Red Velvet Cupcakes - Recipe

I made red velvet cupcakes last weekend for my 1000 Cooks for the Cure Party (well, I attempted to make pink velvet cupcakes, actually...they came out as more fuschia-ish in the end...but I used my normal red velvet recipe for them), and I was going to include all of my party recipes in one post, but then realized that would have ended up being the world's longest post. Sooooo we're breaking it down.

C's second favorite cupcake flavor (at least of the ones I make fairly regularly) is red velvet with the traditional cream cheese frosting. He asks for them any time he brings a dessert to work, and I know that if I make a batch they won't go uneaten. An extra awesome thing about these cupcakes is that, for the cake part, no mixer is needed! So simple, and so quick. For the cake portion of my red velvet cupcakes, I use a Paula Deen recipe that I found on the Food Network website, and then I slightly alter it. The cream cheese frosting is very basic, and my own normal recipe is very similar to hers as well.

Red Velvet Cupcakes
recipe adapted from Paula Deen

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp cocoa powder (Paula only uses 1 tsp in hers; I like a stronger cocoa flavor)
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup milk
1 tbsp white distilled vinegar (instead of milk and 1 tbsp vinegar, Paula uses 1 cup of buttermilk and 1 tsp vinegar)
2 large eggs
2 tbsp red food coloring (or the coloring of your choice; in this case I combined pink and purple "neon")
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the cream cheese frosting

1 pound cream cheese, softened
2 sticks butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla extract (Paula only uses 1 teaspoon in hers; I always add extra vanilla to frostings)
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine the vinegar and the milk in a small container and set it to the side. It ends up taking on the taste and consistency of buttermilk.

3. Add the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder to one mixing bowl. Use a long-tined fork to combine the ingredients until they are well-blended.

4. In a second, larger bowl, add the oil, milk and vinegar mixture, eggs, food coloring, and vanilla, and wisk until well combined.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and wisk again until fully combined.

6. Line cupcake pans with paper liners of your choice, then divide the batter between the liners (the batter should make between 20-24 cupcakes, depending how much you put in each liner). I like to spray over the top of the cupcake pan with cooking spray once the liners have been filled just to make sure the cupcakes don't stick if the cakes rise a bit too much.

7. Bake for 20-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.

8. Cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting:

1. Using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the vanilla and beat to combine.

2. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar on low speed until well-combined, then increase the speed to high and continue mixing until the frosting reaches a fluffy consistency.

I piped my frosting on using a disposable pastry bag and a large star tip, but you could just as easily use a freezer bag instead of a pastry bag or just spread the frosting on with a butter knife. I also did a combination of mini cupcakes and regular-sized ones. The batter made 24 minis and 12 regular, and I bake the minis for about 14-16 minutes.

What is your favorite cupcake recipe? Do you like the traditional flavors, or do you tend to be drawn to the new-fangled flavor combinations that are so popular now? Or, like me, do you just like them both? :)




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