"Red" Velvet Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

Happy Birthday Little J!  

After months of nagging, I finally made these "red" velvet cupcakes for my sister and on her birthday no less.  If you're wondering what is up with the quotations around "red", well, it's because they're supposed to be red, but I decided to opt out from adding the red food colouring and so they're just regular chocolate brown.  And, since red velvet cake is usually paired with cream cheese frosting, I made a strawberry cream cheese frosting to finish them off.

The recipe for these cupcakes was taken from The Golden Book of Baking which has over 300 recipes.  This would be my second time using this book.  The first time, I made Portuguese Custard Tarts which were alright.  So far, I feel that this book gives recipes that work but are mediocre at best. 

 

Thoughts on the results:

Texture & Appearance: The cupcakes themselves didn't quite turn out to have that velvet look to them - they had quite a few air pockets making it look more like a sponge than a luxury piece of cloth.  I did however like how their dome-shape held up, which is probably due to all the flour that was used.  In terms of texture, they were somewhat moist, but fairly dense despite all the air pockets in them (which is again, probably attributed to the amount of flour used).  As for the frosting, it was a bit too thin/soft which is due to the added strawberry puree (I used 4 teaspoons), but at least it held its shape. 

Taste: A bit too sweet for my mother's liking (which is what many Asian parents would say), but I thought the sweetness level was OK.  In terms of chocolate, I find it lacks depth, but it was still alright.  Maybe the addition of some spices would give the chocolate a little more oomph.  As for the frosting, it has a slight tanginess from the cream cheese that isn't overwhelming and has a really nice strawberry flavour that reminds me of strawberry ice cream.

Would I make this again? Maybe.  I know this recipe works for a regular chocolate cupcake (not so much for a red velvet cupcake though).  So IF I really needed a chocolate cupcake with a lot of structure, I'd use this recipe again.  I did find that regular sized cupcakes were too big being domed and all, so next time, I would use a mini cupcake pan instead so that there's a good cake-to-frosting ratio.  Probably not.  The cupcakes are too dry and dense.  They are only semi-OK just after they come out of the oven.  They seem to only be good for pictures. 


"Red" Velvet Cupcakes
Makes 15 regular-sized cupcakes
Adapted from The Golden Book of Baking

300 g all-purpose flour
75 g unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
125 g unsalted butter, room temperature
300 g sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
250 ml buttermilk
2 tbsp red food colouring (optional - I left it out)
1 tbsp white vinegar


PREPARE OVEN and PANS

Preheat oven to 325 degF.  Line cupcake pans with paper cups.  

PREPARE CAKE

Combine and sift flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. 
In a separate large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium-high speed.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until just blended after each addition.  
With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the dry ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk, food colouring (if using), and vinegar.  Now by hand, scrape the bowl using a spatula or bowl scraper to ensure that all the dry ingredients have been incorporated (make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl).  

ASSEMBLE

Using an ice cream scoop, scoop and release batter into prepared pans filling approximately 3/4 the way up for each cup.  
Bake in a preheated oven for 25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool before frosting.


Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes about 2 1/2 cups


1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 oz (1/2 brick) light cream cheese
2 cups icing sugar
2-4 tsp strawberry puree
1/2 pk of Crystal Light Singles Drink Mix in Strawberry Orange Banana Flavour (optional)


In an electric mixer, beat butter and cream cheese until pale and creamy.
Using a sieve, sift icing sugar into butter-cream cheese mixture and beat until creamy.
Add drink mix (if using) to strawberry puree, then add puree 1 teaspooon at a time to frosting mixture and beat until well incorporated.  Be careful not to add too much puree as this will result in a very thin frosting which will be difficult to use for piping.