Red Velvet Cupcakes

A retro flavor that only gets better with time! Red velvet cupcakes are the most moist, tender, and soft cupcakes! Perfect for birthdays, holidays, or just an indulgent treat.

What is red velvet cake?

The idea of red velvet anything dates back to at least the 1800s and made a huge comeback during the Great Depression. Red velvet is chocolate cake that features less cocoa than traditional chocolate cakes, and its texture is best described as velvety! It's maybe the most moist, soft, and tender cake around, with a very subtle and simple chocolaty flavor.

If you're a cake nerd like me, here's a full article on the history of red velvet cake!

Red velvet cupcakes ingredients:

Red velvet cake and cupcakes have pretty much the same ingredients as a regular chocolate cake, with the exception of red food coloring and vinegar. And of course, the measurements are slightly different.

To make these cupcakes, you will need:

• flour: just for structure, nothing special
• cocoa powder: not as much as you would find in a regular chocolate cake recipe. A little goes a long way in terms of flavor, and adding too much cocoa can actually drown out the red food coloring
• baking powder & baking soda: using both helps yield an extra fluffy, light, and airy cupcake!
• salt: to balance out the sweetness
• butter & oil: a bit untraditional. Most recipes include just butter, but the combination of butter and oil helps give an even velvet-ier texture! The butter adds flavor and richness, while the oil adds moisture and softness
• sugar: for sweetness!
• eggs: also not too special
• sour cream: another untraditional ingredient, but it helps make the cupcakes unbelievably moist!
• buttermilk: now *this* is a very traditional ingredient! if you don't have any on hand, here's how you can make your own substitute
• vanilla extract: for flavoring
• white vinegar: another classic add in. The vinegar really helps drive home the velvety texture! The acid reacts with the baking soda to create even more bubbles and airiness in your cake
• red food coloring: you can use either gel or liquid food coloring. Gel colors more vibrant, without having to add as much - so you would only need 1 teaspoon. Liquid food coloring is more diluted and muted, so you would need 2 teaspoons of it. This recipe can handle a few extra drops, but don't try to add tooooo much food coloring or your cupcakes may develop an "off" flavor!

How to make red velvet cupcakes:

1. Combine dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder & soda, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
2. Cream together butter, oil, and sugar. It may look grainy, but that's fine!
3. Add eggs in. One at a time, and whisk well after each addition.
4. Add in your sour cream, vinegar, food coloring, and vanilla. Whisk to combine and distribute the food coloring evenly.

5. Add dry ingredients and buttermilk. Alternate adding the flour mixture and buttermilk, starting and ending with dry ingredients. Again, some lumps are fine! Just make sure there aren't any dry ingredient spots or streaks.

6. Portion and bake. Divide batter into your cupcake tin and bake until cooked through. Cool completely before frosting!
7. Decorate with cream cheese frosting or your choice of frosting. You can reserve one of the cupcakes for crumbling on top of the frosting for that classic red velvet decor!

How to color red velvet desserts

If you want a bright red color to your cupcakes, you can just use plain red food coloring to dye your cupcakes. If you want a deeper red color (like the pictures in this post), here's my favorite little trick: use a good amount of red food coloring then add a teeny tiny drop of black food coloring. The black food coloring helps deepen the red color and (in my humble opinion) gives it such a beautiful hue!

But be careful not to go too far with the black food coloring or the cupcakes will lose that red color! Around ½ a drop should be enough, but it's best to use slightly less to start - because you can add but you can't take away! And do keep in mind that the color of the batter will darken slightly after you add the dry ingredients AND will continue to darken in the oven.

When it comes to choosing the food coloring, I recommend using gel or liquid-gel coloring just because it packs in a more vibrant color without the need to add too much. Liquid food coloring is really not great for baking because it can water down certain desserts and still leave you wanting more in terms of color. My personal favorite food colorings to use are either Wilton (this is the exact set I used for this batch), LorAnn Oils, or AmeriColor - but any brand works as long as it's gel food coloring.

Red velvet cake frosting:

Keeping things classic, you'll usually see red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting or ermine frosting (a less sweet buttercream), but that's not to say you can't experiment with different pairings!

Red velvet flavor also pairs well with vanilla buttercream, chocolate buttercream, or chocolate ganache. I've personally never tried it with any other styles of frosting, but I'm sure you can find a few more delicious ideas floating around out there!

Red velvet cupcakes storage:

Red velvet cupcakes keep for quite some time thanks to how incredibly moist they are! Keep stored in an airtight container for maximum freshness.

Unfrosted cupcakes will last up to 4 or 5 days at room temperature, or a week in the fridge. Frosted red velvet cupcakes should be kept in the fridge, and they'll also last around 1 week.

Check out some of these other recipes!

• sour cream vanilla cupcakes
• funfetti cupcakes
• chocolate cupcakes
• no bake chocolate biscuit cake
• sour cream pound cake
• sour cream glazed donuts

Lastly, if you made this or any of my recipes, be sure to leave a comment and review below! I love hearing your thoughts! Also tag me on Instagram @eatsdelightfulblog so I can see what you're making.

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Enjoy!

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