Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Uniquely balanced with a gentle cocoa backdrop, a hint of tang from the buttermilk and vinegar, and a smooth, buttery sweetness.
Texture: Moist and melt-in-your-mouth soft, with just enough structure to withstand generous layers of frosting.
Ease: The batter comes together in no time!!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe: It’s a tried-and-true crowd-pleaser. The red color makes it a great option for holidays like Valentine’s Day, the Fourth of July, or Christmas.
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There’s something utterly irresistible about a classic Red Velvet Cake. It feels celebratory but familiar — decadent but never heavy. The combination of cocoa, vinegar, and buttermilk gives it a truly unique flavor.
This recipe in particular makes a soft, buttery, and moist cake (the trifecta 😉). If you’ve never made red velvet before, this is the perfect place to start. The batter comes together easily, bakes up beautifully, and stays incredibly soft even after frosting!
Do you want to make cupcakes instead of a cake? Check out our Red Velvet Cupcake recipe.
Great recipe, stays moist and delicious, even stood up to me messing up the way its combined. 🙂
I baked this cake for my daughter’s birthday and it was delicious!!!!
Recipe Ingredients
While the ingredient list is on the longer side, don’t let it intimidate you. It’s all easy! Each item plays an important role in creating the cake’s signature flavor and texture. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Cream cheese and unsalted butter: Used in the cake and frosting for richness and structure. Make sure both are at room temperature for smooth mixing.
- Dry ingredients: This kitchen-tested combination of flour and leavening agents gives the cake lift and balance. Measure carefully (preferably with a scale) to avoid a dense crumb.
- Sugars: Granulated sugar sweetens and moistens the cake, while powdered sugar helps make the smooth, stable frosting.
- Egg and egg yolk: Adds richness and helps create a tender crumb.
- Vegetable oil: Keeps the cake moist even after chilling (butter is not a good substitute).
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: Just enough to give classic red velvet depth without turning it into a chocolate cake.
- Hot coffee (or boiling water): Hot liquid blooms the cocoa, bringing out its full flavor. Water works as a substitute if needed, but coffee is preferred.
- My Best Chocolate Cake is another delicious coffee-infused cake!
- Buttermilk: This helps create the tenderness and flavor. I don’t recommend substituting it, but whole milk can work in a pinch with slightly different results.
- Distilled white vinegar and vanilla extract: This recipe uses small amounts to balance the sweetness and activate the leavening process.
- Red gel food coloring: I recommend using gel food coloring over natural or liquid options. I use the Americolor or Chefmaster brands!
- Ground cinnamon (optional): This adds a subtle warmth and enhances the cocoa without being overpowering.
The Perfect Frosting
Cream Cheese Frosting is the go-to for red velvet cake because its tangy flavor complements the cake’s sweetness so well. This is the same frosting I use on my Red Velvet Cookies, and it works just as beautifully on layered cakes.
For something more sturdy or to add more detailed cake decorations, try my Best Buttercream Frosting instead.
Storing & Freezing
- Storing: The cream cheese frosting for this cake will spoil if left out for extended periods. Store the cake, covered, at room temperature for up to 6 hours, then refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: For longer storage, freeze the cake for up to 2 months. Chill until the frosting is firm, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap or place in an airtight container. If freezing the cake whole, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator before serving. Thaw individual slices in the fridge or at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
- Make-ahead: To prepare in advance, wrap the uncut, cooled cake layers tightly in several layers of plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag or airtight container. Store cake layers at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Note: A fully frozen, well-sealed cake is still safe to eat after extended freezing (like for an anniversary bite), but some quality loss is normal. Over time, moisture migrates out of the cake, resulting in a drier, slightly spongy texture. The frosting may become grainy or weepy once thawed, and freezer odors may develop.
More Cake Recipes You’ll Love
Looking for more tried-and-true cakes? Browse some of my favorite cake recipes below, perfect for birthdays, holidays, and special occasions.
FAQs
Red velvet cake is buttery, moist, and plush, with a soft, airy crumb. It has a mild chocolate flavor and subtle tang that gives it more depth than a standard vanilla cake.
Not at all — it’s got a personality all its own! Unlike chocolate cake, red velvet cake uses only a small amount of unsweetened cocoa powder. It’s just enough to add color and depth, but let the other flavors shine through. The tangy ingredients help balance the sweetness and truly set it apart.
