Go Back
–+ servings
two tiers of red velvet cake filled and covered with cream cheese frosting adorned with a winter bouquet of red and green florals

Red Velvet Cake

This is the ultimate red velvet cake adorned with a floral crown of winter blooms and slathered with a best ever cream cheese frosting. This festive cake is so good that it stops traffic.
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 8

Ingredients
 

Red Velvet Cake

  • 292 g cake flour
  • 300 g white granulated sugar
  • 6 g unsweetened cocoa
  • 6 g 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 1 tsp instant espresso powder
  • 5 g 1 tsp coffee or filtered water
  • 145 g sour cream
  • 227 g unsalted butter room temperature
  • 92-100 g whole large eggs
  • 2 tbsps red gel food coloring
  • 16 ml white vinegar
  • 10 g premium pure vanilla extract
  • 90 ml buttermilk

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 127 g filtered water
  • 11 g cornstarch
  • 227 g cream cheese room temperature
  • 113 g unsalted butter
  • 5 g premium pure vanilla extract
  • 320 g confectioners’ sugar

Floral Crown

  • 2 stems of red roses
  • 1 stem white ornamental kale
  • 1 bunch lilies
  • 1 stem juniper berries removed
  • 1 stem eucalyptus
  • 1 branch of berries

Instructions
 

  • Cake | Preheat oven to 350 F / 177 C and prepare the center rack for baking.
    In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add butter and sugar. Set the butter wrappers aside. Let the mixture whip on medium-high speed for 8 minutes, stopping at least once to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
    Add hot water or coffee into the espresso powder making it dissolve. Add in the eggs, white vinegar, vanilla extract, and espresso. Using clean utensils, add in red gel food coloring and mix on medium speed until ingredients are uniformly combined. Then add in sour cream.
    In a separate bowl, whisk together cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer running on the stir setting to prevent flour from escaping, gradually add the dry ingredients and whole milk into the wet batter until no ingredients remain. Mix on medium speed, stopping at least once to scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the batter is very light and thick, about 2 minutes.
    Generously grease two 9 x 2 inch cake pans with leftover butter from the wrappers. Insert pre-cut parchment paper rounds into each cake pan, lining the tin.
    Using a 6 oz cookie scooper, make level scoops of batter and divide evenly among the two baking pans, approximately 12 scoops each. Using a bench scraper or spatula, level out the batter.
    Drench cake strips with water and wrap around each cake pan, fastening them securely. Transfer cake pans to the oven and bake until the center of the cake no longer looks wet and the edges do not turn slightly brown, about 20 minutes. Let the cakes cool on the counter in the pan until warm, then transfer to the freezer for 20 minutes before assembly. The cakes should bake flat and chilled.
  • Frosting | Start by combining water and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir the mixture until it boils, which should take about 2 minutes. Once the cornstarch mixture is ready, set it aside to cool to room temperature.
    In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the softened butter, cream cheese, and confectioner's sugar. Mix on medium-high speed for 8 minutes until the mixture is pale, light, and fluffy. Then, add in the cooled cornstarch mixture and vanilla extract, and continue mixing for an additional 2 minutes. Once the frosting is well combined, remove the bowl from the stand mixer. Set aside.
  • Assembly | Take one chilled cake layer out of the freezer. Use an offset spatula to release the cake from the sides of the pan.
    Invert the first layer onto a cake board on a cake turntable. Gently peel off the parchment paper and discard it. Add frosting to the top and sides of the cake. Chill for 10 minutes in the freezer before continuing. Repeat the process with the remaining layer.
    Once both layers are frosted and chilled, use a spatula to apply a final layer of frosting to the entire cake. Smooth out the frosting with a straight edge of a cake comb or bench scraper.
    Using a pair of scissors, trim the stems of the roses and ornamental kale, cutting them at the base right before the pedicel. Wrap the ends with plastic wrap.
    Arrange the blooms as desired. Remove flowers before slicing. Enjoy chilled!
    If you've tried this recipe, please let me know what you think in the comments below! Your feedback is greatly appreciated and it helps me improve my recipes for future cooking adventures. And if you enjoyed it, don't forget to give it a thumbs up or share it with your friends! You can help my channel by tagging @vocabularyoffood in your cooks. <3
Keyword baking, baking recipes, cake recipe, christmas dessert ideas, creative dessert ideas, creative dessert recipes, creative desserts, cupcake recipes, easy baking recipe, easy recipe, easy recipe ideas, easy recipes, easy recipes to make at home, floral, food photography, food styling, free recipe, free recipes, how to bake, simple baking recipes, vocabulary of food, vocabularyoffood, vocabularyoffood kelly, vocabularyoffood recipes, vocabularyoffood winter floral crown cake, winter bake, winter cake
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!