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Cake: Red Velvet Cake
Appears in
Published 2004
Red velvet is a traditional American layer cake with a light and moist texture, red coloring that ranges from deep maroon to bright red, mild chocolate or vanilla flavor, and thick white filling and frosting such as cream cheese or buttercream. Garnishes include chopped pecans, cake crumbs, or coconut flakes. It is typically served at a celebration or holiday meal.
Recipes for red velvet cake typically call for cocoa, which naturally contains the red pigment anthocyanin. When cooked with buttermilk and vinegar—both traditional and acidic ingredients—the cocoa’s pigment appears redder, tinting the cake; however, red food coloring is almost always added to enhance red velvet’s characteristic hue.