnut) Mousse

6 large egg yolks
¼ cup sugar
3 Tbs. Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur)
¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, diced, room temperature
2 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
3 Tbs Nutella (chocolate-hazelnut spread)
½ cup chilled whipping cream

 Procedure:
1. Whisk egg yolks and sugar in heavy medium saucepan to blend. Whisk in Frangelico.
2. Add butter. Whisk gently over medium heat until mixture is thick, about 4 minutes (do not boil). Remove from heat.
3. Add chocolate and whisk until melted. Gently stir in Nutella.
4. Transfer mixture to large bowl; cool to room temperature. Beat cream in medium bowl until cream holds peaks; fold into chocolate mixture in 2 additions. Cover mousse and chill up to 1 day.

Elusive Chocolate Cake

From our point of view chocolate cake should not only taste like chocolate, but should also be moist.  All of the saliva in your mouth should not be soaked up by a piece of cake.  Instead a cake should be tasty and just the right consistency.  Well, these two qualities in a chocolate cake have been eluding us.  We have tried several different recipes and the cake is either too dense or too dry.  The chocolate doesn’t have a chance to showcase itself when the consistency is the dominant factor.    

A recent recipe we tried was from a book called “Chocolate.”  One would think that a book all about chocolate would result in the Best Chocolate Products.  That really was not the case with the chocolate cupcakes that we tried.  So, we are still on the lookout for our go to recipe.   Here is to hoping that we come across just the right chocolate cake recipe before we have to create our own.  If you have ideas, send them our way.

Ingredients:
½ cup Unsalted Butter
½ cup Sugar
3 Eggs
1 cup less 2 tbsp Cake Flour
3½ tbsp Cocoa Powder
1½ tsp Baking Powder

Procedure:
1.  Pre-heat oven to 375°F.
2.  Fill muffin pan with baking cups.
3.  Cream together the butter and sugar until well light and fluffy.
4.  Add in the eggs, one at a time.
5.  Sift the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder together.
6.  Add sifted flour mixture to the butter mixture.
7.  Mix just until combined.
8.  Fill the baking cups a little over half way and bake for 15 minutes.
9.  Cool completely before frosting.