Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting – soft, moist and decadent

Red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting:

Whether you have a braai with your favourite people or a relaxing cup of tea, red velvet cake with buttery cream cheese frosting is tasty and beautiful.

Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting – soft, moist and decadent

Sometimes there’s a cake so good that it becomes a favourite all around the world. Red velvet cake is often seen as a fancy bit of baking because it takes a bit more time but it also looks and sounds like it belongs in a high-end bakery. The deep red colour contrast with the silky butter and cream cheese frosting makes it a picture to behold with every slice. The cake is traditionally coloured with beetroot which we will do in this recipe too.

Red velvet cake suggestions

You can use red food colouring but it is often too light or too dark. With beetroot, your flavour isn’t compromised as the colour stays consistent throughout. The cake is flavoured with both vanilla and chocolate making for a sweet and complex flavour. Of course, nothing is better than a cream cheese and butter frosting which deserves to be layered on in a thick slab. Enjoy this elegant cake with a cup of fragrant tea. It will certainly brighten up your afternoon.

ALSO READ: Mixed berry cheesecake

Whether you have a braai with your favourite people or a relaxing cup of tea, red velvet cake with buttery cream cheese frosting is tasty and beautiful.

Last updated on 16 November 2022

Red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting recipe

5 from 1 vote
Recipe by Jessica Alberts Course: DessertCuisine: GlobalDifficulty: Easy
Servings

12

slices
Prep time

20

minutes
Cooking time

40

minutes
Total time

1

hour 

Ingredients

  • CAKE
  • 2 2 small beetroots, grated

  • 75 ml 75 buttermilk

  • ½ tbsp ½ white wine vinegar

  • 1 tsp 1 vanilla extract

  • 125 g 125 unsalted butter, softened plus extra to grease the cake tins

  • 200 g 200 caster sugar

  • 2 2 large eggs

  • 250 g 250 flour

  • 2 tbsp 2 cocoa powder

  • tsp baking powder

  • For the cream cheese frosting
  • 125 g 125 unsalted butter, softened

  • 500 g 500 icing sugar, sifted

  • 1 tsp 1 vanilla extract

  • 175 g 175 full-fat cream cheese, room temperature

Method

  • For the cake
  • Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line 2 x cake tins with baking paper.
  • In a food processor / blender, blend the grated beetroot, buttermilk, vinegar and vanilla to purée.
  • Beat the butter and sugar together until creamy. Add the eggs one at a time and whisk well.
  • In a separate bowl, sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder and mix well.
  • Fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture until just combined.
  • Add the beetroot mixture and stir gently.
  • Pour the mixture into the prepared tins and bake for about 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • Leave to cool in tins for 30 minutes, then remove from the tins and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
  • For the cream cheese frosting
  • Beat the butter, half the icing sugar and vanilla in a large bowl until completely smooth. Add the remaining icing sugar and the cream cheese and beat well.
  • Once the cake has cooled completely you can ice it with the cream cheese frosting.

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