💟TASTY TREAT TUESDAY 💖 #6 - Red Velvet Cupcakes

It's Tuesday, and tomorrow is Valentine's Day!

The perfect set of circumstances to share this recipe! I hope it's not too late for some of you to give it a shot, and make these babies for your valentine. I promise, the lucky recipient will be very pleased! 😍

These are a HUGE hit in this house. Red velvet is hubby's favorite, and I think it's ranked pretty high with the rest of us as well. The moist and lightly chocolate-flavored cake, combined with a tangy and fluffy cream cheese frosting, piped into rosettes, this is one bouquet you'll be happy to see only last a day or 2. 😉

Alright, are you psyched? I hope so! Let's get started on the recipe! But first, my standard disclaimer:

These posts are IMAGE HEAVY!

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First things first: the buttermilk. I rarely have the stuff on hand, and I'm sure the same is true for a lot of you guys out there as well. But here's the good news - you can substitute with soured milk, using a couple things we probably all have hanging out in the kitchen! All you need is milk, and either lemon or white vinegar! (1 tbsp of acid, then fill to 1 c with milk. Or in this case, 1/2 tbsp to 1/2 c milk.) Then you just set it aside and let it work for about 5 minutes, which is just enough time to get through the first few steps.

While that sits, it's time to get that stand mixer working. Cream together your butter and sugar, until it's light and fluffy.

Then, mix in your egg, vanilla, and a few drops of concentrated food color. (You could use the liquid stuff, but you'll need a lot of it to get the red color you're after. I've also used this gel in the past, but prefer the ease and intensity of the drops. You could also opt for a natural food dye, or to use less, and you'll get a more pink result.)

Now sift together your dry ingredients, in a large bowl. Sometimes when a recipe calls for sifting, I cheat and just use a whisk to aerate, and mix, but when I'm using cocoa I always sift. It's the only way to ensure there are no little clumps left in your batter.

Pour the extra vinegar into your soured milk.

And now we are ready to put it all together, alternating between adding dry and wet. You want to start and end with the dry ingredients, so I tend to do dry in thirds, and the milk mixture in halves. Make sure you stir gently, and only just until combined.

(Yes, it's a little chunky. Milk curdles when you mix it with acid. Don't worry, it'll all blend in. 😉)

Now that it's all mixed together nicely, give the bowl a quick scrape down and mix with a spatula, then divide it into your lined cupcake pans. My favorite trick to get even cupcakes: use an ice cream scoop!

Once they're all filled about 2/3-3/4 full, tap them on the counter once or twice, then pop them into the oven!

After about 18-20 min they should be baked, and ready to cool. (I find that these guys tend to have a flatter top, but I also over-mixed a bit, so they turned out quite flat. lol No worries, that'll be covered up with frosting in a few minutes. 😉)

While you're waiting for them to cool completely (and I mean completely), it's time to make that fluffy puffy frosting!

With the whisk attachment on your stand mixer (or using a hand mixer, if you don't have a stand mixer), cream together the cream cheese and butter.

Then add in a pinch of salt, a few drops of vanilla, and a cup of powdered/icing sugar.

Continue adding sugar, a quarter cup at a time, until you've reached the right consistency. (Thickened, but still soft and creamy.) If it accidentally gets a little too thick, you can add a small splash of cream to thin it out. Now, turn the mixer up to med-high, and whip that stuff silly for a good 2 minutes. You'll know it's ready when it leaves visible streaks. Fluffy. Puffy.

Now it's time to grab your piping bag. I like to use either a 1M or 2D large tip for my cupcakes. Drop the tip into the bag, then fold over the edge, and using a spatula, scoop in the frosting.

Once it's filled, fold the sides of the bag back up, and give it a twist, to close in the frosting, and push it down.

And then it's time for the fun part - piping! I thought some rosettes would be rather fitting for the occasion. Start at the middle, then work outward in concentric circles. When you're nearly out of space, ease off the pressure on the bag, to make sure the icing tapers at the end.

Et voilà!

The cake is moist, and fluffy, with just a hint of chocolate flavor, and of course, that undeniably "valentine-y" color (which, I want to say, can also be altered to suit your preference). Plus, they're crowned with the fluffiest, creamiest cream cheese frosting.

A deliciously tasty treat, fit for any occasion, but especially winsome as a gift for your little valentine.

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The Recipe

Cake

1 c sugar
1/2 c (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
1 egg
1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
squeeze concentrated red food coloring
1 1/4 c all purpose or cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup buttermilk or soured milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tbsp white vinegar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a stand mixer, cream the sugar and butter, beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla, and coloring, and mix well. Sift together flour, cocoa, soda and salt. Add vinegar into the buttermilk/soured milk. Add flour mixture to the creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, scraping down the bowl between additions. Divide batter into lined cupcake pans. (Using an ice cream scoop makes keeping them even much easier.) Bake for 17-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from heat and cool completely before frosting.

Frosting

1/4 c unsalted butter, softened
1/2 package (4 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2-2 c powdered sugar

Beat cream cheese and butter, with whisk attachment, in bowl of stand mixer at med speed until fluffy. Beat in 1 c powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla. Add in more powdered sugar, 1/4 c at a time, until you reach the desired consistency. (If it gets too thick, whip in a few drops of cream to thin it out.) Then whip on med-high for 2 minutes, until nice and fluffy.

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What's your favorite kind of cake/cupcake?

What's your favorite Valentine's gift? (To give OR receive.)

Do you have any big plans for "international Love Day"? I'd love to hear from you!

Hope your V-day is red hot! 💘

Megan