For a red velvet recipe that’s on the more chocolatey side, try my Chocolate-Stuffed Red Velvet Cupcakes!
Vinegar enhances the subtle tangy flavor that makes red velvet cake distinct, while also playing an important role in the cake’s texture. It reacts with the baking soda, alongside the buttermilk and cocoa powder, to help create soft, tender layers.
A few key elements work together to create that perfectly moist and fluffy crumb. Oil keeps the cake moist even after chilling or refrigeration, and the tiny bit of cocoa ensures it doesn’t dry out.
Be careful not to overmix the batter, as this can prevent the crumb from turning out tender and light.
You can, but for the best results, I recommend using my Red Velvet Cupcakes recipe! It uses the same base flavors as this cake, with a few small adjustments to ensure the cupcakes bake evenly.
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Ingredients
For the cake:
- ½ cup of plain hot coffee or boiling water
- ¼ cup (21 grams) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 2 ¼ cups (279 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
- 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (109 grams) fresh vegetable oil
- 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 teaspoons red gel food coloring, plus more if needed*
- 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
For the cream cheese frosting:
- 2 sticks (227 grams) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
- 4 cups (500 grams) powdered sugar, sifted
- 16 ounces (454 grams) brick-style cream cheese, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 325°F and line three 8-inch round cake pans with parchment rounds.
- Spray parchment and sides of pans generously with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a glass measuring cup, whisk the hot coffee and cocoa powder together, then cover and let stand for 5 minutes.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, vegetable oil, and melted butter. Add in the eggs and egg yolk and whisk for around twenty seconds (or until very well combined). Add in the buttermilk, vanilla, and red food coloring and whisk to combine. Whisk in the vinegar and coffee mixture.
- Using a fine mesh sieve, sift the flour mixture into the batter in three additions, whisking until each addition is incorporated.
- Divide the batter equally between the prepared pans, then tap the bottoms of the pans against the counter several times to release any air bubbles.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Place the cake pans on cooling racks, and when they’re cool enough to touch, run a thin knife around the edges of the pans to loosen the cakes. Invert onto the wire racks and let cool completely.
For the frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened butter and sifted powdered sugar on low. Gradually increase to medium-high to prevent a sugar cloud.
- Beat for 3 minutes until the mixture is pale, light, thick, but smooth. It may look dry or crumbly at first, but keep beating until it holds together.
- Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl and paddle, then add the cream cheese and beat on medium-high for 1 minute until fluffy.
- Add the vanilla and salt and beat for 30 seconds until fully incorporated. Scrape down the bowl again as needed.
To assemble:
- Lay one cake layer flat-side up on a cake plate or pedestal. Tuck in strips of baking paper under the cake edges to keep the plate clean.
- Use about a third of the frosting to fill the bottom cake layer, then top with the second cake layer and repeat.
- Place the final cake layer flat-side up and use the remaining frosting to ice the whole cake.
Notes
This post was originally published in 2013 and updated in 2022 with recipe improvements and new photos. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
We made it for my daughters b-day and everybody loved it!
So excited to hear that, Lebaron!! And happy birthday to your daughter 🙂
I made this cake today for my birthday. I was absolutely delicious! Best Red Velvet cake receipt I have ever tasted. I did make one small change and used cake flower instead of all purpose flour. In all of the recipes I have tried, I have found that cake flour makes it better.
Thanks Tessa for posting. This will definitely go in my cookbook as a keeper.
Pat from Brenham, Texas
Happy birthday, Pat! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed this cake!! 🙂
This recipe was AMAZING. I made it gluten free and non-dairy. The only substitutions was as follows:
I used Steve’s Gluten Free Cake Flour Blend. For the buttermilk, I used 1 cup of whole oat milk (room temperature) mixed with 1 tablespoon of distilled vinegar. I let it sit for 10 minutes. For the cream cheese, I used Better than Cream Cheese.
The cake was superb. It freezes well too!
So happy to hear you found this cake to be delicious, Sandra!! Glad those substitutions worked for you!
Absolutely the best red velvet cake we ever ate.. the only thing i did different was used 4 cream cheeses and it would have been plenty with 3 but not enough for me with only 2.. Will definitely be writting this one down in the books
So glad you found this cake delicious, Rebecka!!
This recipe was super easy to make and was so moist! Can you tell me how many cups of batter this yields? Trying to figure out how many recipes I will need to make to fill a 12 inch pan. Thanks so much!!!
