Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting Valentine’s Day Dessert Love

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting Valentine’s Day Dessert Love

Fluffy, moist Red Velvet Cupcakes with a pretty little dollop of cream cheese frosting! What’s better than that? I don’t know either! To me, they just scream “Happy Valentine’s Day’… “I’m oh so yummy”…. “If no one sees you eat me, it doesn’t count”… You hear that last one too, right?

Red Velvet Cupcakes well, cake specifically, always make me think of the movie Steel Magnolias. The groom’s cake was red velvet, but in the shape of an armadillo, remember? Classic. Anyways, it’s basically a chocolate cake that’s red. Something about the way the cocoa powder mixes with the buttermilk that turns it a cool reddish color. Listen, science isn’t my thing. It’s the best explanation I’ve got. Of course, making Red Velvet Cupcakes now, we add a dash of food coloring. Which, makes them a perfect dessert for Valentine’s day! I was kind of intimidated at first to make this, have to say. They are always either really, really good or… awful. See those pretty pictures? Follow the directions below and yours will be A.Maze.Ing just like mine turned out!  Ready?

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Butter Cream Frosting

INGREDIENTS
Red Velvet Cupcakes
4 TBSP Unsalted Butter (softened -room temp)
¾ Cup Sugar
1 Egg
2½ TBSP Cocoa Powder
3 TSP Red Food Coloring
½ TSP Vanilla Extract
½ Cup Buttermilk
1 Cup Flour
½ TSP Salt
½ TSP Baking Soda
1½ TSP White Vinegar

Cream Cheese Frosting
1/4 Cup Butter (softened)
8 OZ Cream Cheese (softened)
1 TSP Vanilla Extract
2 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar

Red Velvet Cupcakes

DIRECTIONS

1st, let’s preheat the oven to 350* F. If you’re really feeling festive, find some Valentine’s Day themed liners or, choose the standard kind like I did and fill the muffin/cupcake pan. I think Red Velvet Cupcakes are pretty enough without the fancy theme, but that’s just me. In a large mixing bowl, (medium-high speed) cream the butter and sugar until it really light and fluffy. Should take  about 3 minutes. Turn the mixer up to high and add in your egg. You’ll want to also scrape down the bowl a time or 2. Keep mixing until well incorporated. Grab a small bowl, mix the cocoa powder, vanilla extract and food coloring together until it forms a thick paste. Add that paste to the batter in your large bowl and mix (medium speed) until it’s completely combined. Again, you’ll want to scrape the sides as well as the bottom of the bowl to make sure that all the batter gets colored evenly Or, you’ll have funky swirled Red Velvet cupcakes. Which, I guess could be totally cool, but not what we’re going for here. Now, turn down the mixer speed (low) and slowly (really, do this slowly!) add half of the buttermilk. And now half of the flour. Mix again until combined. Scrape the bowl. Repeat all that with the rest of the milk and flour. Beat on high for a minute or so until smooth. Turn the speed back to low and slowly add the salt, baking soda and vinegar. Crank it back on up to high and beat for about 2 more minutes. (batter should now be completely combined and smooth) Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners (I use an ice cream scoop, it seems way less messy for me) and bake for 20 minutes. Now while that’s baking, don’t forget to lick the beaters. You don’t have to share with the kids but, they may like it too. Totally your call. When a knife in the center comes out clean they are for sure done. (old Grandma trick, works every time) Pull from oven and cool for a few minutes before removing Red Velvet Cupcakes from the pan. Place them on a rack to cool completely before frosting.

To make the super yummy frosting switch to the whisk attachment. Whip the butter and cream cheese on high speed for about 5 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and slowly (really slowly or it will billow up all over the kitchen, HUGE mess!) add the powdered sugar. Mix until well incorporated. Add vanilla and mix that in well. Increase the speed (medium high) and whip for a few minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy. Taste test… just because it’s yummy. Also, totally cool to lick the whisk attachment here too.

In the photo below, you can see how we added just a wee bit of ‘fun’ and made some of the frosting pink with a drop of food coloring and piped in right into the center of our Red Velvet Cupcakes. Totally optional of course, but Ethan got a huge kick out of it. And, why not. Delish!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Awesome, right? Ya know what else is totally cool that I just now thought of? Since we’re using food coloring with these? You can go all buck wild and make them any color you want!! Got a bad break-up and not really feeling the love this Valentine’s Day? How about some blue coloring and turn your Red Velvet Cupcakes unto ‘I got the Blues Velvet Cupcakes’? Or!! Take your favorite sports team’s colors and throw that together for something really cool! Who cares if your team wins, you’ll be eating good, right?

Check on over at SassyGirlz in a bit too. I’m putting up a yummy Chocolate with Cherry Almond Frosting Cupcake recipe in a bit!

What color combo do you think you’d make? Something funky or stick with Red Velvet Cupcakes?

 

Comments

  1. These look gorgeous, what a great treat!

  2. Oh yum! Love red velvet!

  3. Oh wow, that looks delicious!! I pinned……I’ve never been able to really get the cream cheese frosting recipe just right.

  4. These look amazing and delicious. I never thought it just piping the icing into the middle like that. My kids will <3 it

  5. Those do look delicious and perfect for Valentines

  6. Good golly that looks good!!!!

  7. I just saw these on Google+ and now here! I wish I had all of the ingredients to make these today! So delicious!

  8. These look awesome, definitely pinning!!

  9. OMG these look sooo yummy i think ia m making them this weekend !!

  10. oh my gosh! these look divine!! Keeley’s birthday is Feb. 11th, so I think we will have to have these since it is so close to Valentine’s day! Thanks for sharing!

  11. Tara Gauthier says

    These do look amazing, definitely going to be making some!

  12. I so need to try my hand at making cupcakes from scratch. These look sooo good!

  13. Oh my! Those look so yummmy! I need to try to make these.

  14. They look amazing!!!

  15. OMG!! Dying to try these!

  16. noooooo This post just ruined my diet lol I so know what I will be eating tomorrow 🙂

  17. YES! #1: love the cupcakes. #2: love the site!

  18. These look heavenly…and sinful, all at the same time. Definitely one to try. Thank you for sharing in the GRAND Social.

  19. How do you get the cake to have some dome on top? Mine came out really flat. Also how to make the frosting less runny? Great recipe!!

  20. these are so pretty

  21. Ooh, yummy! I’ve gotta make these! Thanks for the recipe! (And I’m sure they’re very low in calories, too, right?!? 🙂 )

  22. bill elliott says

    These look mouth watering. Defaintly going to have to get my wife to make some of these. Thank you for the recipe

Trackbacks

  1. […] Family World ~ Heart shaped Cupcakes Slap Dash Mom ~ Strawberry Vanilla Cupcakes Grandma Juice ~ Red Velvet Cupcakes  My Saving Game ~ Secret Kiss […]

  2. […] NOT use white wrappers! They tend to turn brown around the edges and for chocolate cupcakes or even red velvet cupcakes, that’s fine. It doesn’t show. But this is a beautiful pastel green key lime recipe and […]

  3. […] a basic white cake recipe  and then adapted it to give it the lemon spin. Also used my never fail cream cheese frosting recipe, did up those sweet PEEPS and sprinkle decorations and…. the crowd goes wiiiiiiild. Ready to […]