- Prep15 min
- Bake18–20 min
- Makes12
Our best-selling cupcake since day one
This is my red velvet cupcake recipe, and there's just something so irresistible about it. Red velvet has been our best-selling cupcake flavour since we first opened the doors to Brooki, so there was no better recipe to share with you.
Done right, red velvet is a soft, perfectly balanced sponge with a hint of cocoa, topped with glossy cream cheese frosting. Most recipes are much the same, but a few baker's tips make the difference between homemade and bakery quality, every time.
Why this red velvet cupcake recipe works
A great red velvet is all about the crumb: soft, fine and moist for days. This recipe is built for exactly that.
Butter and oil. Butter for flavour, oil for a sponge that stays soft long after it's baked. Buttermilk and vinegar. They react with the bicarb to give you lift and a tender, velvety crumb. A little cornflour. Two tablespoons keeps the texture fine and light. Just a hint of cocoa. Red velvet isn't a chocolate cupcake. It's a whisper of cocoa that sits behind the vanilla and the tang of the frosting.
Cocoa forms little clumps that won't break down in mixing, and they end up as clumps in your cupcake.
Room temperature eggs, butter and buttermilk give you a smooth, even batter.
It gives you that bakery crumb. Find it near the milk, or make your own at home in about a minute.
Gel gives a strong red. We recommend Americolor or Chef Master.
Red velvet does better at a lower temperature than most cakes. If your oven runs hot, drop it another 5 degrees so the sponge doesn't rise too fast.
The recipe
Makes 12 cupcakes.
Ingredients
For the cupcakes
For the cream cheese frosting
Method
-
1
Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F). Line a 12-cup cupcake pan with liners. White is fine, but red gives them an extra pop.
-
2
Place the flour, cornflour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt in a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
-
3
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on high until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl, then slowly pour in the oil and beat on low until combined.
About 5 min -
4
Beat in the eggs, vanilla, vinegar and food colouring on low until just combined. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the buttermilk, mixing on low until just combined.
-
5
Use an ice-cream scoop to portion the batter evenly between the liners, filling each a little over halfway. No scoop? Two metal spoons work fine (see how). Bake until the tops spring back when lightly pressed, checking from 16 minutes if your oven runs hot.
18–20 min -
6
For the frosting, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium until smooth. Add the vanilla, then the icing sugar slowly on low. Increase to high and whip until light, fluffy, glossy and silky smooth. Ice the cupcakes once completely cool.
3–5 min
Baker's note: ice only once the cupcakes are completely cool to touch. Any warmth and the cream cheese frosting will slide.
Substitutions
Buttermilk: no buttermilk in the fridge? Here's how to make your own in about a minute.
Food colouring: stick with gel. Liquid colouring needs so much to get a true red that it thins the batter, and you'll still end up with a brownish crumb.
Oil: any neutral oil works, like vegetable, canola or sunflower.
Frosting: not a cream cheese person? Swap it for the Brooki buttercream we use on every cake.
Troubleshooting
Usually they were slightly underbaked, the oven door was opened too early, or the oven ran hot so they rose too fast and collapsed. An oven thermometer will tell you which.
Liquid colouring, or not enough of it. Use a good red gel, like Americolor or Chef Master.
Almost always overbaking. Start checking from 16 minutes, and take them out as soon as the tops spring back.
The cream cheese was too warm, or the cupcakes weren't fully cool. Use full-fat block cream cheese (not the spreadable tub), and if it's soft, chill the frosting for 15 minutes before piping.
How to store red velvet cupcakes
Once iced, keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days, as cream cheese frosting needs to stay cold. Take them out 20 to 30 minutes before serving so the sponge is soft again.
Un-iced cupcakes freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw them at room temperature, then ice on the day.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, once they're iced. Cream cheese frosting should be kept in the fridge. Bring them back to room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before eating.
Yes. Bake them the day before, store them un-iced in an airtight container, and ice them on the day.
Vinegar and buttermilk are both acidic. They react with the bicarbonate of soda to help the cupcakes rise and give red velvet its soft, tender crumb. You won't taste it.
Room temperature cream cheese and butter, sifted icing sugar added slowly, then a few minutes on high at the end. That final whip is what makes it shine.
Of course. Our Brooki buttercream works beautifully on these.
Rather we baked them?
Red velvet has been our best-selling cupcake since the day we opened. Order them for pick up, or find 100 more recipes in Bake with Brooki.
They're all in Bake with Brooki: 100 recipes, 304 pages and more than 350,000 copies sold worldwide.
- Australia: signed limited edition, direct from Brooki
- United Kingdom: buy on Amazon UK
- United States: buy on Amazon US
Rather learn by watching? Bake with Brooki online baking classes
