Am I the only one who doesn't really like red velvet cake?

[RHF]

There's no coloring in a red velvet cake. It's the white vinegar that reacts with the cocoa and buttermilk that turns it red. I'm not wild about it either!

 

[Norcalbaker59]

There's no coloring in a red velvet cake. It's the white vinegar that reacts with the cocoa and buttermilk that turns it red. I'm not wild about it either!

Nope. Red Velvet recipes contain 2 oz of red food dye.

There's only 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder in red velvet cake. Even if cocoa powder turned red, of which it does not, 2 tablespoons is not enough to color a batter. And it's not enough to flavor a cake chocolate.

And if buttermilk triggered cocoa powder to turn red then nearly every chocolate cake out there would be bright red since nearly all chocolate cake recipes include buttermilk.

I just baked half a dozen chocolate cakes last month. All contained buttermilk and 85g or more of cocoa powder. Some even had vinegar and milk (curdled milk). Not a single cake was red.

I have yet to have a single cake with cocoa powder and acid turn red--and I’ve baked a lot of chocolate cakes in 20+ years.

This cake contains cocoa power and buttermilk. It's not red.

 

[Linus]

Most recipds that i saw calls for red food color.

 

[Ima]

Also resurrecting this post.

I am so glad to have found others who find red velvet cake - and now its siblings blue velvet, and black velvet - to be a marketing farce. The cake is disgusting.

Yes, everyone loves cream cheese frosting, but then why not have chocolate cream cheese frosting on chocolate cake?

 

[Dasher]

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't Red Velvet cake essentially just chocolate cake with red food coloring? I think the only differences I've noticed in recipes, is that it also calls for some buttermilk and perhaps some brown sugar instead of regular sugar. However, I've also seen these ingredients in traditional chocolate cake recipes as well, in particular, the buttermilk. My grandmothers recipe for chocolate cupcakes calls for it too.

I enjoy Red Velvet cake essentially the same way I enjoy Chocolate cake. I just don't often bother making it myself since I don't typically have food dyes on hand and I hate making a mess with them.

You can open a whole new world of red velvet by adding “Watkins - Red Velvet flavoring”to the mix. You can’t get it off the shelf. Order directly from amazon or Watkins

 

[Linus]

You can open a whole new world of red velvet by adding “Watkins - Red Velvet flavoring”to the mix. You can’t get it off the shelf. Order directly from amazon or Watkins

Just looked on Amazon, & it's there!!

 

[MrsM]

Rose Levy Beranbaum has a good RVC recipe, it uses 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and one ounce of red food color. I use Red Velvet Emulsion by Lorann. Red Velvet cake is not one of my go-to cakes, I prefer plain yellow, white or chocolate cakes; but I made this one year as a half sheet cake for a July 4th picnic - one layer of white cake, one layer of Red Velvet, one layer of Blue Velvet. It was a big hit with everyone.

 

[Dunross]

People today would not recognize a genuine red velvet cake anymore because they've all become accustomed to the food coloring versions. I don't like that type either and will seldom ever eat it.

In truth the original "red velvet" cakes were never actually red, but more of a dark brown reddish hue (think mahogany) which only looked reddish relative to other darker types of chocolate cakes when you looked at them in sunlight. The "velvet" part (as in the texture) is just as important as the "red" part.

The ingredient that made it reddish was natural non-alkalized cocoa powder. No food coloring, no beet juice.

http://benstarr.com/blog/real-red-velvet-cake-with-no-food-coloring-or-beet-juice/

https://unpeeledjournal.com/not-red-velvet-layer-cake-recipe/

There are a number of variations on the theme recipes to be found to experiment with, but the important things to remember are non-alkalized (NOT Dutched) cocoa powder and some buttermilk. You should come up with a nice mahogany hue which will appear reddish in sunlight relative to a deep, dark chocolate cake. All those beet and food coloring recipes came along later by people who wanted a more pronounced red coloring while losing sight of what the original cake was supposed to be.

My stepmother used to make a great one baked on a gas grill of all things (put the lid down and it's an oven!). She ruined me for all dyed red velvet cakes forever after that.

