She wore red velvet…
Yesterday being Sunday, and my roommate’s birthday, I was moved to bake a cake. I asked said roommate what kind of cake they liked, and Red Velvet was the answer. I’ve never attempted to bake a Red Velvet, being more of a carrot cake girl myself, but was up to the challenge of a new recipe adventure.
The first time I ever even heard of Red Velvet Cake was when I was dining at this now-defunct 50s rockabilly diner kinda place in Williamsburg. It was a cool little place, kind of like a beach restaurant or some old gramma’s kitchen table type place. The couple next to me and my cohort abandoned their entire slice of red velvet in the midst of a stormy fight, and I promptly snatched it from their table as soon as they left, freegan scum that I am. It was very exciting cake, not just because it was red, but because it felt sort of stolen. The waiter laughed and said that he woulc have done the exact same thing if I hadn’t gone for it.
Red Velvet is a traditionally Southern cake recipe,
and gets its name from the inclusion of cocoa powder in the recipe. The chemical reaction between acidic vinegar and buttermilk and the cocoa powder turns the cake a reddish brown, which used to be augmented by beet juice. Modern bakers add a shitload of red food coloring but some traditionalists still use the beets.
At some point in the 60s it appears there were some questions as to the wisdom of eating food coloring, but nowadays it seems that the concerns over food coloring have given way to concerns over things like trans-fats, fat in general, carbohydrates, pesticides, antibiotics, preservatives, sulfates, and many other components of every food ever. So fuck it, man! Red all the way. I used almost a whole bottle of it and I’m still kicking! Then again I light things on fire and suck them into my lungs every day so who am I to address the potential riskage of eating red dye. Anyway.
Standard frosting for a Red Velvet is a roux-based butter icing, but lots of people like cream cheese frosting. I opted to imitate the red velvet cakes I’ve eaten (Sugar Sweet Sunshine, anyone?) and go with a straightforward fluffy buttercream. It’s really hard to go wrong with butter and sugar whipped into a frenzy.
After reading over several recipes on the internet, I opted for one of two Martha Stewart recipes, written by a woman from New Jersey also named Martha Stewart.
The batter looked sort of like play-dough, and required quite a bit of mixing. Since I am not a proud owner of a Kitchenaid mixer, hand mixer it was, for a solid half hour, while my roomies attempted to watch a movie in the other room. Sorry, guys. Then I made the frosting, another 15 minutes of loud mixing sount and my occasional “oh shits” as powdered sugar or red soupy cake batter blasted over the side of the (inadequately shallow) mixing bowl.
I *did* get to use my awesome professional grade springform cake pans, which I love a lot.
After due time in the oven, the red velvets emerged fully cooked and delightful. I delighted even further in popping the bottoms out of the cake pans. I love that shit.
While they baked I made some kind of weird mac & cheese casserole with broccoli, green beans, peppers, and bacon, which Betsy and I consumed with some Yellow Tail wine. The cake cooled, got frosted, and I played Baileigh a rendition of “Happy Birthday” on my wooden recorder.
Red Velvet cake is still sitting on the counter, mostly gone, covered in foil. I wonder how long you’re supposed to leave buttercream frosting out on the counter? I suppose only time will tell…
