Cake Doctors Red Less Velvet Cupcakes Recipes

RED VELVET CUPCAKES WITH TRUVIA® BAKING BLEND

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in large bowl.
• Combine oil, applesauce and Truvia® Baking Blend in a separate large mixing bowl. Blend in eggs. Carefully add red food coloring and vanilla while mixing at low speed.
• Combine the buttermilk and vinegar. Then add half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk mixture to the oil mixture at a time and mix just until combined.
• Fill paper lined or greased cups 3/4 full with batter.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcakes comes out clean.
• Frosting: Mix cream cheese and Truvia® Baking Blend at low speed for 1 minute. Add the vanilla and mix for another minute at low to medium speed or until creamy and smooth. Add 1 teaspoon of milk, if desired, for thinner spreading consistency.
• Frost the cooled cupcakes.

RED VELVET CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.
• Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat. Spoon batter into 30 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.
• Bake 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely. Frost with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting.
• Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat cream cheese, softened, butter, sour cream and McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar until smooth.

RED VELVET CUPCAKES WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups. To make red food color paint, in small bowl, mix 1 teaspoon water and 3 to 4 drops of the food color; set aside.
• In large bowl, beat cake mix, 1 cup water, the oil, eggs, cocoa and remaining food color from bottle with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.
• Bake and cool completely as directed on box for cupcakes.
• Frost tops of cupcakes with frosting. Using a fine-tip brush, paint cupcakes with red food color paint, swirling paint to create design. Store loosely covered at room temperature.

RED VELVET CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat your oven to 335°F and prepare three 6" x 2" pans or two 8" x 2" cake pans with cake goop or your preferred pan release. It also works well in all pans from a bundt pan to a cupcake.
• Combine the eggs, vegetable oil, buttermilk, vinegar, butter, vanilla, and red food coloring in a medium bowl and set it aside. I recommend using food coloring gel instead of liquid food coloring. My favorite brands are ChefMaster, and Americolor super red.
• Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda in the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix this on low speed for a few seconds to combine.
• Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and mix on medium speed until the batter is fully incorporated and smooth (about 1 minute). Don't forget to scrape the bowl to ensure all the ingredients are evenly mixed.
• Divide the cake batter evenly between the prepared cake pans (I like to use my scale for accuracy).
• Bake the cakes for 35-40 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops bounce back when lightly touched.
• Cool the cakes in the pans for about 10 minutes, then flip them out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.
• If you are going to layer and frost the same day, pop the cake layers into the freezer for about an hour, no need to wrap them. Otherwise, wrap the layers in plastic wrap and freeze them for up to a week. Pro-Tip: Wrapping the cakes while they're still warm seals in all of the moisture, making them safe to freeze.
• Place the softened butter in the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Mix on low until it is smooth and lump-free.
• Add in the softened cream cheese and combine on low until smooth and completely homogeneous. Scrape the bowl to make sure it is all incorporated.
• Add in the powdered sugar one cup at a time, mixing on low to avoid throwing powdered sugar out of the bowl.
• Add the vanilla extract and salt. A traditional vanilla flavor from vanilla extract goes well with cream cheese, but I love using orange extract or lemon extract for a unique taste.
• If you are not going to use the frosting immediately, cover it and place it in the refrigerator.
• Trim the tops of the cake layers off and save them in a bowl. You will use these to make crumbs to decorate the cake.
• Place the first chilled cake layer on a cake board, add a large scoop of cream cheese frosting, and spread evenly across the cake layer. A chilled cake will be easier to frost with the cream cheese frosting.
• Place the second layer of cake on top and repeat the filling and layering process.
• Frost the exterior of the cake with a crumb coat to lock in those red crumbs. Chill the cake for a few minutes before applying the final coat.
• Apply enough cream cheese frosting to cover the outside of the cake evenly. Cream cheese frosting can make really pretty spatula patterns, but I choose to do a simple smooth finish using a bench scraper.
• Crumble the extra cake trimmings into crumbs and gently press them into the sides of the cake, and then sprinkle on top as well.
• Using your piping tip of choice, pipe dollops of cream cheese frosting on top of the cake.
• This cake will last for about 4 days in the refrigerator, I recommend covering the cake in plastic wrap after cutting so that it doesn't dry out.

CAKE DOCTOR'S RED-LESS VELVET CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Set the pans aside.
• Place the cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, water, oil, food coloring and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
• Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat two minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed. The batter should look thick and well combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
• Spoon batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it three quarters of the way full. (You will get between 22 and 24 cupcakes; remove the empty liners, if any.) Place the pans in the oven.
• Bake the cupcakes until they spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool for 5 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the pans and place them on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes before frosting.
• Meanwhile, prepare the White Chocolate Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting. When finished, place a heaping tablespoon of frosting on each cupcake and swirl to spread with a short metal spatula or a spoon, taking care to cover the tops completely.
• Place these cupcakes, uncovered or in a cake server, in the refrigerator until the frosting sets, 20 minutes. The cupcakes are ready to serve.

WHITE CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Place the white chocolate in a small glass bowl in the microwave oven on high power for one minute. Remove the bowl from the oven and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until it is smooth. Set the chocolate aside to cool.
• Place the cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until well combined, 30 seconds. Stop the machine. Add the melted white chocolate and blend on low speed until just combined, 30 seconds.
• Add the peppermint extract and two cups of the confectioners' sugar and blend on low until the sugar is incorporated, 30 seconds more. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until the frosting is fluffy, one minute more, adding up to ½ cup more sugar if needed to make a spreadable consistency.
• Feel free to fold in up to ½ cup crushed peppermint candy for a crunchy and creamy frosting!
• Will frost 24 cupcakes generously. (see Cake Doctor's Red-less Velvet Cupcakes).