Red Velvet Pound Cake
This moist Red Velvet Pound Cake has wonderful richness from the butter and cream in the recipe, and the perfect amount of chocolate flavor. We love it with cream cheese frosting!
Ingredients
- 3 sticks 1 ½ cups (339g) unsalted butter, softened
- 3 cups 600g sugar
- 5 large eggs room temperature (place in bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes if in a hurry)
- 3 cups 342g cake flour
- ½ teaspoon 2g baking powder
- ⅓ cup Unsweetened Cocoa 29g
- ½ teaspoon 3g salt
- 1 ½ cups 348g heavy cream or whipping cream (we used heavy cream)
- 2 teaspoons 8g vanilla extract
- 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon White Vinegar
- 2 ½ Tablespoons Liquid Red Coloring adjust amount to your liking. Because of the cocoa, the batter/cake will not be bright red.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 stick (113g) unsalted butter, slightly softened
- 1 8oz Package Cream Cheese. We use full fat cream cheese. Using reduced fat or the spreadable cream cheese will cause the frosting to be too soft. Soften slightly.
- 1 teaspoon 4 g vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt 1g
- 3 to 3 ½ cups 345g to 373g powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour a large tube pan. We used a 10 inch bundt pan.
- In a separate bowl add the cake flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder. Whisk to combine and set aside.
- Add the butter to the bowl of your mixer, mix until smooth. Gradually add the sugar and mix until fluffy and lightened in color, this will take 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each until the yellow of the yolk has blended.
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the vanilla, white vinegar, and red coloring to the heavy/whipping cream. The mixture will thicken as the vinegar reacts to the cream.
- With an electric mixer on low speed (with paddle attachment if using a stand mixer), alternately add the flour mixture and the whipping cream mixture. Begin and end with the flour mixture. (We do three additions of dry ingredients and 2 of wet.) Pour into prepared bundt pan.
- Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a long wooden skewer or toothpick comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Ovens bake differently so check at around the 1 hour mark and adjust the baking time as needed.
- Allow the pound cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out.
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- Cut the butter into slices and add to the bowl of your mixer. Beat on low to medium speed until the butter is softened and smooth.
- Cut the cold cream cheese into pieces and add to the butter, beating at low to medium speed until incorporated. If you are using a hand mixer you may need to soften the cream cheese a bit more.
- Add the vanilla. Gradually add the powdered sugar beating on low speed until blended. Cover the bowl with a towel to keep down the cloud of powdered sugar.
- Increase mixing speed and beat until fluffy. Don't over beat or it will become too soft. If it becomes too soft, just refrigerate a short while to firm it up a bit.
- This frosting will pipe best if used while still chilled. You can make it in advance, refrigerate and when ready to use let it soften slightly (do not microwave) and remix.
- Decorating the CakeWe used our large star tip (1M) to pipe rosettes and stars over the top of the cake with the cream cheese frosting. If it is too soft, chill in the refrigerator for a few minutes. You can also spread the frosting on top of the cake with an offset spatula. (This is a half batch of our cream cheese frosting recipe).
Notes
Bundt Pans
If using a smaller bundt pan than the 10 inch one that we used, be careful over overfilling. You should have at least 1 ¼ inches from the top of the cake batter to the top edge of the pan to be on the safe side.
Because of the cream cheese in the recipe, this cake should be refrigerated. However, for best taste and texture, you should remove the cake for 2-3 hours before serving so that the cake can soften and warm closer to room temperature.
Freezing Instructions
Pound Cakes can be made in advance and frozen! After baking, allow the cake to cool on a wire rack. Then, place it on a foil-lined cake plate or board. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap, then foil, and freeze for up to three months. To thaw a pound cake or bundt cake, it's best to move it to the refrigerator the day before you need it. Then, continue to thaw on the kitchen counter for a few more hours the next day.
Cake Flour Substitution
(Using all purpose flour (plain in UK) to make Cake Flour) For each cup of flour in a recipe, remove 2 Tablespoons of flour and replace with 2 Tablespoons cornstarch (cornflour in the UK). This recipe has 3 cups of flour so you will measure out 3 cups of all purpose flour, remove 6 Tablespoons and replace with 6 Tablespoons cornstarch, whisk to blend
Serving Instructions:
This cake should be refrigerated because of the cream cheese frosting. For best flavor and texture, remove the cake from the refrigerator a couple of hours before serving so that the cake and frosting have a chance to soften a bit.