Red Velvet Cake

Red Velvet Cake - made June 10, 2017 from Spicy Southern Kitchen

So.....the original blog I got this recipe from said to sift the cake flour before measuring or else you'lll have too much flour and the cake will be dry.

True confession time: I hate sifting flour. I really do. It's messy, it's time-consuming and it just means an extra gadget (the sifter) to wash. For all-purpose flour, I use the dip and sweep method to measure. For cake flour, if the recipe calls for sifting then measuring, I just use less cake flour, about 1-2 tablespoons less for each cup of flour called for. It's almost always "close enough".

Alas, I probably shouldn't have taken the lazy baker's shortcut with this recipe. Although I only used about 2 cups of cake flour (unsifted) and thought the batter was fine, the cake, when baked, did have a slightly dry mouthfeel to it. No, I take that back. It wasn't really dry as I didn't overbake it but it wasn't as moist as I like my cakes.

The taste was fine but I prefer a more liquid batter that bakes into a more moist cake from a mouthfeel perspective. I don't know if it was because I ignored the instructions to sift then measure which means I did use too much flour or if I baked it longer than I should have (although I don't think so) but this didn't turn out quite as I had hoped.

Ah, well, lesson learned.

2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour (sift before measuring)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons red food coloring

Frosting
1 16-ounce box confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
milk, if needed, to achieve desired consistency

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 13" pan with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Sift both flours, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and vanilla on high speed for 3 to 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
4. On low speed, add sugar in a slow and steady stream. Once sugar has been incorporated, turn mixer to high speed and beat for 3 to 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
5. On medium-low speed, beat in eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until just combined.
6. Combine buttermilk and food coloring. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture, alternating with buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat until just combined; do not overmix.
7. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes until toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Cool completely before frosting.
8. For the frosting, beat confectioners sugar, butter, sour cream and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy. Add milk, one tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is achieved.