Annie Bell’s red velvet cake

Red velvet cake really needs no introduction. It’s a classic and a reliable recipe to have in your cake cavalry. Here’s Annie Bell’s recipe, taken from her Baking Bible.

A velvet cake is so stunning it makes a great celebratory offering – be it Christmas, Easter, a birthday or any other occasion. Legend has it the recipe was leaked from the kitchens of the Waldorf-Astoria some time in the 1920s, and it has held Southerners captive ever since.

Ingredients (makes 1 x 20cm cake):

Cake
120g unsalted butter, diced
300g golden caster sugar
2 large eggs
300g plain flour, sifted
230g buttermilk
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
20g cocoa powder, sifted
approx. ½ teaspoon red food colour paste
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Frosting
180g unsalted butter, softened
150g icing sugar, sifted
450g full-fat cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Tools:

2–3 x 20cm non-stick cake tins with removable bases, 5cm deep
Baking paper
Food processor
Wire rack

Little Extras:

Unsalted butter for greasing

Preheat the oven to 170°C fan oven/190°C electric oven. Butter two (or three if you have them) 20cm non-stick cake tins with removable bases, 5cm deep, and line the bases with baking paper.

To make the cake, cream the butter and sugar together for 3–4 minutes in a food processor until really light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl between each addition. Add the flour in three batches, alternating it with the buttermilk so you start and end with the flour. Next mix in the salt, vanilla and cocoa.

Start to add the red food colouring, a knife-tip at a time, until the mixture is a dramatic dusky red – I find it needs about ½ teaspoon in all. Mix the vinegar and bicarbonate of soda together in a small bowl, they will fizz, and add to the batter. If using three cake tins,* divide the mixture between them, weighing them for accuracy to ensure you get evenly thick sponges at the end. Bake for 20–25 minutes or until shrinking from the sides and firm when pressed in the centre. Leave to cool in the tins for 10 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto a wire rack, remove the paper and leave to cool top upwards.

To make the frosting, place the butter and icing sugar in the bowl of a food processor and cream together. Transfer to a bowl and blend in the cream cheese and vanilla extract, beating with a wooden spoon until smooth.

Use about one-third of the buttercream to sandwich the three layers and the rest to coat the top and sides. Place the finished cake on a plate or board, cover with clingfilm and chill for 1 hour until set. If chilling it any longer than this remove from the fridge 30 minutes before serving. It keeps well in an airtight container for several days.

*If using two tins, add a third of the mixture to each one, bake these, and then bake the third sponge while the other two are cooling.

Tip: I find food colour paste much more effective than liquid for dyeing the sponge a rich vermillion red.

With cake under your belt, why not move onto some tried and tested biscuit recipes. Annie Bell’s white chocolate florentines or soft-bake chocolate and fennel cookies anyone?

This winning recipe is taken from Annie Bell’s Baking Bible.

And, for more inspiration, have a read of Annie Bell’s 10 top baking tips.