From the unpeeledjournal page above:

 

[MrsM]

Interesting for sure! I am also turned off by the red food coloring addition, but I do make the cake. I use red velvet emulsion from Lorann instead of plain food coloring. Have you made any of these cakes that you list above? I see one is for cupcakes, I would have to scale that one to fit into round cake pans. Thanks so much for these recipes!

 

[KrisM]

To me red velvet cake isn't what everybody makes it to be. I don't know what it is for me exactly. It just seems that the cake its either to dense or the flavor is just to pungent. It seems as if the rest of the world is just fascinated by it and I can't understand why. It's just not appealing to me. I sorta cringe at the sight of them. Although, I do eat the icing off of the cake but that is as far as I will go. I won't eat a whole cupcake. Am I the only one who feels this way about red velvet cake.?

I agree with you. It's like a chocolate cake that didn't quite get chocolatey enough.

 

[Druci]

To me red velvet cake isn't what everybody makes it to be. I don't know what it is for me exactly. It just seems that the cake its either to dense or the flavor is just to pungent. It seems as if the rest of the world is just fascinated by it and I can't understand why. It's just not appealing to me. I sorta cringe at the sight of them. Although, I do eat the icing off of the cake but that is as far as I will go. I won't eat a whole cupcake. Am I the only one who feels this way about red velvet cake.?

I feel the same way. Red Velvet cake is just not for me. The taste and texture both...ugh.

 

[Linus]

I've tried it, & I like it! to me, it gives a whole new taste to cake that' never been there! There's even an extract for it now that can be used just for that!!

 

[Linus]

I'm with you on not liking it as well. Just the concept of it puts me off and I just can't imagine eating it. I don't like the idea of a cake mix as it is, but the idea of a red chocolate cake - is that really what it is? - is alarming to say the least.

But I DO like Red Velvet Cake. I think that you misunderstood me.

 

[pastrypastaonion]

No, you are not alone in feeling this way about red velvet cake. Many people feel the same way about the cake, as it can be too dense or too intensely flavored for some people's tastes. Some people also don't like the intense red color of the cake. It's important to remember that everyone has their own tastes and preferences and that's okay. If you don't like something, don't feel like you have to eat it.

 

[Linus]

I've had it, but I haven't made it yet, which I plan to.It's sad that some of you don't like it. It is really good!! Hopefully, you'll come to like after a while. I'd have to find a recipe that's easy to make, but small, then I'd go for it. I DO have the extract for it also.

 

[shannonxmcn]

red velvet is beautiful

 

[Dasher]

To me red velvet cake isn't what everybody makes it to be. I don't know what it is for me exactly. It just seems that the cake its either to dense or the flavor is just to pungent. It seems as if the rest of the world is just fascinated by it and I can't understand why. It's just not appealing to me. I sorta cringe at the sight of them. Although, I do eat the icing off of the cake but that is as far as I will go. I won't eat a whole cupcake. Am I the only one who feels this way about red velvet cake.?

 

[Dasher]

To me red velvet cake isn't what everybody makes it to be. I don't know what it is for me exactly. It just seems that the cake its either to dense or the flavor is just to pungent. It seems as if the rest of the world is just fascinated by it and I can't understand why. It's just not appealing to me. I sorta cringe at the sight of them. Although, I do eat the icing off of the cake but that is as far as I will go. I won't eat a whole cupcake. Am I the only one who feels this way about red velvet cake.?

It appears that you need to experiment with the flavor aspect of red velvet. Try Watkins Red Velvet flavor (Found online). One tablespoon per lb., same goes with spiced rum. One tbsp per lb. Then add just about the same of amaretto, either the real deal or a flavor. My red velvet is one of the best sellers.

 

[drromvixz]

I'm with you on not liking it as well. Just the concept of it puts me off and I just can't imagine eating it. I don't like the idea of a cake mix as it is, but the idea of a red chocolate cake - is that really what it is? - is alarming to say the least.

 

[drromvixz]

I can always taste the food coloring no matter what brand or how tasteless it claims to be.