VELVET CAKE

Red velvet cake is the United States recipe which is well familiar worldwide. The specialty of this cake is its red velvet appearance and can also be reddish brown color. The ingredient which makes it different from other cakes is the presence of vinegar in it. Yes! It contains vinegar, which is added so because it makes the color of anthocyanin prominent. Anthocyanin is a red coloring pigment. The recipe as mentioned contains coco powder which is brown in color whether you add pigment the color is a mixed tinge of red and brown, but when vinegar is added the red color is prominent because of the anthocyanin present in cocoa. Also the added vinegar keeps the cake moist and fluffy.

INGREDIENTS:                                                     

All-purpose flour 2 1/2 cups

Castor Sugar 2 cups

Baking Powder 2 teaspoons

Baking soda 1/2 teaspoon

Eggs 3

Cocoa powder 1/4 cup

Vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon

Milk 1 cup

Red food color 1/2 teaspoon

Butter 1/2 cup

Oil 1/4 cup

Baking tin 9 inches in size

FOR TOPPING:

Icing sugar 1//4 cup

Double Cream 200ml

Almonds 8 to garnish

Desiccated coconut 3tablespoons to garnish

Vanilla Extract 1/4 teaspoon

METHOD

·         First of all, pre-heat oven at 180⁰c for 15 minutes and keep the cream 2 hours earlier in the refrigerator.

·         Sieve all the dry ingredients and mix them together such as baking powder, baking soda, and all-purpose flour, do not mix castor sugar now.

·         In the milk, dissolve the red dye in another container.

·         Beat the eggs, butter, oil and castor sugar together in another bowl, and add in it the colored milk, mix well again.

·         Now add the dry ingredients to the bowl containing the beaten mixture add a little portion at a time and fold together the all.

·         Grease the pan and transfer the content in it.

·         Place in oven and bake for about 25 minutes in the preheated oven.

·         After 25 minutes, take it out of oven, and insert the toothpick inside the cake, if it comes out clean, it means the cake is ready, if it is not clean then bake for further 5 minutes.

·         Now allow it to cool for about 20 minutes, meantime whip the cream with the beater also add the icing sugar and vanilla extract in it, placing ice bowl at the bottom.

·         When it transforms to thick, halve the cake and spread the cream in the center, which is sandwich between the two layers of the cake.

·         Cover the whole cake with the cream.

·         Garnish with almonds and desiccated coconut.

·         Keep in the freezer and serve cold.

YOU MUST KNOW

While preparing cream for covering the cake, be careful to keep it inside the conducting material such as material made of aluminium or steel.

You can also use cream cheese in spite of double cream for topping.

The butter milk is used in making of velvet cake, I simply added milk. For butter milk you will require 1 cup of milk, add in it 3 tablespoons of vinegar, mix it well with the mixer and add the red color in it, while the rest of the procedure is same.

I wanted to know what if I won’t use vinegar! Yes, I find my experiment very useful as you all can see, it is reddish brown, and the color is masked by brown color of cocoa powder. Now, I am approved in my own eyes in accepting the vinegar as a foremost ingredient in velvet cake.   I hope you find it useful.