Hi Laurie! I’m sorry but in all our testing for this delicious recipe, we did not measure how many cups of batter this makes! If it helps at all, we did note that the final batter weighs 1,416 grams (almost 50 oz). I hope that helps!
This is the best red velvet cake recipe I’ve made so far! Great taste and texture. My family loved it.
COLOURING: I used about 1/4 teaspoon Wilton red gel food colouring which was enough to give the cake a nice red colour. Doesn’t need the whole 3/4 teaspoons of colouring.
COFFEE: I usually opt for just hot water in recipes that call for coffee but I decided to try using decaf coffee in this; while the raw batter definitely tasted like coffee, I was happy that the coffee flavour did not come through in the baked cake.
ICING: I had a lot of icing left over, that being said I could have put more in between the layers.
PANS: This was my first time making a 3 layer cake and I only had 2 pans so I covered the excess batter with plastic wrap (directly on top) to prevent the air from escaping while the rest baked… it worked but I think I will be investing in another pan for the next time I make this 🙂
Hi Krista!! I’m so glad you enjoyed this red velvet cake so much!! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback! 🙂
This was the absolute best red velvet cake that I’ve ever made! I’m a huge baking snob and every recipe that I use has to have something special to make it stand out and this meets all of my requirements! I accidentally used a 10 inch pan, making the cake thinner than I would have liked, but it still tasted the same. It was so good that my family began to argue about who was getting a piece since there wasn’t enough for everyone! Next time I may double the batch just to keep the peace lol!
Hi Delaney! I’m so excited to hear that you and your family loved this red velvet cake so much!! Thanks so much for the comment 🙂
Can I bake this in a Bundt pan?
Hi Raadhiya! We haven’t tried that, so I can’t say for sure! This recipe calls for three 8-inch cake pans. Baking all the batter in one bundt pan may result in a dry cake, since it would be a much longer bake time, and you wouldn’t be able to layer the cake with the frosting in-between the same way. You can experiment and give it a try, but I honestly don’t know how well it will work. Good luck!
I made this recipe in a bundt pan and it came out delicious!
Hi!! I decided to make this for a friend’s birthday who loves red velvet cake. What color red should I purchase from the brand Americolor?
Hi Dawn! When making this Red Velvet cake, Tessa generally uses Americolor’s red gel dye called Super Red, but there are a few similar colors, such as Red Red, Electric Red or Tulip Red, all of which should work just fine, too! You should be able to find all these options on Amazon, or at your local cake supply store! Let us know what you think of the cake once you have tried it out! Happy baking! 🙂
Our friend’s mom (who passed a few months ago) used to make this cake (his favorite) for his birthday. I wasn’t expecting it to be like hers but thought I’d make the effort. He said, looking up, “Sorry Mom. This one is the best red velvet cake EVER.” I followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect. So moist and flavorful! Everyone (there are 6 of us that gather) wants it for their birthdays. I will say that there needs to be more frosting. As directed, it barely filled 2 layers while leaving enough for the top and sides. Maybe a another 8 oz of cream cheese? I’ll try that next time. I’d rather have too much than have to skimp between layers. Also, just fyi – it was a very hot day (110 degrees outside) so even with the air conditioning going, I had to refrigerate the frosting so the layers wouldn’t slide off. Once firmed up in the frig, it worked fine. This will be my “go-to” red velvet cake recipe from now on!
Hi Elena! What a sweet story! I’m so happy this recipe could help brighten your friend’s birthday, and I’m sure his mom would love that you made such an effort! Thank you also for the feedback about the frosting!
Can this be made with cake flour or is the gluten protein too low for it? This cake does not seem to be too heavy, just wondering.
Why use coffee? This is not a true chocolate cake I know that coffee enhances the taste of chocolate.
I am from the Deep South we are very familiar with Red Velvet cake.
Hi Linda! The coffee helps to enhance that hint of chocolate flavor, and the heat of the liquid helps to ‘bloom’ the cocoa, bringing out its full flavor. If you prefer, though, you can just use hot water instead of the coffee! As for the cake flour, we have not tried this recipe with cake flour, but I think it would make this already-delicate cake far too delicate. You can absolutely try it out for yourself, but I would recommend sticking with the all-purpose flour for the added structure the extra protein gives! I hope that helps! Happy baking 🙂
The best red velvet ever
So glad you loved this cake, Iveta!