Red Velvet Cupcakes, Revisited

And now I'm posting the recipe from the third attempt. I think these were the best. The texture is awesome, and the flavor was as close as I've gotten to my ideal! This ended up being the fusion of a few recipes--by the third time, I was not afraid of experimenting a little, and that ended up being a good decision.

Red Velvet Cupcakes (again)
-2 1/2 c. cake flour
-1 1/2 T. natural unsweetened cocoa powder
-1 1/2 t. unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
-1 t. salt
-1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
-1 1/2 c. vegetable oil
-2 eggs
-red food coloring (2 T. liquid, or 1 t. gel)
-1 t. vanilla
-1 c. buttermilk
-1 1/2 t. baking soda
-1 T. vinegar

1. Whisk together flour, cocoa powders, and salt. Beat together sugar and oil. Add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla and food coloring.
2. Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture in three parts, alternating with two additions of buttermilk.
3. Combine the vinegar and baking soda in a small bowl. Add to batter and mix for 10 seconds.
4. Pour batter into lined cups. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes, rotating tins halfway through.

(Same cream cheese frosting as before--it's a keeper!)

"Jarcakes"

This year, Valentine's Day fell during the Red Velvet Craze of 2010. I wanted to spread a bit of the holiday joy, so I tried to figure out how to mail cupcakes. After a little bit of research, Mason jars seemed like they would be the best option. With some inspiration from various bloggers and Etsy vendors, I decided to give it a shot. I didn't realize, however, that finding the right jars would be such a challenge. There is no shortage of canning equipment in Vermont--such things proved a bit more elusive in Rhode Island. Finally, however, I struck gold at Adler's (they always seem to have the one thing I can't find anywhere else; I should start looking there first...), so on we go!

A 4 oz. quilted jelly jar. Exactly cupcake-sized. (It sounds like you can also use wide-mouth half-pint jars.)

There seemed to be a few different ideas about how to assemble everything in the jars. I decided to slice the cupcakes in half horizontally, with a layer of frosting piped in the middle. I also tried a couple with three layers of cake; it seemed to work well too. Some of the examples I saw had the frosting on the top, but that seemed like it would be a bit messy when the lids came off.

Assembled!

I put these in the freezer overnight, and then wrapped them in tissue paper and packaged them right before shipping them Priority mail (2-3 days). Looks like they made the trip pretty well!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

I love most cakes, particularly the chocolates and the yellows and the variants thereof. More than any other, however, I love red velvet cake. I didn't try red velvet until maybe five years ago, at Tippecanoe Place in South Bend. I think their recipe has become the standard to which I compare all others, and few come close. So, this February I attempted to perfect my red velvet cupcakes--I tried three times in two weeks, learning tricks along the way; all were good, and now I think I almost have it... Here's the recipe from the second attempt!

Red Velvet Cupcakes
-2 1/4 c. cake flour
-1 1/2 t. baking soda
-pinch salt
-1 c. buttermilk
-1 T. white vinegar
-1 t. vanilla
-2 eggs
-2 T. unsweetened natural cocoa powder
-2 T. red food coloring
-3/4 c. unsalted butter
-1 1/2 c. granulated sugar

1. Whisk together buttermilk, vinegar, vanilla, and eggs in a large measuring cup. Combine food coloring with cocoa in a small bowl to form a paste. Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.
2. Beat together butter and sugar. Add the flour mixture in three portions, alternating with two additions of the liquid mixture. Add the cocoa mixture, and beat until the batter is well combined.
3. Pour into lined cups. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes, rotating tins halfway through.

Cream Cheese Frosting
-1 c. unsalted butter
-12 oz. cream cheese
-4 c. confectioners' sugar
-3/4 t. vanilla

1. Beat together butter and cream cheese until fluffy (2-3 minutes).
2. Add sugar, 1/2 cup at a time and beat until smooth. Add vanilla.
3. Frost cupcakes. (I tried piping--it seemed to hold its shape pretty nicely!)

Look at that gorgeous color!

(And these baking cups are amazing. They're grease-proof, and Sweedish.)

Red Velvet Cake

Something festive for Christmas dinner!